Master of Arts in International Affairs (MAIA) Program

Director: Dr. David Schwam-Baird | Ph. 904-620-1929 | E-mail: dschwam@unf.edu

New Program: Prepare for a Career in International Affairs

The program consists of a minimum of 36 credit hours, 18 of which are earned through an interdisciplinary common core of required courses. Fifteen (15) credit hours are major electives and the final 3 credit hours are earned through a thesis or field experience.

Core Requirements: (18 credits)

Major requirements: (15 credits)

Students choose five (5) courses from a minimum of three (3) of the following disciplines:

Thesis and Non-Thesis Options (3 credits)

Students may choose to write a thesis (for a total of 3 credits) OR choose to undertake a field experience (for a total of 3 credits), either an internationally-oriented internship or study abroad program.* The MAIA graduate director must approve all internships and study abroad programs as meeting this requirement.

INR 6971 Thesis (1-3 credits)

INR 6946 Field Experience in International Affairs (0-3 credits)

* The courses are listed as having variable credit to cover cases where the thesis or field experience is spread over more than one semester. While such cases are likely to arise, they must be approved by the MAIA Director.

Contextual Requirements: Language Proficiency

To graduate with the MAIA, students must demonstrate language proficiency at the intermediate level by:

Completing undergraduate Beginning I, Beginning II, Intermediate I, and Intermediate II (or their equivalents) in a single language while enrolled in the MAIA program.

Having completed 14 or more credits of a single language at the undergraduate level prior to admission.

Successfully completing a UNF-approved language proficiency exam.

Admission Requirements

A baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or its equivalent from a foreign institution with a GPA of 3.0 or higher in all work attempted in the last 60 credit hours of undergraduate study.

Additional Program Requirements:

• Official transcripts from all attended institutions
• GRE scores (Institutional Code: 5490)
  • Prior to July 1, 2011: Composite score of 1000 on both verbal and quantitative
  • After July 1, 2011: 153 verbal, 145 quantitative
  • GMAT is acceptable with minimum scores of 30 verbal and 29 quantitative
• Resume
• Letter of Intent
• Two letters of recommendation

Mission

The mission of the MAIA is to educate students about our world today, our country's interactions with other countries, and individual awareness of the many ways we interact with other countries, cultures, and peoples at home or abroad. More specifically, the program concentrates on educating our students about: the global context for US domestic and foreign policy making; contemporary global issues; the US role in the world and other countries' reactions to that role; globalization and the global economy; and the cultures and societies of other countries. Each of these goals fits with expectations of potential employers. A recent report by the Association of American Colleges and Universities noted the following knowledge and skills were desired by employers: the ability to understand the global context of situations and decisions, knowledge of global issues and development and their implications for the future, understanding of the role of the United States in the world, understandings of cultural diversity in America and other countries, and proficiency in a foreign language.

The Master of Arts in International Affairs (MAIA) is an interdisciplinary offered jointly by seven departments across two colleges. The Departments of Political Science and Public Administration; Economics and Geography; History; and Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work offer the common core courses; The Departments of Political Science and Public Administration; Economics and Geography; History; and Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work offer the common core courses; the Departments of Economics and Geography; English; History; Languages, Literatures, and Cultures; Philosophy and Religious Studies; Political Science; and Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work will contribute elective courses.

The MAIA program consists of a minimum of 36 credit hours, 18 of which are earned through an interdisciplinary common core of required courses: International Relations Theory, Foreign and Security Policy, Research Methods, Globalization and Development, International Economics, and US in World Affairs. Fifteen (15) credit hours are major electives. The final 3 credit hours are earned through a thesis or non-thesis option, the latter of which would involve an internship or study abroad component. Students will have to demonstrate intermediate-level foreign language proficiency either upon admission or graduation.

The MAIA is meant to prepare our graduates for a variety of careers that demand knowledge of and engagement with the wider world. Examples include: the US government (Foreign Service, and other State Department positions, Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs, etc.), international governmental organizations such as the UN and international nongovernmental organizations such as Human Rights Watch or International Crisis Group; international and development consulting; international business; and education. Locally, employment opportunities exist with agencies such as the Jacksonville Port Authority, import-export companies, international moving and logistics companies, and other international businesses in the Northeast Florida region.