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2014-2015 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
International Affairs
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 Return to: Majors and Minors
OVERVIEW OF DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
Minimum number of credits required to graduate: 120
Minimum Cumulative GPA required to graduate: 2.0
Minimum Grade requirements for courses to count toward major: A “C” or better is required in all International Affairs courses counting towards the major, regardless of concentration.
Other GPA requirements to graduate: None.
Contact Information: Howard Cody, Professor of Political Science and Director of International Affairs, 109 North Stevens Hall, (207) 581-1868
A degree in International Affairs benefits students as they prepare for their roles as national and global citizens, educating them to the dynamics behind a changing global society and introducing them to ways of enhancing international community. Moreover, the International Affairs Program offers a strong, interdisciplinary curriculum that includes courses from departments across the campus and enables students from diverse disciplines to integrate an international perspective into their studies and future careers.
The Bachelor of Arts degree in International Affairs allows students to choose among several thematic concentrations and an area studies concentration (Canadian Studies). During the first two years, students are encouraged to complete course work to fulfill the general education requirements of the Bachelor of Arts degree and the International Affairs core curriculum. The final two years should be focused on the concentration electives and meeting the International Affairs language requirement. All International Affairs students are strongly encouraged to participate in the Study Abroad Program.
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Core Requirements - 15 credit hours
Students must earn a “C” or better in all courses required in the major. Capstone Requirement (3 credits)
IA majors may complete their capstone requirement in one of the following ways:
- A capstone course whose topic falls within their thematic concentration. For thematic concentrations with POS as the primary field, POS 499 may fulfill the capstone. For thematic concentrations with HTY as the primary field, HTY 498 may fulfill the capstone. For thematic concentrations with ANT as the primary field, ANT 493 may fulfill the capstone requirement. For thematic concentrations with ECO as the primary field, ECO 489 may fulfill the capstone requirement. For the concentration with MCL as the primary field, FRE 495 or SPA 495 may fulfill the capstone requirement. For Global Women’s, Gender, and Secuality Issues concentration, WGS 480 may fulfill the capstone. See immediately below for the Canadian Studies capstone. Note: International Affairs majors with a second major may fulfill the requirement with the capstone in that major if it has sufficient content from the thematic concentration’s primary field. Students with questions in this area must consult with their academic adviser and the IA Director before they enroll for the course
- In conjunction with an existing course in the student’s concentration, students may propose to conduct in-depth research and analysis with the faculty member teaching the course. Students must have written approval of the course instructor and the IA Director. Note: Students in the Canadian Studies concentration will meet their capstone requirement via this process through CAN 401. Any student of whatever concentration choosing this option must have senior standing and have declared the concentration in question. Completion of the requirements of the existing course, standing alone, will not fulfill the capstone requirement.
- A directed research project on an approved topic proposed by the student. The project must meet the spirit and intent of the General Education capstone experience. NOTE: Students must have confirmation of a faculty member who will advise the project before they can register for an independent study course, and must have approval of the IA Director.
- Undergraduate Honors Thesis on a topic clearly relevant to the major (approval of IA Director required)
Foreign Language Experience
A major goal of the International Affairs major is for students to achieve a higher level of appreciation and awareness of cultures beyond their everyday experience.
Students must demonstrate their linguistic skills and higher level of appreciation of another culture, thereby satisfying the IA foreign language experience requirement, in any one of several ways.
- Each student except international students who may submit their TOEFL score must have their language proficiency rated at the intermediate level in a language other than the student’s home language. The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) provides such a rating through the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI). An evaluation of the ‘Intermediate (Low, Mid or High)” on the OPI will satisfy the Foreign Language Experience requirement; no student whose rating is “Novice High” or below will be considered to have completed the Foreign Language Experience requirement.
- A learning abroad experience, which includes study abroad, research abroad, and internships abroad, followed by evaluation on the OPI.
- International students are permitted to meet the language requirement with their TOEFL score, but are encouraged to undertake further foreign language study.
- Students cannot meet the language requirement in their native language.
To acquire sufficient proficiency, students will normally receive instruction in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics.
Minimum preparation is assumed to be six (6) credits at the 300 level or above in French or Spanish or its recommended equivalent in a language taught in the VOX sequence of courses (Critical Languages). Students who choose one of the Critical Languages must plan to participate in an intensive immersion experience (in the United States or abroad) or study abroad in immersion. Before embarking on a Critical Language path, students must consult with the IA Director to determine that there is an available ACTFL OPI in that language.
Proficiency testing is a standard means of assessing what one can do in a language. The OPI was developed by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) based on the Inter-Agency Language Roundtable scale used by the Foreign Service, and is employed by many American colleges and universities. Detailed descriptors can be found at www.actfl.org. Testing is administered exclusively by Language Testing International www.languagetesting.com/actfl-tests-for-higher-education.
Students are advised that there is a fee associated with the OPI for which they are responsible. Assistance in making arrangements for taking the OPI will be provided by the IA Director, who will also advise students of its current cost and method of payment. Students may either register for the OPI involving a telephonic interview with a certified ACTFL tester or the OPIc, a computer delivered assessment that emulates its live counterpart.
Thematic Concentration Requirements - 21-27 credit hours
Thematic concentrations are designed to provide students with substantial, in-depth, and focused study of an aspect of International Affairs. Students must select on concentration from below and take a minimum of 7 courses up to a maximum of 9 courses from that concentration; at least 2 courses must be in a secondary field. Other thematic concentrations may be created in the future.
A. International Security:
(POS as primary field): B. History and Development of the Global System
(HTY as primary field): C. Comparative Politics and Area Studies
(POS as primary field): D. Culture, Conflict, and Globalization
(ANT as primary field): F. Language, Culture and the Humanities
(MLC as primary field):
21 credits at the 300 or 400 level in French or Spanish beyond the IA Language Experience Requirement (ACTFL OP rating of “Intermediate”), and 6 credits in a single discipline outside Modern Languages and Classics.
- 1 course in advanced-intermediate (300 level) or advanced (400 level) target language grammar or linguistics
- 1 course in the development of speaking skills
- 1 course in the literature of the target language
- 1 course in the target culture, civilization, or contemporary society
- 1 travel study course in immersions (waived for a semester, year or intensive summer study abroad in immersion)
- 2 electives taught in the target language
AND
2 courses in any one of the disciplines listed below. Courses from these disciplines should be selected in consultation with the academic advisor to insure their relevance to the concentration. They may not be used to satisfy the IA Core Requirement
- Anthropology
- Art History
- English
- History
- Music
- Peace Studies
- Philosophy
G. Canadian Studies
The Canadian Studies program at the University of Maine is the only area studies program at a state university in New England that is recognized by the US Department of Education under its Title VI International Education program.
From the list below, students must take CAN 101 and CAN 401. From the remaining 5 to 7 courses, at least 2 must be in the same discipline. Students should consult with their adviser or the IA Coordinator about course selection. Students in this concentration must meet the IA Language Requirement in French. H. Global Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Issues
Women’s Studies (now Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies) has been part of the International Affairs major for a decade. Its importance to the field of International Affairs is made clear by the recent explosion of scholarly works that combine gender with an international focus and by the increasing attention to the role that gender plays in politics, conflict, international aid, and sustainability. It is impossible to turn on the network or internet news without seeing at least one article related to an international women’s and/or gender issue. The Global Women’s Gender, and Sexuality Issues Concentration provides an important option for students who want to explore interdisciplinarity explicitly. Core Courses and Non-WGS courses
From the list below students must take 3 WGS core courses of their choice, and must select two non-WGS courses with the same designator (for example: ANT): |
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