INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

International Relations (IR), a sub-field of Political Science, is the interdisciplinary study of systems of rule and governance on a global or international scale.  At one level, it involves the rigorous study of the global political system – that is, the states, inter-state organizations, NGOs and international legal arrangements that together constitute the institutional architecture of world order.  On another level, however, it is about the deeper social, economic, and cultural dynamics that actually shape and define that order.  Particularly prominent in recent years has been the study of the way in which the process of “globalization” has resulted in transformations on both the deep structural and the more superficial institutional layers of global political life.

The sub-field of International Relations is organized into a number of streams, including;

• Global Governance.  This stream addresses the institutional architecture of world order, focusing in particular on topics such as international law and organization (including the UN, EU and similar bodies), human rights and humanitarianism, and global civil society (including a number of international NGOs and networks);

•  Global Political Economy.  Broadly speaking, this stream deals with the way in which power and the production of wealth are inter-related on the global level.

• International Security.  This sub-field focuses on the dynamics of war and peace in global political life;

• International Theory.  This stream deals with both analytical questions related to understanding the fundamental dynamics of global political life as well as normative questions related to the broad question of how global political life ought to be organized; and,

• Global Public Policy – this stream deals with policy challenges in the domains of international peace and security, trade and development, human rights, global public health and the environment.

International Relations scholars have always employed a variety of research methods in their efforts to understand global political life.  These include approaches drawn from the social sciences, philosophy, law, literary theory, cultural studies, sociology, gender studies and history.  IR scholars have also adopted “problem-solving”, “critical”, “ethical”,  and “post-structural” perspectives on global political life.

Students who graduate in Political Science with an emphasis in IR typically go on to graduate study in International Relations, Law, Public Policy, Business Administration, and Journalism. They pursue careers in public service (at the local, national, and international levels), development, peace-building, the not-for-profit sector, business and education.