Carnegie Mellon University

Minor in International Relations and Political Science

The International Relations and Political Science (IRPS)* minor examines international relations, comparative politics, and domestic politics from the discipline of political science.  The minor emphasizes the importance of political institutions, decision making by leaders in shaping policy, and contemporary challenges to the international system.

The IRPS minor studies the ways in which leaders construct foreign and national security policy; the impact of domestic and international forces on states’ security and economic policies; and the significance of alliances, coalitions, and international institutions for world politics.  The minor emphasizes the importance of political institutions (domestic and comparative), decision making by leaders in shaping policy, and contemporary challenges to the international system. 

A maximum of two courses may double count between the minor in International Relations and Political Science and another major or minor.

*Prior to Summer 2023, the minor in International Relations and Political Science (IRPS) was the minor in International Relations and Politics (IRP).

Curriculum (63 units)

Core Courses

Students must take all four core courses (36 units):

84-104 Decision Processes in American Political Institutions 9
84-226 International Relations 9
84-275 Comparative Politics 9
84-110

Foundations of Political Economy
or 73-102 Principles of Microeconomics, 73-103 Principles of Macroeconomics, or 73-104 Principles of Microeconomics Accelerated

9
Electives

Students select three courses (27 units) from any of the elective sequences below.  Two courses (18 units) must be taken from the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy & Technology and have an 84-number.

CMIST Electives
84-120 Introduction to US Constitutional Law
84-200 Security War Game Simulation
84-252 Briefing in the Policy World
84-274 An Introduction to Technology and War
(formerly 84-374 Technology, Weapons, and International Conflict)
84-280 Popcorn and Politics: American Foreign Policy at the Movies
84-303 International Human Rights
84-304 In the News: Analysis of Current National Security Priorities
84-306 Latin American Politics
84-307 Economic and Political History of Contemporary China
84-309 American Political Divides and Great Debates
84-310 International Political Economy
84-312 Terrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa
84-313 International Organizations and Law
84-315 Political Economy of International Migration
84-316 Political Economy of Transatlantic Partnership
84-317 Defense Resourcing: From Strategy to Execution
84-318 Politics of Developing Nations
84-319 Civil-Military Relations
84-322 Nonviolent Conflict and Revolution
84-323 War and Peace in the Contemporary Middle East
84-324 The Future of Democracy
84-325 Contemporary American Foreign Policy
84-327 Repression and Control in Dictatorships
84-328 Military Strategy and Doctrine
84-329 Asian Strategies
84-351 Bias, Objectivity, and the Media's Role in Politics
84-352 Representation and Voting Rights
84-354 The American Experiment: Unraveling the US Electoral System
84-355 Democracy's Data: Analytics and Insights into American Elections
84-362 Diplomacy and Statecraft
84-363 Click. Hack. Rule: Understanding the Power & Peril of Cyber Conflict
84-365 The Politics of Fake News and Misinformation
84-367 The Politics of Antisemitism
84-369 Decision Science for International Relations
84-370 Nuclear Security & Arms Control
84-372 Space and National Security
84-373 Emerging Technologies and International Law
84-380 US Grand Strategy
84-383 Cyber Policy as National Policy
84-386 The Privatization of Force
84-387 Remote Systems and the Cyber Domain in Conflict
84-388 Concepts of War and Cyber War
84-389 Terrorism and Insurgency
84-390 Social Media, Technology, and Conflict
84-393 Legislative Decision Making: US Congress
84-402 Judicial Politics and Behavior
84-405 The Future of Warfare
84-421 Advanced Topics in American Politics
84-440 Collaborative Research in Political Science

 

Additional Electives
19-452 EPP Projects II
70-342 Managing Across Cultures
70-365 International Trade and International Law
70-430 International Management
73-332 Political Economy
76-318 Communicating in the Global Marketplace
79-203 The Other Europe: The Habsburgs, Communism, & Central/Eastern Europe, 1740-1990
79-205 20th Century Europe
79-223 Mexico: From the Aztec Empire to the Drug War
79-227 Modern Africa: The Slave Trade to the End of Apartheid
79-229 The Origins of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict, 1880-1948
79-230 Arab-Israeli Conflict Since 1948
79-257 Germany and the Second World War
79-262 Modern China: From the Birth of Mao ... to Now
79-264 Tibet and China: History and Propaganda
79-265 Russian History: Game of Thrones
79-266 Russian History and Revolutionary Socialism
79-267 The Soviet Union in World War II: Military, Political, and Social History
79-275 Introduction to Global Studies
79-288 Bananas, Baseball, and Borders: Latin America and the United States
79-301 History of Surveillance: From the Plantation to Data Capitalism
79-302 Killer Robots: The Ethics, Law, and Politics of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems
79-313 "Unwanted": Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Patterns of Global Migration
79-314 The Politics and Culture of Memory
79-318 Sustainable Social Change: History and Practice
79-320 Women, Politics, and Protest
79-343 Education, Democracy, and Civil Rights
79-377 Food, Culture, and Power: A History of Eating
79-385 Out of Africa: The Making of the African Diaspora
80-135 Introduction to Political Philosophy
80-136 Social Structure, Public Policy & Ethics
80-249 AI, Society, and Humanity
80-335 Social and Political Philosophy
80-348 Health, Human Rights, and International Development
80-447 Global Justice
82-3xx or 4xx Advanced Level Modern Languages Class
88-234 Negotiation: International Focus
88-281 Topics in Law: 1st Amendment
88-284 Topics of Law: The Bill of Rights
88-411 Rise of the Asian Economies