if I plan to do a Masters in IR: Government vs. IR undergrad?

College Majors
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I'm trying to decide between two schools right now- UT and UNT. I want to eventually do a masters in International Relations, but I can't decide on what I want to do for a Bachelor's in the meantime.</p>

<p>UT- I want to go to this school real badly, but it does not have an IR undergrad major. It only has Government with varius minors available.</p>

<p>UNT- my back-up plan... It has an International Studies major with specific concentrations.</p>

<p>Both are decent schools, with UT being arguably a bit better, but I can't decide which is the wiser choice. Do I go to my dream school and major in a general government undergrad, or do I go to my second-choice school and major in the specific thing I want?</p>

<p>I'm afraid of not making it to graduate school, so what if I get stuck with a lame Government degree when I really wanted an International Relations degree of some kind?</p>

<p>What if I choose the IS degree, but I'm not happy at UNT because it was my dream to live in Austin and attend UT?</p>

<p>I'm just not sure if a general government degree is a wise choice. Although, it will inspire to work harder so that I can eventually get an IR Masters... if I go with the IS degree at UNT it might be too easy to give up or push off getting into grad school because I'll already have a degree in something I wanted.</p>

<p>Of course, it looks like I can gear the Government undergrad towards IR-related classes at UT. So I'd gain more specialized knowledge, but as far as I know Diplomas don't say "BA in Government but mostly took IR-related classes." </p>

<p>So... What do y'all think? Government or IR undergrad?</p>

2

<p>Go to the better school. If you got into UTA, go there. Your entire major is going to be 1/4 of your UG credits at the most, so it looks a lot better to go to your state flagship.</p>

3

<p>UT is a much better school than UNT, so that should be your choice, whether or not it has an IR major. Actually, however, UT does have an IR & Global Studies major, so I’m not sure why lots of people think it doesn’t. <a href=“International Relations and Global Studies | Liberal Arts | UT - Austin”>International Relations and Global Studies | Liberal Arts | UT - Austin;

<p>UT also has several strong language and area studies programs, any one of which could be a very appropriate background for a graduate program in IR.</p>

4

<p>^ Wow, thanks for the link! I’ve googled this so many times, why is this page so hard to find?</p>

5

<p>"…why is this page so hard to find?"</p>

<p>It’s a test. If a potential IR major can’t find it, might have trouble finding China on a map?
Just kidding, of course…in general, there are lots of things that are hard to find on the UT website.</p>