The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs

Courses

Required Courses

"Core" courses: There are two core courses that all students must complete: Global Flows and Comparative Development Experience.  Please see the catalog or website for course descriptions. Global Flows is a prerequisite for Comparative Development.

Economics:  Economics in International Affairs is designed for students who do not enter the program with an economics background. They should register for this course in the first semester. Students who majored in economics or who have taken micro and macro courses may waive the Economics in International Affairs course requirement upon passing a proficiency test, the date and time of which will be announced on the listserve. 

Methods:  Research Methods presents a basic engagement with quantitative and qualitative social science methodology.  Students fulfill the Research Methods requirement by taking an approved statistics or methods courses through other New School departments.  Students who feel they already possess significant research methods skills either through undergraduate or work experience may email Chris London (londonc@newschool.edu) and explain their situation, and include any syllabi of relevant courses. 

Final Project: Master of Arts students must also complete a final project consisting either of an independent research project (Thesis Option, below) or a team-based project (Practicum Option, below).  Students decide on one of these options, in consultation with their advisor, after completing 18 credits.

Transferring Credit

All credit transfers require formal approval by the International Affairs Program and are considered after students are matriculated into the program.  Transfer credit must be based on graduate work completed within the five-year period immediately preceding matriculation.  Transfer credit cannot be used toward core courses, only toward electives.

Master of Arts (MA) students may apply for transfer of up to nine (9) graduate credits to be used toward the elective requirements. For MA students transferring to GPIA from other graduate programs of the New School a maximum of nine credits may be transferred.

Master of Science (MS) students may apply for transfer of a maximum of six (6) graduate credits to be used toward the elective requirements. For MS students transferring to GPIA from other graduate programs of the New School a maximum of six credits may be transferred.

All transfer credit determinations are made on a case-by-case basis by a program advisor only after a student is matriculated in the Graduate Program in International Affairs. Transfer credits may include courses taken prior to entering the GPIA degree program and courses taken at other universities while a matriculated student at GPIA (see Courses taken outside The New School), but may not exceed the maximum noted above.

Students requesting a transfer of credit are obligated to make the case for the courses in question.  Students who wish to apply for transfer credit must first meet with an advisor to discuss the credits and ensure that the required courses fit their program of study.  At that time the student must provide the Advisor and the Program Assistant Director with 1. a written rationale for how the course(s) in question contributes significantly to their International Affairs program of study, and 2. a copy of the syllabus for the course(s) in question. Other information may be requested as needed. Upon approval, students complete a form, Transfer of Credit Petition, which they deposit along with an official transcript at the GPIA Office and this information is transferred to the Records Office.

Waiving a Required Course or Pre-requisite 

Students who wish to waive a required or pre-requisite course must speak with their advisor. However, Global Flows and Comparative Development cannot be waived; nor can the final project (either the Thesis or the Practicum in International Affairs).

If the advisor agrees that a student has the appropriate background and that it would make academic sense to waive a course, a student must write a petition for waiver to the advisor with a copy to the Assistant Director. The letter should state clearly:

1.  What course the student would like to waive;

2.  How the student meets that requirement or pre-requisite without taking the course (usually by prior graduate level course work or relevant professional experience);

3.  Why it would be in the student's educational interest for the course to be waived, including how the student proposes to use the three credit hours made available by the waiver.

The petition should be accompanied by any documents in support of the petition. The advisor will confer with the Assistant Director and appropriate faculty members and report the decision back to the student. The petition and the decision will be placed in the student's file.

Concentrations

Students concentrate in a sub-specialization within the international affairs field. A concentration is declared after the completion of 18 credit hours by completion of the Declaration of Concentration form (pdf) during registration with the student's advisor. Students must take the respective concentration "Foundation" course and at least three electives that count toward the respective concentration. An updated list of concentrations and approved courses is available each semester from the GPIA office.

Concentrations are offered in:

• Development (DEV)
• Governance and Rights (GR)
• Cities and Urbanization (CU)
• Media and Culture (MC)
• Conflict and Security (CS).

