The School of International Relations offers graduate curricula leading to the Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. In addition, there is a program for the Ph.D. in political economy and public policy offered jointly with the Departments of Economics and Political Science and a joint J.D./M.A. with the Law School.

Academic work in the School of International Relations is organized into three fields of concentration. Usually, three or four courses in a field are recommended for M.A. and Ph.D. students. The three fields are: international political economy; international politics and security; and United States foreign policy. Specially developed fields may be designed for M.A. students, and Ph.D. students may take one field outside the School of International Relations. Details on all fields, faculty, cross-referenced courses, cognate courses and scheduling can be obtained from the student affairs office.

Admission Requirements

Admission decisions are based on consideration of applicants' prior academic performance, which is determined by review of both the GPA and letters of recommendation. The committee also considers the potential for success in a graduate program based on Graduate Record Examinations scores.

Conditional Admission

Students who show promise but who have not met the requirements for full admission to graduate programs, may be admitted conditionally into the graduate program for one semester. In order to enter the M.A. program they must take two approved courses in one semester and receive at least a 3.5 average in these two courses, and they must be reviewed and approved by the graduate admissions committee. The regulations governing applicability of 400-level courses are pertinent.

Admission into the Ph.D. Program

The Ph.D. program is designed for students who show the highest level of competence in studying complex problems in international relations and who have shown superior potential for significant research in the discipline. There are four ways in which a graduate student can be admitted into the Ph.D. program: (1) A student entering with a master's degree in international relations or a related discipline, completed elsewhere, may be admitted directly into the Ph.D. program. The number of credits which will be applied toward completion of the Ph.D. will be judged in each case. (2) A student entering with a master's degree not in international relations or a related discipline, earned elsewhere, can be admitted into the Ph.D. program after completing three graduate courses. The screening process consists of an oral examination of the applicant by the faculty with whom the course work was completed. (3) A new student entering the graduate program without previous graduate course work, who shows unusual promise, can be admitted directly into the Ph.D. program after completion of three graduate courses. The screening process consists of an oral examination of the applicant by the faculty with whom the course work was completed. If the student is accepted, the M.A. degree requirements are optional. (4) If a student has not had early screening into the Ph.D. program, demonstration of Ph.D. potential in course work and in the M.A. comprehensive examinations or thesis constitutes such a screening process.

All recommendations for admission to the Ph.D. program are reviewed by the graduate admissions committee and the director of the school. Faculty complete an evaluation form on each graduate student at the end of each course and these faculty evaluations are used in this screening process.

Students who fail to gain admission to the Ph.D. program because of a negative decision in the course of any or all of the screening processes described above may appeal in writing to the director for reconsideration.

Degree Requirements

These degrees are under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to the Graduate School and the Requirements for Graduation, for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.

Foreign Language Requirement

All graduate students must successfully show proficiency at fourth semester competence in one foreign language. M.A. and Ph.D. candidates who submit theses/dissertations must show research competence in at least one, or possibly two, foreign language(s), as determined by their guidance committee.

International students, whose native language is not English, must submit proof of their ability to read and understand social science materials in their native language (where appropriate), or in another language in which significant social science material is available.

Quantitative Skills

If the student is required to prove quantitative skills for the dissertation, competence may be demonstrated by following one of two procedures. The first involves successfully passing an examination in the theory and application of quantitative methods. The second entails presenting evidence of completed course work in statistics and methods, plus the execution of a major research paper or equivalent.

These requirements are effective for students entering in fall 1985 and thereafter.

Master of Arts in International Relations

A minimum of 36 units of course work, including IR 500 International Relations Theory and 513 Social Science and Historical Research Methods: Introduction to Research Design or 517 International Policy Analysis, plus a written comprehensive examination in the core and a field of specialty, or a minimum of 32 units of course work, a thesis and the written examination in the core are required.

The comprehensive examination consists of two parts: a core and one specific field. The first part stresses a review of literature and conceptual-analytic competence. Preparation for it normally involves familiarity with materials from the two courses which comprise the core and a list of readings approved by the school's faculty. Students are strongly encouraged to take the core segment of the comprehensive examination before the second year of study. The second part addresses materials covered in three or four field courses.

Comprehensive field examinations are normally scheduled each academic year. The core examination will be administered each academic year in April and October. Examinations are administered by an examining committee, appointed by the director for the entire academic year. An examiner from the relevant field joins the committee to help administer the field portion of the examination. The examination may not be reported as being passed if there is more than one dissenting vote. In case of failure, the student may be permitted to take the entire examination one more time.

