Why You Should Study International Relations at MtA

Author: Mike Cormier
Posted on August 19, 2020

When choosing a university, I was looking for a degree program that would be engaging and unique and the International Relations (IR) program is just that. Most primarily undergraduate schools like Mount Allison do not offer as interdisciplinary a program as IR.

The IR program at Mount Allison shares a department with Political Science, and the majority of professors in the department teach both Politics and IR courses. Some, like Dr. James Devine and Dr. Dave Thomas (two great profs) are called on frequently by the media to comment on issues in which they are experts and have had books on international events published.

In terms of the actual program, what makes IR special is that it is an interdisciplinary program. This means that you really have the flexibility to study what you're interested in and make your degree what you want it to be. In your first two years, you take introductory classes in political science, international relations, and economics. There is also a language requirement, whereby you must take four courses in any one given language. This requirement allows you to gain important communication skills and reach a high level of proficiency in either French, German, Spanish or Japanese. In the upper years of the IR program, you have the opportunity to really tailor your degree to your interests. You will pick two subject streams to focus on, along with the set requirements for IR. The possible streams are Political Science, Economics, English, History, Sociology, Geography and Environmental Studies, and Religions Studies. Personally, I'm streaming in Political Science and Economics but I know of all sorts of different combinations that people are taking. Almost every IR student will end up following a differentiated degree path than someone else in their same class.

There are many extracurricular opportunities associated with the IR program as well! The Political Science and International Relations Society, the Mount Allison Model United Nations society (which participates in a large conference at McGill every year) and the Study Abroad opportunities in over a dozen countries are only a handful of the opportunities (I’ve participated in the latter two). Furthermore, graduates of the IR program have gone on to pursue careers in law, community development, policy analysis, and intelligence, to name a few of the many opportunities offered by such an interdisciplinary degree. I highly recommend considering International Relations at Mount Allison, as it is a program that is flexible, stimulating and rigorous. You can learn more by checking out the program’s website.