The foundation courses are:

• Development Economics (DEV)
• Governance and International Organization (GR)
• Urban Foundation Course (CU)
• News Media and Culture in International Affairs (MC)
• Critical Security Studies (CS).

In rare cases, students may individually design a concentration with the approval of their academic advisor.  To do so students must identify the requisite number of courses and write a proposal that explains why these courses should count as a concentration.

Electives

Electives are courses offered by the GPIA or other New School graduate programs that focus on specific areas of academic and professional interest.  They may be taken to fulfill a concentration requirement, a specific skill need, or simply to fulfill intellectual curiosity. Electives may be taken outside the Program (see Courses in Other Graduate Divisions and Courses taken outside The New School).  The number of electives a student may take depends on the particular program of study.

Final Project

To graduate, Master of Arts students complete a final project consisting of either an independent research project (thesis option) or a team-based project (practicum option).  After completing 18 credits of course work, students decide on one option in consultation with their advisor.

Thesis Option

The thesis is an independent project based on field work, institutional research, and/or theoretical research involving primary and secondary sources.  Media-based theses are possible, as are custom-designed projects that meet Program approval.  Theses must conform to academic standards.

In the semester before completing the thesis a student registers for Thesis Workshop, which focuses on designing the research project and writing a proposal.  Students are strongly recommended to have a primary thesis advisor (who must be a full time GPIA professor), who, prior to attending Thesis Workshop, has already approved of their thesis topic. Concomitant with the Thesis Workshop, the student puts together a thesis committee consisting of the primary thesis advisor and a secondary reader. The secondary reader can be an academic, researcher or professional in a field related to the student's work and may be external to the program.  External readers must be approved by the thesis supervisor.

In the semester following the Thesis Workshop, students register for Thesis Supervision under the name of their thesis supervisor. In order to get permission to register for Thesis Supervision, students must deposit a Thesis Registration Form (pdf) with the department secretary prior to the registration period for the semester in which Thesis Supervision will be taken.  This form must be signed by the thesis supervisor. Thesis Supervision carries three credits.  By the beginning of Thesis Supervision, students submit their finished proposal to their committee.  The student then conducts the agreed-upon research independently and writes the thesis, working with the advice and guidance of their supervisor.

Upon completion of the manuscript the student provides copies of the complete draft of the thesis to the supervisor and the second reader.  Readers should have at least two weeks to consider the work prior to the Program due date.  Either reader may ask the student to revise and resubmit part or all of the work.

In order to graduate, two clean, final copies of the approved thesis bearing the signatures of the committee members on the cover page must be deposited with the GPIA Assistant Director, an electronic copy must be sent to thesis@gpia.info, and the supervisor must submit a passing grade (P) for the Thesis Supervision.  The thesis does not receive a letter grade.

Finished, signed, and approved thesis manuscripts on acid-free paper, conforming to all of the usual expectations of library-deposited thesis documents, are due in the Assistant Director's office by December 15 for January degree conferral, and May 1 for May degree conferral.  Theses deposited after that date will delay the student's graduation by one semester.

Thesis guidelines can be accessed at the Thesis Option page.

Practicum Option

The Practicum in International Affairs (PIA) is a faculty-supervised, client-driven capstone course that provides students the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the course of their studies in specific consulting assignments with a wide range of client organizations.  Organized into teams of 4-6, students work on discrete assignments of at least one semester's duration for client organizations from the not-for-profit, public and private sectors, and multilateral agencies such as the United Nations. 

PIA seeks to simulate the professional context, including its emphasis on deadlines and professional standards for work products, as well as the imperative to make decisions and recommendations based on imperfect information.  It emphasizes working closely with teammates and being responsive to clients in achieving the desired objectives of their assignments.

After 24 credits, students register for the Program Development and Project Management course (PDPM), followed by the PIA in their last semester. Students must request approval to register for PDPM, please contact Andrea Kelsey, GPIA Program Administrator, at kelseya@newschool.edu.

Auditing

With the exception of language courses (see Auditing Language Courses), it is generally not possible to audit courses.  Students who wish to audit classes should inquire directly with the respective division or program about their policy.  Students should inform their advisors if they receive permission to audit a class.

 

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