<p>Hello, so I am seriously considering a major in international relations. Is it difficult to find a job with this major? Recently all I have heard from people is that the only good majors are in the maths and sciences, but I have very little interest in the maths and sciences. I love learning about different countries' cultures, governments and history. My major goal is to work in an embassy somewhere in the Middle East, as I am incredibly interested in the Middle East. I would prefer double major in international relations and arabic, with a minor in middle eastern studies. My best subjects in school are history, english and foreign lanquage (Latin). Is this a bad idea? Would it be hard for me to get a job? What sort of colleges should I go to? Thanks a ton for the help, all feedback is greatly appreciated :)</p>
<p>Buuummmppp</p>
<p>Sounds like a solid plan. One of my friends is doubling our school’s version of IR with Econ.</p>
<p>I would recommend learning Turkish as well if you want to work in that region.</p>
<p>^^No, it’s not a bad idea. It is very competitive to get a job in the Foreign Service, however.</p>
<p>Many schools offer majors in IR, either as a standalone interdisciplinary major or as a subfield of political science, so focus on schools that have strong programs in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies. What schools you should go to depend on your stats, your finances, and your personal preferences (location, size, etc.).</p>
<p>The following are good in Arabic and/or ME Studies:
Columbia, Duke, George Washington, Harvard, Princeton, Indiana, NYU, Georgetown, Ohio State, Michigan, Arizona, Berkeley, UCLA, UWashington, North Carolina, Penn, Texas, Chicago, Michigan State, Maryland</p>
<p>Consider one of the Arabic flagship programs:
[The</a> Language Flagship - Arabic](<a href=“http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/arabic]The”>http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/arabic)</p>
<p>^XaviFM’s suggestion to study Turkish is worth considering. Lots of students are studying Arabic, but fewer study Turkish or Persian. Another language to consider is Urdu if you have an interest in Pakistan. For that, look at schools with good South Asian Studies programs (e.g., Columbia, Cornell, Berkeley, Chicago, Michigan, Penn, Texas, U Washington, Wisconsin). Texas has a flagship program in Hindi-Urdu.</p>
<p>Also, remember that there are a variety of different means by which to study the middle east. I am studying the middle east right now through an economic perspective based upon Roger Owen’s work in Egypt and Pamuk’s work in Turkey. There are IR perspectives, sociology perspectives, shoot, I know someone whose disciplinary focus is on Psychology who is doing some pretty cool things on how the Middle east deals with mental health.</p>
<p>One could literally look at the same issue from the same area and come up with different perspectives based upon whether they’re a historian, linguist or an anthropologist.</p>
<p>Here at the University of Washington the Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations department draws from the Jackson School of International Studies, Sociology, Anthropology, History, Economics, Religion, Literature as well as from it’s own area studies classes. A reputable program will do similarly, as I believe (but am not 100% certain) that most of these programs are based upon either Princeton or U Chicago’s groundbreaking centers.</p>
<p>Wow, thanks for all the information! I noticed that many of the schools you guys have mentioned are larger non liberal arts schools. Are liberal arts schools not as good for these sort of majors/minors? Or do these large schools just happen to be very good at these majors?</p>
<p>IR is quite a competitive field, and your job prospects can be influenced by your connections and networking skills just as much (if not more) than your academic performance. If you’re looking to work in an embassy, you’ll probably be looking to join the foreign service after college. Entry into that is very competitive, and you can’t expect to be sent to your most desired destination for quite a while. </p>
<p>If I might give a shameless plug, Tufts is a wonderful school for IR and Middle Eastern Studies. The IR department itself is top-notch, the Arabic instruction is quite vigorous, and you have some amazing opportunities here to immerse yourself in the field as an early undergraduate. There’s an organisation here called NIMEP (New Initiative for Middle Eastern Peace) which has weekly meetings in which they discuss matters of Middle Eastern relevance. So much of the conversation I’ve heard there is of a stunning intellectual calibre. You have the opportunity to learn so much from your peers here. NIMEP also has a yearly research trip to the Middle East where students do some pretty fantastic stuff. This year it was to Tunisia, other years it’s been to Israel, Lebanon, and even Iran. Tufts also frequently draws some pretty prestigious people in to do lectures.<br>
I will note, however, that by virtue of being a smaller school, Tufts is not able to offer the languages that larger schools are. It’s pretty much only Arabic here (although Hindi is being very seriously entertained). No Farsi or Turkish.
Other LAC-type places with great IR programmes include Bowdoin College in Maine, Claremont McKenna College in the LA area, and Carleton and Macalester Colleges in Minnesota. I’m sure there are others, just listing the ones I can think of off the top of my head!</p>
<p>Learn a language and a culture, and get some contacts in that culture. You will be invaluable.</p>
<p>I don’t know if you’re averse to Israel, but this is a reputable program:</p>
<p>[Lauder</a> School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy - IDC Herzliya](<a href=“http://portal.idc.ac.il/en/schools/Government/HomePage/Pages/Homepage2.aspx]Lauder”>http://portal.idc.ac.il/en/schools/Government/HomePage/Pages/Homepage2.aspx)</p>
<p>I want to do something similar to that. I’m most likely doing an internship in Tunisia next summer or the summer after that. (I am a freshman) This is only because I have connections though</p>
<p>Oh nice. Tunisia is an exciting place right now. Sounds like you have some good stuff going.</p>
<p>would you mind reading my post? I joined this morning, and need some advice haha. The name of it is:
“Chances to any top school (especially Stanford) Please give me advice!”</p>