Degree and Major Requirements

The IS Major has three tracks from which students can choose when they declare. Students may not declare multiple tracks at the same time, and must choose a track at the time of declaration.

Human Rights and Humanitarianism: Human Rights and Humanitarianism covers the range of laws, norms, and organizations that address the protection of vulnerable populations and ordinary citizens. This option will cover human rights, as they are are codified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; hence they will cover the civil and political rights (speech, belief, association and discrimination), and cultural rights (education, health, water, among others). Human Rights and Humanitarianism also encompasses the organizations and institutions that work to protect and advocate for these rights, and addresses the ways in which civilians are protected when thrust into conditions of hardship, including the laws of war, regimes on migration and forced migration, global health disparities, and more.

Global Peace and Security: Global Peace and Security includes an emphasis on both traditional and non-traditional understandings of international security. Traditional understandings of international security include war and interstate conflict. Non traditional forms of security and insecurity include issues like pandemics, climate change and natural disasters, cybersecurity, and food security. This option also emphasizes the importance of peacekeeping, other multilateral efforts to mediate conflict, counterinsurgency, and post-conflict peacebuilding as core to an understanding of global security.

Politics and Policy in the Global Economy: The Politics and Policy in the Global Economy option address the question, “Why do we live in a world of haves and have-nots? Is it possible to “make poverty history” and, if so, how?” This option offers a multidisciplinary survey of the key factors that shape the distribution of wealth and resources in our world. This includes institutions that govern international trade and transactions, different regimes of aid, development, and philanthropy, issues related to natural resource use and environmental problems, the interactions between states and markets, and the politics of alternative and non-market economies. The track offers both quantitative and qualitative approaches to understanding the global economy drawing from a range of disciplines.

Culture in the Age of Globalization: Culture in an Age of Globalization focuses on how global interactions shape culture. This option addresses how we think about culture as something that we do (as opposed to something that “is”)—we are constantly creating and re-creating culture through our practices, and those practices are often influenced by (or influence) the practices of people in other places. In this option you will have the opportunity to think about how people make meaning in their world and the ways in which group identities, boundaries and meanings are continually created, maintained and transformed, often through global interactions. Substantive topics include gender, social class, ethnicity, religion, music, art, film, media, literature, food, sports, language, migration, and nationalism, just to name a few. Our focus throughout is on the intercultural—the ways that systems of meaning interact within and across social and political boundaries in ways facilitated by transnational migration, new information technologies and global markets.

1. INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATIONS: Introduction to International Studies: INTL ST 101
2. ECONOMICS FOUNDATIONS– Choose one of the following four options:
   1. ECON 101: Introduction to Microeconomics and ECON 102: Introduction to Macroeconomics
   2. AAE 215: Introduction to Applied Economics and ECON 102: Introduction to Macroeconomics
   3. ECON 111 (accelerated, honors course)
   4. POLI SCI 350: International Political Economy
   5. AAE 244: The Environment and the Global Economy
3. HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS: INTL ST 146: The Global History of Now
4. REGIONAL FOUNDATIONS: One Global South Area Studies course and one General Area Studies course
5. LANGUAGE FOUNDATIONS: Fifth semester college-level foreign language course
   1. Based on reaching the 5th semester level of course. If you have previous language experience, you should first take a language placement exam. You might not need to start at the first semester level.
   2. For example, if you test into third semester French through the placement exam, you only need to take third, fourth and fifth semester French to fulfill the requirement.
   3. Please reach out to the IS Major Advising Team if you have any questions.

Minimum 2.0 GPA in the major
Minimum 2.0 GPA in 15 upper level credits in residence

Named Option courses: These courses focus on specialization in the major. Here you will begin to focus in your Option’s theme through issues coursework, track core coursework, and electives in the Major.

• Track Core courses: 9 Credits Advanced coursework related to specific topics in the theme of your option. Please note that Track Core classes must be completed on campus at UW-Madison (cannot be taken abroad or transferred into UW-Madison).
• Issues Courses: 9 Credits that focus on breadth and depth, providing exposure to the various issues encompassed in each option.
• Electives in the Major: 9 Credits Here you will gain some basic knowledge of issues outside of your declared named option.  Select courses from the course list of any of the other options.

• Be enrolled in, or have completed, INTL ST 101
• Declare through our online form, or meet with an IS Major advisor.

Students are limited to counting a maximum of four courses from any one department toward their IS Major requirements. This rule excludes prerequisites. Students should be mindful of cross-listed departments, because the cross-listed departments also count toward the four-course rule. For example, IS 318 (cross-listed with Poli Sci) will count in the IS and in the Poli Sci groups. Please feel free to connect with an advisor if you have any questions about the four course rule.

While study abroad is not required, it is strongly encouraged. Check our Study Abroad tab or the International Academic Program (IAP) website for more information. A total of 20 credits taken during study abroad can be counted towards requirements in the IS Major.