Global Studies

Build the expertise to thrive in an interconnected world, pursue your passions and impact issues facing the global community.

Through the global studies program, students can take a wide range of classes to explore issues facing the global community that match their unique passions and interests. Global studies is a great fit for students who love exploring international issues and culture, care about global issues and can work independently.

Programs of Study

Major in Global Studies

A student majoring in global studies chooses one or two concentration areas in which to focus. All students will have an introduction to global studies and take part in the Senior Seminar course, which includes community research and career preparation.

Concentrations include:

Development Studies (poverty, inequality, socioeconomic development)
Global Environmental Studies (ecological and environmental issues)
Global Systems and Processes (social, political, economic, and religious interactions)
Culture and Identity in Global Affairs (cultural issues, cross-cultural dialogue)
Asian Studies
European Studies
Latin American Studies
New Pathways (develop a new pathway to a global studies major not fulfilled through another concentration)

Minor in Cross-Cultural Interaction

This interdisciplinary program will prepare you to analyze culture and cultural differences and to acquire tools that enhance intercultural competency.

Minor in International Affairs

This interdisciplinary program will provide you with the knowledge and analytical tools to interpret the global landscape of interconnected countries.

Career

Global studies will prepare you for a wide variety of career paths from working in government, NGOs, nonprofits, and businesses. Many students go abroad after graduation, gaining work experience and learning language.

Recent grads have gone to:

Ukraine with the Peace Corps
Argentina and Hungary with ELCA's Young Adults in Global Mission
Chile, as an international student coordinator at a university
China, as a teaching assistant
Thailand, as a missionary
Ghana, as a refugee caseworker
Teach English in Japan, South Korea, France, Poland, and Slovakia

Some students also go on to graduate school, pursuing a variety of disciplines including social and public policy, law, ethnic studies, international relations, international human rights law, international peace studies, and journalism.

Global studies graduates have also found employment with organizations like America Abroad Media in Washington, D.C., New Futures in Seattle, Center for New Americans at the University of Minnesota Law School, World Endeavors in Minneapolis and United Planet in Boston.