Message from the Director

Since its inception, the International Relations Program at Tufts University has devoted itself to two intertwined objectives: the promotion of responsible, engaged citizenship through international education and dialogue, and the fostering of intellectual excellence through a curriculum that integrates disciplines in the social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences without compromising academic rigor. In the process it has grown into one of Tufts' most popular majors, and earned an admirable reputation that extends well beyond Tufts.

Today both components of the Program's dual mission are being put to the challenge. Under President Tony Monaco’s leadership, the university as a whole has embarked on a major drive to further raise our collective level of academic excellence. The troubled conditions of our time, meanwhile, call out for a new generation of leaders dedicated to public service, educated in the dynamics and analytics of deepening globalization, and proficient in foreign languages and cultures. The International Relations Program must rise to both challenges by attracting and highlighting faculty who combine cutting edge scholarship with innovative curricula appropriate to the needs of today's students.

Working together, the students, faculty and staff of International Relations will meet those challenges, and in doing so ensure that our Program continues to earn the prominent reputation it has acquired.

Drusilla Brown
Director, International Relations Program

Background

The International Relations Program at Tufts University was created in 1977 with the express purpose of preparing undergraduates for the rigors of graduate school in international relations. In that inaugural year under its first director, Professor John S. Gibson of the Political Science Department, the Program enrolled 27 students. Today, with over 600 declared majors and an international reputation, the IR Program has become one of Tufts University's most popular undergraduate concentrations.

Yet its popularity has not prevented the Program from delivering the hallmark of a Tufts education—small class sizes allowing for individual faculty attention to students. This is due in no small measure to the inclusiveness of Tufts' approach to international relations. An interdisciplinary major, the Program draws upon the strengths of 18 related departments and programs. Additionally, the IR Program has a staff dedicated to keeping the students and faculty informed and prepared to navigate the rigorous program.

 Academic Mission

The International Relations Program at Tufts University offers a course of study for undergraduate students with a primary interest in international and regional studies. The field of international relations includes the study of:

• The history, politics, economics, and cultures of regional systems around the world
• International economics
• Global health, nutrition, and the environment as they relate to international relations
• The causes and consequences of war and the conditions for peace
• The role of the United States in world affairs
• The role played by personal and group affinities in shaping the identities that bear upon international conflict and cooperation
  

A major in international relations is therefore interdisciplinary. However, it should not be conceived simply as an agglomeration of knowledge from several fields. Rather, both faculty and students in international relations strive to compare and integrate the methodologies and evidence they acquire in different disciplinary settings as they seek answers to similar questions.