Brown University

Source: https://bulletin.brown.edu/the-college/concentrations/iapa/ Parent: https://bulletin.brown.edu/the-college/concentrations/

The concentration in International and Public Affairs equips students with the knowledge and skills necessary to be engaged global citizens. This concentration offers three tracks: Development, Policy & Governance, and Security. All students take a common core of five classes, beginning with a choice of thematic gateway lecture courses (ideally taken during freshman or sophomore year), and then building through a required junior seminar and a required senior seminar (eligible students may choose to write an honor's thesis to satisfy the senior seminar requirement). All students choose one of three tracks of substantive specialization: Development, in which students explore issues of human development in local and global contexts, and across both the developing world and advanced industrial settings; Security, which allows students to explore issues of security in both local and global contexts; and Policy and Governance, in which students explore the design, implementation, and evaluation of public policies to resolve societal challenges, as well as the governing structures that yield those policies. The concentration is committed to engaging students in the classroom, enabling research opportunities with faculty and in the field, and supporting experiential learning opportunities. Advisors' office hours and an online appointment scheduler are available here.

Concentration Requirements

The concentration comprises 11 courses (12 for an honors degree). Students take a Gateway course, which introduces them to multidisciplinary perspectives on social challenges that cut across global regions. The Foundational course introduces students to central themes and texts in the three IAPA tracks: Development, Policy and Governance, and Security. Gateway and Track Foundational courses are not interchangeable or substitutable with courses offered in other concentrations. They should both be taken in the first or second year.

Once a student has chosen a track, they take five electives, selected from a pre-approved list for each track on our website. Approval of track elective courses not on the pre-approved list is permitted only in extenuating circumstances. Note that that list of electives is subject to change. We encourage students to cluster two or three of these electives around a region, theme, or social problem to create coherence in their plan of study and prepare for future work. 

Students also take courses in qualitative and quantitative methods (a high-level course in language instruction can substitute for one of the two methods courses). 

All International and Public Affairs concentrators take a junior seminar (1700 level) during the fall or spring semester of the junior year. The seminars, which are not track specific, focus on issues in international and public affairs that can be studied in comparative perspective, that can be subjected to multidisciplinary analysis, and that often cut across concerns about development, policy and governance, and security. The seminars are designed to help students hone skills of critical thinking, argumentation, and the design and operation of social science research and scholarship. Junior seminar students write papers on topics that can later be pursued as capstone or thesis projects. Junior seminars are not interchangeable or substitutable with courses in other concentrations. Junior seminars are typically WRIT-designated.

All International and Public Affairs concentrators complete a capstone course during their senior year. Designated IAPA Senior Seminars (1800 level) require students to write a research paper or extended policy brief that draws on analytic expertise, thematic expertise, regional expertise, and foreign language skills, if applicable. The capstone research project is typically about 20-25 pages in length. Senior capstone seminars are not interchangeable or substitutable with courses offered in other concentrations. Senior seminars are typically WRIT-designated. Eligible seniors may choose to write a two-semester honors thesis to satisfy the senior capstone requirement.

Track Specialization and Electives

IAPA students must take the track foundational course associated with their track specialization (Development, Security, or Policy & Governance).  Track foundational courses are not interchangeable or substitutable with courses offered in other concentrations. Students select 5 elective courses from the list of pre-approved electives consistent with their track specialization. Approval of track elective courses not on the pre-approved list is permitted only in extenuating circumstances.  Note - the list of electives is subject to change.

Concentration Requirements Summary

1 : A comparable course from an outside department (including ANTH 1236, ANTH 1940, BIOL 1575, EDUC 1240, SOC 1117, SOC 1260, SOC 1340) may also be used.

2 : A comparable course from an outside department including (APMA 1650, CPSY 0900, CSCI 0300, CSCI 0111, ECON 1620, EDUC 1230) may also be used.

3 : Other 1700-level approved IAPA courses may also fulfill the Junior Seminar requirement

4 : Other 1800-level approved IAPA courses may also fulfill the Senior Seminar requirement.  Students pursuing honors are required to take the IAPA Honors Seminar (IAPA 1816A or IAPA 1850) in the fall and a directed reading independent study with their primary thesis reader in the spring.

Examples of track electives include the following: (Note that a full list is available on the IAPA website.)

Development Professional Track

The requirements for all undergraduate professional tracks within concentrations are standardized and additional information can be found here:

https://bulletin.brown.edu/undergradproftrack/

Security Professional Track

The requirements for all undergraduate professional tracks within concentrations are standardized and additional information can be found here:

https://bulletin.brown.edu/undergradproftrack/

Policy & Governance Professional Track

The requirements for all undergraduate professional tracks within concentrations are standardized and additional information can be found here:

https://bulletin.brown.edu/undergradproftrack/

Honors

Students who demonstrate exceptional academic performance and scholarly achievement in the International and Public Affairs concentration have the opportunity to be recommended for graduation with honors. Students submit applications to the Honors Program in the spring semester of their junior year. Students who are graduating in December can apply for the honors program in the spring semester (their 5th) to complete their thesis in the 7th semester with the spring cohort.

To apply, students must meet IAPA honors course and GPA prerequisites and turn in a well-developed social science research question, method, and bibliography along with a plan for completing the thesis by April of senior year. They must also have secured signatures of a primary thesis advisor and a second reader. Only those students with an approved thesis application will be permitted to enter the senior thesis seminar in the fall and /or receive thesis grant funding for the summer.