International Studies Major Spring Courses 2010 Click here for a listing of the Spring 2010 classes approved for the International Studies Major
 Colby's International Studies major challenges you to investigate global issues from a variety of perspectives. We believe that understanding the changing face of the European community, instability in Mexico, or the dramatic changes in China and Russia demand an appreciation of anthropolgy, politics, history, and economics. The major requires that you gain expertise in more than one geographic area, and deepen your understanding of how international policy is made. Courses on the environment, international institutions, trade, and finance prepare you to analyze the world around you. Competency in a foreign language is required, not only because language skills are your global passport, but because the study of language deepens your cultural understanding. More... |
It is important that you test your classroom learning abroad. Over the past two years our majors have studied in a variety of countries including Morocco, Chile, Brazil, China, and Japan, in addition to the European nations. For example, Colby course work on international organizations has informed the study of the European Parliament, and the anthropology of gender has been applied to a study of women's cooperatives in Ecuador. When majors return to Colby, a senior seminar or a semester-long independent study project helps tie together areas of interest. Some seniors undertake an honors project under the close supervision of one or two faculty members.
Our international studies advisory board is composed of faculty from history, government, anthropology, economics, sociology, and the languages. Advanced students often have the opportunity to work with faculty on their research projects, studying issues such as ecological change in Africa, the military in Latin America, or economic sanctions in foreign policy. Students have a voice in the program through class-year student representatives, and students and faculty often come together for a meal or a lecture on international affairs.
International studies majors pursue careers in public policy, government, economics, public service, diplomacy, and international business, as well as academic careers with an international focus. You will find Colby graduates in the Peace Corps, the State Department, policy institutes, international banking, commerce and the academy. |  |
Coming Up: This semester's fourth IS lunchtime colloquium. Prof. Janette Bulkan, IS-ES Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow: Moving a mountain: Influencing a Recalcitrant National Government, Wednesday, November 18th, 12:00 in Foss. Prof. Guillermo Vuletin spoke about Unsticking the flypaper effect, Wednesday, November 4th, 12:00 in Foss. Prof. Walter Hatch spoke about "More like US? The Party-state and Civil Society in China" Wednesday October 28th 12:30 in Foss
Professor Jennifer Yoder spoke about “Germany after the Election: The Political Party Landscape and the Continuing Integration of Eastern and Western Germany” Wednesday, October 7th 12:00 in Foss.
International Studies Lunchtime Colloquia 2009-2010 Prof. Janette Bulkan, IS-ES Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow: Moving a mountain: influencing a recalcitrant national government, Wednesday, November 18th, 12:00 in Foss.
Prof. Kim Besio, Department of East Asian Studies: Playing with Porcelain: What Porcelain decoration can tell us about Chinese drama and Western conceptions of China in the 16th-18th
centuries, Wednesday, December 2nd, 12:00 in Foss |
