<p>I'm torn between an Economics, Political Science, or an International Relations Major. I know I want to eventually work abroad in Europe in either a governmental or non-governmental organization. I've done a lot of research on this subject, but still cannot determine which major would provide me the most opportunities for obtaining a job overseas. I'm pretty strong in Spanish and I plan to learn French in college next year. Then I want to study abroad for a year to gain some international experience while improving my French.</p>
<p>So my question is... which major path would provide me the most opportunities for finding work abroad in organizations such as the UN, NATO, EU, and/or other organizations. I understand graduate school would be required.</p>
<p>Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!</p>
<p>It depends what kind of job you want? All of those organizations hire a bunch of different types of people. IR sounds like it might be good for you, though.</p>
<p>More importantly, GET REALLY GOOD AT YOUR LANGUAGES. It is really very important.</p>
<p>For sure, an economics degree will be the most versatile and give you the strongest skillset. You can always use electives to take some courses in political science and international relations. If you plan to do graduate work in economics, you will need a strong background in math beyond the minimal requirements of calculus and statistics. If you plan to do graduate study in a professional school (e.g., public policy, international relations, political science, area studies, business), you won’t need as much math. You probably can enter a grad program in political science or IR with an undergrad economics major, but it would be unlikely an under political science or IR major would give you the necessary preparation to enter a grad program in economics.</p>
<p>You also can double major or do a major/minor combination with economics and political science or international relations. Though some IR programs offer a track in international economics, I think you’d be better off getting a straight economics major since this will give you a broader and deeper background in the theory and methods of economics. this will open up more opportunities, too, e.g., in business. </p>
<p>There is a lot of competition for overseas jobs, especially in Europe and in the types of agencies and organizations you mentioned. You can expand your options to business opportunities by considering some core business courses. In your French and Spanish studies, this could include some coursework in commercial French or Spanish.</p>
<p>You should heed The previous poster’s comment about languages. You might want to consider a double major in econ + French or Spanish. While you might only need a knowledge of the language, the cultural knowledge from a full major will benefit you. </p>
<p>Some other things to consider:
I know you mentioned Europe as your interest. However, if you’re already strong in Spanish, consider learning Portuguese and expanding your range to Latin America. In that case, you might consider an econ + Latin American studies combination. If you do French, you might consider adding a minor or certificate in African studies. In combination with either Spanish or French, you might consider Arabic, though this would require a commitment of 3-4 years of studying the language including study abroad in a country where its spoken.</p>
<p>^ I think it would be very possible. Many foreign language depts are very accommodating of double majors. Some offer tracks in area studies that will accept some courses outside the dept as counting for the major, e…g, French studies as opposed to just French literature. You can probably find a study abroad program that offers coursework in economics, or an exchange program with a French business school. Starting French for the first time in college could slow you down a bit, though. If you’re willing to work hard, you might be able to take intensive elementary and intermediate French so you can compress a year’s work into one semester. The best thing to do is to sketch out a proposed program at schools that interest you and see if it’s do-able (semester-by-semester gen ed requirements and the required courses for both majors). Also, check out the study abroad options for those schools, whether you can study abroad in programs not specifically sponsored by those schools (as well as credit transfer and costs), etc.</p>