So I was wondering if anyone could offer some insight into what their experience was with the International Relations Program / Political Science Program at CSU? I’m currently a high school senior and am planning to attend CSU next fall. Ideally, I would like to double major in International Studies (Asian Concentration) and Political Science, as well as double minor in French and Japanese (don’t worry, I’m an IB student, so as long as my exams go well I’ll be coming in with a lot of credit). I’m very passionate about the international world and want an education that satisfies that passion. Is that something I can get from CSU’s program?
As a side note, I do intend to go to graduate school. My dream graduate school would be Georgetown University. With an undergraduate background at CSU, would I be prepared for study at Georgetown?
You might want to major in Chinese or Arabic (even Farsi) and minor in international relations. French, unless you love it so much or love the 17th and 18th century literature, might end up a career-choice disappointment–Spanish is far more relevant in todays’s / tomorrow’s world and the rarer Chinese or Arabic competency so high in demand for the foreseeable future. Japanese has limited career versatility now, unlike the 1970s and 1980s heyday. As an undergraduate, the hard skills of advanced language competency in a language in high demand will open more doors (including a Georgetown interest) than a generic liberal arts degree with French (unemployment line, anyone?) and Japanese (30 years too late to the party). The time to focus academically on international relations would be graduate school. Go for the hard skills development first, area concentration your personal interest and a minor. Also check out the Boren Scholarships offered by the US Government–they pay you to study abroad and in a language critical to the US government (which also means for business). Don’t forget to take as many classes as possible in coding and neuroscience when you have a chance.