The thesis option involves the completion of eight graduate courses, a supervised thesis-writing course, an oral defense of the thesis and the examination in the core. Completion of a thesis and examination of that thesis, in lieu of the field portion of the comprehensive examinations, is possible if two international relations faculty members and one faculty member outside the school consent to serve as a thesis supervising committee.

Courses Taken Outside the School of International Relations

Students already holding the M.A. degree may normally take two courses outside the school. Students holding only the baccalaureate degree may take one course outside the School of International Relations.

Course Requirements and Fields

All candidates for the M.A. degree will normally take IR 500 and 513 or 517. Exceptions for qualified students may be granted by the graduate studies committee. The core will consist of IR 500 and 513 or 517.

A field comprises not less than three courses taken at the 500 level or above. The only exceptions to this rule are IR 414 or a course at the 400 level specifically recommended by the student's faculty advisor and approved by the graduate studies committee. The student chooses one of the three fields of concentration or a combination specifically designed to meet individual needs, examples of which may be: international political economy and Latin America, international politics and methodology, international politics and international law, international security studies and foreign policy studies, international security studies with a regional and subsystems concentration, foreign policy studies and marine and ocean studies, and international political economy and international business.

Advisement

Academic advisement for M.A. students is provided by a faculty member, usually representing the student's field of specialty. Students should consult with their academic advisor each semester before registering for courses for the next semester. An interim advisor is normally assigned to the student in the first semester of attendance. Advisors may be changed as needed. Consult with and inform the Office of Student Affairs, VKC 301, regarding changes in faculty advisors.

Dual Degree - Master of Arts, International Relations and Juris Doctor

The Law School and the School of International Relations jointly offer a three- to four-year program leading to the J.D. and M.A. degrees. Applicants must apply to both the Law School and the School of International Relations and meet requirements for admission to both. In the first year students take their course work in the Law School exclusively. The second and third years include 20 units of courses in international relations, 40 units of law, and four units of IR 594 Master's Thesis. Students may opt to extend the dual degree program to four years. Both degrees must be awarded concurrently.

Year I: Required Law School courses.

Years II and III/IV: 40 units of law courses, including one course from LAW 764, 662 or 601 and one additional international law course. International relations courses must include two of the following: IR 500 or 501, and 513 or 517. In addition, each student must take three IR field courses from the existing fields (international political economy, international politics and security, foreign policy analysis) and complete an accepted thesis.

Thesis

Each student must produce a four-unit thesis jointly supervised by two members of the School of International Relations faculty and a member of the Law School faculty. IR 594ab (four units) is required in addition to the 40 law units and 20 IR units already earned in Years II and III.

Additional international law courses may be taken, if available. The entire program may be completed within three or four years as IR courses replace law electives and law courses replace IR electives.

In addition to the LSAT, students interested in this program are required to take the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE).

Doctor of Philosophy in International Relations

The degree requirements are fulfilled by: completion of a minimum of 60 units (15 courses) and a dissertation (minimum of four units of IR 794 Doctoral Dissertation); passing a foreign language requirement; passing a core theory examination; completing a publishable paper, a dissertation proposal and a syllabus; passing the qualifying exams in two or three fields; and writing a dissertation. In some cases a student's guidance committee may impose additional requirements at their discretion.

Foreign Language

Each Ph.D. student must show proficiency in at least one foreign language at fourth semester competence and, if deemed necessary by the guidance committee, attain competence in the use of quantitative research techniques or an additional language.

Course Requirements and Fields

Students are required to take and be examined in the core and two fields. In certain circumstances a student will be permitted to take and be examined in three fields. The mandatory core consists of: IR 500, 501, 513 and either 514 or 515. (Students who opt to take both IR 514 and 515 will receive credit for both.)

A field in the Ph.D. program comprises a minimum of four courses at the 500-level or above from the field lists. Courses used to fulfill the requirements in one field cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of another field.

International Politics and Security: IR 502, 503, 505, 506, 508, 531, 533, 534, 535, 537, 581, 601.

International Political Economy: IR 504, 541, 542, 543, 544, 545, 547, 549, 550, 552, 553, 641.

United States Foreign Policy: IR 521, 522, 524, 526, 556, 557; HIST 565, 684.

Special Fields: Students may focus on regional approaches. These fields usually involve a combination of courses from international relations and other departments subject to the approval of a principal advisor and the graduate curriculum committee of the school.

East Asia: IR 534, 561, 563, 570, plus cognates.

Latin America: IR 555, 556, plus cognates.

Middle East: IR 581, 582, 583, plus cognates.

An Approved Field Taken Outside the School of International Relations:

International Economics: ECON 503, 505, 550, 551, 553.

