Is an undergraduate degree in International Relations a good path to a career in IR

College Search & Selection
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<p>My S is Sr in HS and would like to follow the IR path. We have noticed that most of the IR programs offered are at Grad level. Is it prudent to attend an undergraduate IR program or would it be better to major in some other field (liberal arts) before pursuing IR at the GRAD level?
Which major would be a good fit at the undergraduate level to transition smoothly into a good IR GRAD program?</p>

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<p>There are definitely IR programs for undergrads, but if you can’t find one that fits your criteria Political Science, Geography or History majors are generic alternative that should get you into a Graduate program in IR.</p>

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<p>See my post in this thread:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/other-college-majors/902677-political-science-vs-international-relations.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/other-college-majors/902677-political-science-vs-international-relations.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>and in this thread:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/749245-undergraduate-foreign-policy-schools.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/749245-undergraduate-foreign-policy-schools.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>There are many undergraduate IR programs. These programs have confusing variety of titles and offer a confusing variety of majors, minors, and certificates. They are not the only pathways to a graduate/professional school program in IR, or to an international career.</p>

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<p>I live in a developing country and interact a lot with people who work for governmental agencies, NGOs and the consulting firms that connect them to each other. The one factor that these people seem to have in common, other than a high energy level and an overarching interest in global affairs, are their excellent and diverse educations. There’s no consistent thread to their undergraduate experiences. Large, small; State, private; elite, populist – they’re all churning out global citizens.</p>

<p>The key to me is not an undergraduate IR program per se, but the opportunities for summer jobs and internships. Once you get into the international agency network, whether it’s government, NGO or consulting, doors open. </p>

<p>Colleges that are located in Washington are known to have good connections as are colleges with the strongest IR programs, like Tufts, Princeton and JHU. However, as a general statement, I would say that all academically rigorous colleges send graduates to the top IR graduate programs, even if they don’t offer the IR major themselves. This is particularly true of LACs which have a reputation for maintaining strong alumni networks and for offering close faculty/student relationships.</p>

<p>For example, look at the undergraduate experience of the last four US ambassadors to my host county – all of whom are accomplished career diplomats: UCDavis, Princeton, GWU, Colby. </p>

<p>I’d suggest that your son target academically rigorous schools that fits his personality preference and then start building connections through personal relationships with professors, internships and summer jobs, foreign travel and study abroad and language study appropriate to the geographic area he’s interested in.</p>

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<p>Majors to consider:</p>

<p>Ethnic Studies( Asian Studies, Latino Studies )
Political Science
Anthropology
Geography</p>