International Studies Major

Students who intend to study abroad or who have studied abroad are encouraged to consider including in their degree plan either a collateral major in International Studies. It is often possible to incorporate courses taken to meet other degree requirements.

A collateral major in International Studies must be taken in conjunction with another major, such as Political Science, Spanish or Business Administration. The goal of the International Studies collateral major is to enhance a student's other academic credentials. A student pursuing an International Studies collateral major is required to complete the following coursework:

Global Perspectives (ID 131): This course introduces students to global issues, such as population, security and human rights; and to competing perspectives, such as Third World, free market and nationalism. The course is team-taught by professors representing different academic disciplines of the university.

Cross-Cultural Reflections (ID 214): This course is for students recently returning from affiliated study abroad programs or international students studying at Texas Lutheran. It is designed to help international students adjust and American students re-adjust to American culture and to contextualize their international experiences. Themes will include, but not be limited to, exploration of experiences before, during and after study abroad, and the literature of cross-cultural experience will be consulted. It is required for students seeking the International Studies major or minor. Pre requisite: Participation in affiliated study abroad program.

Second Language Proficiency: Students must demonstrate proficiency in a second language equivalent to two years of university study. The language must be appropriate to the student's regional and topical choices (see below). The university offers basic and advanced study in Spanish and basic study in French. Languages may be taken in conjunction with some study abroad programs.

Regional Courses: In consultation with their academic and study abroad advisors, a student selects a geographical or cultural region in which he or she has a special interest, such as Mesoamerica or Europe. Two courses relating to the region selected are required.

Topical Course: A student also selects a topic in which he or she has a special interest, such as human rights or the global economy. One course relating to the topical area is required. Courses counted toward the regional coursework requirement (see above) may not be counted toward the topical area coursework requirement.

Study Abroad: Students are required to complete either one semester of study in a country appropriate to their regional concentration or a summer program (four weeks minimum) of appropriate study abroad.

A minor in international studies consists of the same requirements as those for the collateral major, except that the language requirement is reduced to one year of university-level study. The lesser amount of language required reflects that much study abroad may now be done in English.