<p>Hi folks,</p>
<p>Let me introduce myself. I am a senior this year starting to get serious about my college search. Yes, I've looked at colleges before and have an idea of what I'm looking for but now it's time to get serious. I love traveling. I love languages and I'm really looking into studying international relations in college. However, I want to go to a not too small but not too big school, I'm thinking with less than 4,000 students. Any suggestions/ advice?</p>
<p>Some schools to consider are William & Mary, Colgate and Middlebury. Other strong schools are Tufts, American and University of Rochester.</p>
<p>Georgetown</p>
<p>Thanks guys. Any LACs/smaller schools tho?? Georgetown and American seem to be the go to schools for IR and def with reason but for undergrad I want a smaller campus setting with more of a sense of community.</p>
<p>Hopkins sounds good. I am not sure if it fits the number of students you want but it has a strong IR program.</p>
<p>Hopkins is not an LAC.</p>
<p>Swarthmore and Middlebury should def be high on your list</p>
<p>Macalester in St. Paul. They really emphasize IR on their prospective student packets.</p>
<p>I second the recommendation of Tufts. Although not an LAC, it meets your desires for IR and an undergrad focus with a community feel.</p>
<p>You might consider the following:</p>
<p>Carleton (International Relations)
Colby (International Studies)
Grinnell (Global Development Studies)
Haverford (Peace & Conflict Studies)
Kenyon (International Studies)
Macalester (International Studies
McKenna (International Relations)
Middlebury (International Politics & Economics)
Oberlin (International Studies)
Pomona (International Relations)
Swarthmore (Peace & Conflict Studies)
Trinity (International Studies)
Vassar (International Studies)
Wesleyan (International Relations)
Williams (Political Economy)</p>
<p>These rankings were published in the March/April 2007 Issue of Foreign Policy Magazine. (percentages represents the percentages of international relations academics and professionals who named the schools).</p>
<p>Top 20 Undergraduate Programs</p>
<ol>
<li>Harvard University 48%</li>
<li>Princeton University 46%</li>
<li>Stanford University 30%</li>
<li>Georgetown University 28%</li>
<li>Columbia University 28%</li>
<li>Yale University 23%</li>
<li>University of Chicago 21%</li>
<li>University of California-Berkeley 12%</li>
<li>Dartmouth College 11%</li>
<li>George Washington University 10%</li>
<li>American University 10%</li>
<li>University of Michigan 9%</li>
<li>Tufts University 8%</li>
<li>Swarthmore College 8%</li>
<li>University of California-San Diego 8%</li>
<li>Cornell University 6%</li>
<li>Brown University 6%</li>
<li>Williams College 5%</li>
<li>Duke University 5%</li>
<li>Johns Hopkins University 5%"</li>
</ol>
<p>^ That list is seriously flawed. The methology and Ivy league bias of it is just pure baloney. Don't take that seriously because more than half of the schools on that list do not offer an undergraduate IR major. (if that is important to you) haha</p>
<p>Or maybe you think its "incredibly flawed" because Hopkins is 19th on the list... 0_o</p>
<p>Yes, The list is flawed in many ways. Like, When I argue for this, I'm just saying that top schools like UC Berkeley who have nothing remotely related to international affairs/studies/relations BA degree or department be on a list of best undergraduate IR list. Its like saying dude, I want to go to Harvard to get a business major. Oh wait, no Harvard doesn't have a business major? crap, why did I apply here and get accepted.</p>
<p>Its that sorta thing you know. You don't want to come to Columbia thinking: "yes, I'm an IR major." You would get looks from your fellow peers and they must think you are crazy or something. You continue to say Columbia has the #5 undergrad international relations program in America....and you wait a couple weeks then to find out there is no IR major offered here at Columbia. You must do an interdisciplinary major and create an IR major from scratch. Which is kinda a hassle, you won't get a true IR curriculumn experience, which is a kinda of a bummer. Your shocked and screwed at the same time. lol, then you become a polisci major and do an sub concentration with IR track...your still a polisci major. lol</p>
<p>"he methology and Ivy league bias of it is just pure baloney. Don't take that seriously because more than half of the schools on that list do not offer an undergraduate IR major. (if that is important to you) haha"</p>
<p>The methodology is by far the best out there. It surveyed a very large proportion of the working professionals in the field of international relations to discover which undergraduate schools offered the best preparation in the area of international relations. Whether the offering is actually called IR is wholly irrelevant, as is made quite evident by the professionals called upon to offer their opinions.</p>
<p>
[quote]
The methodology is by far the best out there. It surveyed a very large proportion of the working professionals in the field of international relations to discover which undergraduate schools offered the best preparation in the area of international relations. Whether the offering is actually called IR is wholly irrelevant, as is made quite evident by the professionals called upon to offer their opinions.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>The methodology might be by far the best out there but NOT for the undergraduate survey. Despite its fame, the journal considered the polling for UG a total afterthought and delivered a piece of garbage. </p>
<p>Mini, I seriously doubt that you read the methodology in earnest, because I think it should be an embarrassment for you to continuously recommend this report. Were you to read the report correctly, you would know exactly how many questions in the survey related to the UG. </p>
<p>Do yourself a favor and read the report.</p>
<p>It's a terribly flawed survey. My school is awesome, and unlike Columbia it actually offers an IR major, and it's nowhere to be seen on the list.</p>
<p>I think the list focuses too much on IR faculty star-power (although the head of the department is a Pulitzer winner) instead of the quality of students, availability of opportunities, postgraduation placement, etc...</p>