<p>I am interested in majoring in IS but does a current student know/hear about how demanding the major is?
I do NOT mind working hard but many people make it seem like JHU's coursework is hard just for the sake of being hard.
i want to be intellectually enriched without being drained out.</p>
<p>I am a freshman and majoring in IS (as well as Global Environmental Change and Sustainability). So far, I have enjoyed the classes and I have found it easy to satisfy the requirements since there is a lot of flexibility (my GECS classes satisfy some of the IS requirements). I took Contemporary International Politics first semester and that was my absolutely favorite class. I didn’t find it to be extremely difficult. Sure, there was a lot of reading (it’s very reading intensive), but it was interesting. Additionally, my grades didn’t suffer when I wasn’t able to do some of the reading or couldn’t keep up - I finished that class with an A-. If you have any questions regarding the requirements, curriculum, professors, etc…fire away!</p>
<p>From what I know it’s a challenging major because there are a lot of math/econ requirements which can be challenging for students. It is reading and writing intensive and the language requirement can be difficult for students to meet. That said, it is one of the most interdisciplinary majors JHU offers and the graduates are incredibly well prepared at graduation.</p>
<p>okay thanks. I dont mind working hard. I just need an enriching,well rounded field of study.</p>
<p>You definitely will not be disappointed. As wealthofinformation said, it’s interdisciplinary and therefore covers many courses outside of just political science or history - check it out: [JHU</a> International Studies Program Major Requirements](<a href=“http://sites.jhu.edu/international/major_requirements.html]JHU”>http://sites.jhu.edu/international/major_requirements.html). As you can see, this field of study is very well rounded and I am certain you will find it to be quite interesting 
I love it!</p>
<p>IS is easy when compared to the pre-med/engineering. </p>
<p>There is lots of assigned reading in many classes, but you will find that a lot of students do not complete all of the reading. I’m not sure if this is a good or bad thing. Seminar classes based on discussion can be embarrassingly ugly when only a few students have taken the time to do the reading. If you really want to drain yourself out, then you can do all of the assigned reading (which sometimes amounts to about a book a week per class) or you can simply read the front and the back of the book and find a few summaries/book reviews online. If you do the latter, I suspect your experience will be less “intellectually enriching”. </p>
<p>I’m still rather confused as to why professors assign so much reading knowing all too well that less than 10% of the students will actually read it all. </p>
<p>The curriculum is very flexible, general education requirements can be filled with many subjects. </p>
<p>If you find the right professors, you can maintain a high GPA by working hard. </p>
<p>Generally, I would say that non-STEM students are weaker, all things considered. Don’t take this personally, but this is my general impression.</p>
<p>^^ A lot of this is true. But I’ll add some caveats.</p>
<p>You can definitely earn A’s if you work hard - which doesn’t always mean doing all the reading. It means being informed and knowing about what you’re talking about when you’re writing papers or discussing topics in class. </p>
<p>I would have to disagree than the science/engineering students are smarter ( I think this is what you’re implying). I think that both types of students at Hopkins are smart but have different areas of speciality and interest. </p>
<p>Most humanities/social science students at Hopkins are much more well-versed in international politics, speak multiple languages, and tend to be more involved outside of class with music, arts, leadership, greek life, etc. </p>
<p>I think many of the science/engineering students go through a different process in how they are graded and evaluated in their classes - answers are much more absolute and there is a line drawn on what is right and what is wrong. This is demanding in a different way. </p>
<p>I think the best students at Hopkins are the ones who manage to successfully combine both interests in the sciences/engineering as well as the humanities and social sciences and continue to be involved in sports, arts, volunteering etc. </p>
<p>I think when you look at the placement into graduate programs, both humanities/social sciences as well as science/engineering students do very well coming from Hopkins. Two of my close friends who graduated from JHU finished their PHD’s at Stanford and Yale in humanities departments. </p>
<p>So, ultimately, the students are equally strong in their disciplines - they’re just different.</p>
<p>^welp, you certainly are a wealth of information.</p>
<p>I am an incoming first year college who plans to get the degree of International Studies major in American studies here in the Philippines. Im so confused to either take the course or not for Im afraid I might fail it. I need motivations and encouragement thinking it would be an easy one to take.I know I must not get nervous and be confident instead,but, im hearing things that it is really a “very hard” one. Im a person who gets discouragement deeply and who’s not really into “not minding” the fact that it has given me chills. I am entering the true world and I admit Im not that ready yet.</p>
<p>Can you give me a brief background of the course im willing to take? Is determination and perseverance enough? I just so want it because I love to learn more about the history of America. Besides, it will also help me to be more fluent in the language itself. Right? Have read that in some blogs about it. What kind of job could I get in the future, aside from being a teacher in international? :))</p>
<p>Iamright is clearly an engineering student who’s acting tough. </p>
<p>I am both an Applied Math and International studies and I can honestly say that my hardest classes have been mainly for my IS major. However, my best grades are in IS as well. The classes are really interesting and you do NOT need to do every reading in order to have an enriching experience. I generally, read the title, the first few pages, a few pages in the middle, and skim the rest. That’s all you need to do. That way each person ends up reading different parts and can have a nice discussion. The TAs and professors are really friendly and fair and are really interested in their subject.</p>
<p>The IS program at Hopkins is extremely well-balanced and is easily one of the best structured programs at Hopkins. It’s rigid enough to make sure you get a well-rounded education, but flexible enough to let you choose what path/concentration you want to take.</p>