Development Economics: ECON 503, 505, 575, 576.

Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, Methodology and Research Design

This area of inquiry and preparation is not regarded as a field. Rather, students take courses as appropriate, with the exception of IR 513. Courses offered in the School of International Relations in this area are: IR 414, 513, 514.

Screening Procedure

Every doctoral student is required to report to the Graduate School the results of a screening procedure undertaken prior to completing 24 units in the doctoral program. The screening process consists of an oral examination of the applicant by the faculty with whom the course work was completed. The procedure also includes a review of the student's complete file. The student should prepare in writing an academic plan, showing proposed fields. For each field, the titles of courses for which transfer credit is sought, the USC courses completed, and the USC courses underway and planned should be listed. For transfer credits, transcripts should be provided along with syllabi if possible. The academic plan should also show the student's foreign language (and quantitative skills, if required) with date of completion or projected completion. The student should identify five professors who agree to serve on the guidance committee, including a professor from outside the School of International Relations.

Guidance Committee

The student's program of study is under the direction of a guidance committee, composed of at least five faculty members, one of whom must be from outside the school. The student's guidance committee decides which option is most appropriate for the combination of fields being offered by the candidate for the qualifying examinations. Appropriate levels of competence in quantitative research techniques are established by a faculty committee in each individual case. In some cases a student's guidance committee may impose additional requirements at their discretion.

Core Theory Examination

Prior to taking the qualifying examination, the student must pass a written examination in international relations theory and methods. This examination is administered twice each year in spring and summer. By the end of their second year of study students are required to take the exam. The core examination may be retaken once. Students who have not passed the core examination by the end of their third year of graduate study will be terminated for Ph.D. candidacy.

Publishable Paper Requirement

To assist students in making the transition to professional life, students are required to produce a publishable research paper before taking qualifying examinations. This requirement can be satisfied by substantially improving a paper submitted in one of the school's seminars of graduate study. The chair and one member of the student's guidance committee must judge the paper to be of publishable quality before the student takes the qualifying examination.

Dissertation Proposal

Each student is required to complete a dissertation proposal before taking the qualifying examination. The proposal is judged as part of the oral qualifying examination. Students should seek advice on proposal preparation early in the program.

Syllabus Requirement

In an effort to improve the ability of doctoral students to teach international relations effectively, students are encouraged to undertake some systematic preparation for teaching. They are required to design a complete syllabus for an undergraduate course in their special field of interest. The syllabus will be presented and critiqued during the oral qualifying examination.

Qualifying Examinations

A student must pass written and oral qualifying examinations. The written portion normally covers two fields. In certain circumstances, a student will be permitted to present three fields. The oral examination includes the presentation and critique of the student's dissertation prospectus and proposed undergraduate syllabus.

The Ph.D. qualifying examinations are scheduled twice each academic year in spring and fall. Prior to taking the examinations, students must have met the school's other requirements and obtained the guidance committee's recommendation to take the examinations. The student must obtain permission to take the examination 60 days before the date of the examination. All portions of the examination must be completed within 60 days.

If a student fails any written field examination, all written field examinations must be retaken. The student must pass all written examinations before proceeding to the oral examination. If the student fails the oral examination, he or she may retake the entire examination once. Ph.D. examinations cannot be passed conditionally.

Dissertation

Upon successful completion of the qualifying examination, the student is admitted to candidacy and should concentrate on writing a dissertation. The student selects a three-person dissertation committee. One member of the dissertation committee must be from outside the school. The Ph.D. candidate must defend the dissertation before the dissertation committee prior to approval for final typing. The defense is made on the basis of an approved, preliminary copy of the dissertation. If the defense is satisfactory, the committee signs the approval for final typing. If additional work is required the forms are signed at a later date. The recommendation of final acceptance must be unanimous.

Consult the Requirements for Graduation section and the Graduate School section of this catalogue regarding time limitations for completion of the degree and other Graduate School requirements.

All graduate students should have research, teaching and advisement experiences as part of their program of study.

Doctor of Philosophy in Political Economy and Public Policy

The School of International Relations, the Department of Economics and the Department of Political Science jointly offer a program of study leading to the Ph.D. degree. Applicants must apply to the Graduate School and meet the admission requirements of all three departments.

Required courses include both core requirements and area requirements. Core requirements include courses in economic theory and history of economic theory; history of political thought; scope, methodology and research methods; and political economy and public policy. Area requirements include courses drawn from one of the following three areas of concentration: comparative and developmental political economy; politics, economics, and the policy process; and international political economy.

For a detailed description of this program, see the Political Economy and Public Policy section of this catalogue.

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