Created in 1943, The Ohio State University International Studies program is one of the oldest in the country. The program offers an undergraduate liberal arts education that is international and interdisciplinary in focus, promoting a deeper knowledge and understanding of other peoples and cultures, and fostering critical thinking, research, writing, and public speaking skills.
David Young is On Top of the World
David Young is a spring 2012 graduate with majors in international relations and diplomacy and Chinese, and a master’s degree in Chinese. He spent his junior year learning Mandarin Chinese in Taipei, Taiwan, with a Boren Scholarship offered by the U.S. National Security Education Program. After returning from his study abroad, Young started an internship at the Global Resources Center at George Washington University in Washington D.C. The program let him apply the language and cultural skills gained during his study abroad in a real-world setting.“If opportunity ever comes knocking at your door,” says Young, “I wholeheartedly encourage you to answer. And if you’re more like me, go find opportunity’s door yourself... and don’t stop knocking until it opens up!”
While studying abroad in Taiwan, Young climbed to the summit of Jade Mountain, one of the highest mountains in southeast Asia, at 12,966 feet above sea level.
By The Numbers
- 11 undergraduate majors
- 10 minors
- 900+ majors—making it one of largest areas in the College of Arts and Sciences
- Students can major or minor in a single specialization or combine a regional and global problems specialization
- 40% of students study abroad
- 50% of International Studies majors are in honors or scholars programs
"as well as giving students a liberal arts education that helps to prepare them for scholarly fields and professions, international studies grooms students for life and a lifetime of learning" -- Anthony Mughan, director, international studies program
Selected Alumni Research and Activities
Abraham Kanter (2007) graduated magna cum laude with two degrees—International Studies Security and Intelligence and Latin. He has worked at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, researching cyber threats, international crime, and terrorism. For grad school he was in the prestigious Defense Intelligence Scholars Program at the National Defense Intelligence College.
Nelson Carson (2006) joined the French Teaching Assistantship Program, then joined the Peace Corps for three years in the Cape Verde Islands.
Erica Sayers (2011), interned with the U.S. Department of State, at the U.S. Embassy in Nassau, the Bahamas.
Maria Shikary (2005) in International Relations and Diplomacy, and is finishing medical school at Ohio State. She traveled to Africa to work at an HIV/AIDS clinic, and is now fundraising director for Ride for World Health, a student group raising funds for healthcare organizations via a cross-country bike ride, and has completed a 3,300 mile journey for the cause.
Major Specializations
African Studies
Development Studies
East Asian Studies
International Relations and Diplomacy
Latin American Studies
Middle East Studies
Security and Intelligence
Slavic and Eastern Europe
Western European Studies
World Economy and Business
"There are unparalleled study abroad opportunities available. Ohio State has more than 100 established programs in 40 countries." -- Anthony Mughan, director, international studies program
Where do our graduates go?
Here’s a sampling:
ACLIPSE Teach in Asia, AmeriCorps, American Israel Public Affairs, Bank of America, Boeing, Bureau of the Census, Chicago 2016 Olympic Committee, Central Intelligence Agency, Columbus Council on World Affairs, Department of Homeland Security, Department
of Justice, Department of Treasury, Export-Import Bank of the US, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fulbright Awards to Romania and South Korea, Georgetown, Law School, Honda, Inland Technology Military Division, International Visitors Council, Japan Exchange &
Teaching Program, Johnson & Johnson, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Macedonian Ambassador to the US, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Meridian International Center, Washington DC, National Defense University, National Japanese American Memorial Fund, National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, National Security Council, US Air Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps, as officers, Ohio Department of Transportation, Oxford University Press, Peach Corps in Zambia and Honduras, Senate Committee on Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation, Social Security Administration, State of Ohio, Suffolk University, Dakar campus, US Department of Defense International Procurement Agency, US Government Accountability Office , US Investigation Services, World Trade Center, Cleveland, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, And more!
Download this Fact Sheet [pdf].
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