My Degree in International Relations

I am currently completing the last term of my Undergraduate Degree in International Relations (IR) at UBC and wanted to share what I have been learning over the last four years.

What is IR?
IR is the study of the global interactions between sovereign states, inter-governmental organizations (IGO), multinational corporations (MNC), and non-governmental organizations (NGO). At UBC, IR is an interdisciplinary program that combines four different fields: Economics, History, Languages and Political Science.

Why did I choose to study IR?
I have always been fascinated by the work of the United Nations, interested in global history and loved learning languages. I wanted to choose a program that would challenge me and would enable me to take a variety of courses. I believed it would equip me with a solid and well rounded foundation because I would learn how to interpret detailed economic models, why lessons from history are relevant today, how to communicate in two additional languages, and how to understand different systems of governance. 

IR students are required to take the following courses:
1. Economics
-Microeconomics 
-Macroeconomics 
-International Finance 

2. History
-World History from 1500 to the 20th Century
-World History from 1900
-International Relations of the Great Powers in the 20th Century

3. Languages (2 years in addition to what is already required by the Faculty of Arts)
-I am bilingual (French & English) so I decided to study Spanish to fulfill this requirement

4. Political Science
-Introduction to Global Politics 
-Security Studies 

5. IR Seminar 
-Comparative Law and Politics 

My specializations are:
-International Diplomacy, Security, and Peace Studies
-International Economy and Development 

Being in IR has allowed me to take courses from many different faculties at UBC. My favourite electives have been: 
-International Nutrition                       (FNH 355)
-Canadian Government                        (POLI 101)
-Applied International Nutrition        (FNH 455)
-International Peacekeeping               (POLI 374)
-Psychology                                             (PSYC 100)
-Business and Entrepreneurship        (COMM 240)

I have had some outstanding professors at UBC, my favourite include:
Patricia Cochran- PhD Law
Gerald McIntyre- PhD International Finance
Judy McLean- PhD Human Nutrition 
Elizabeth Newton- PhD Social Psychology 
Allen Sens- PhD Political Science