About the Center for International Studies

The 21st century presents global challenges that affect all of our lives. The most salient global problems — wars, pandemics, poverty, pollution, trafficking, refugee crises, food insecurity, climate change — impact local communities all over the world. And global solutions require international cooperation, intercultural communication, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The OHIO Center for International Studies trains students to become empathetic and curious global problem solvers and changemakers who understand complex challenges in context; navigate across different cultural, political, technological, and regulatory environments; and collaborate with global partners to resolve problems effectively and equitably.

International Studies undergraduate majors choose one of five area studies concentrations (Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and North Africa) and one of six thematic concentrations (Global Communication, International Development and Global Commerce, Health and Development, Global Sustainability and Environmental Literacy, and Arts, Culture, and Society, and Security Studies). These tracks map onto M.A. programs in the Center for International Studies for students who wish to pursue graduate school.

Undergraduate international studies majors combine courses from multiple Arts & Sciences departments to develop global competencies that enable them to thrive in a globally diverse and interconnected world. The major requires three years of study of one language or two years of one language and one of another. Students may choose from a broad selection of modern European languages (French, German, Italian, and Spanish) as well as more specialized languages spoken in East Asia (Chinese, Japanese), South Asia (Hindi/Urdu), Southeast Asia (Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai), Middle East and North Africa (Arabic), Sub-Saharan Africa (Akan, Swahili, Wolof). International Studies majors are also required to study or intern abroad for at least four weeks — in countries as diverse as France, Ireland, Israel, Brazil, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, India and Morocco. Students must consult with their advisor and the Office of Global Opportunities before committing to an internship or study abroad program.

War and Peace students are exceptional, winning nationally competitive awards every year. Faculty involved with the program — from the departments of Sociology & Anthropology, English, History, Philosophy, and Political Science in the College of Arts and Sciences, as well as the schools of Journalism and Communication Studies in the Scripps College of Communication — are top-rated scholars and teachers, many of whom have won campus-wide teaching awards and have published scholarly works with top presses and in major journals.