Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Policy Studies

International Policy Studies (IPS) is an analytical interdisciplinary program focusing on international policy analysis. Its goal is to provide students with exposure to issues that they face in international business and public policy, and to develop skills and knowledge to address those issues. The program allows students to specialize in: international political economy; international negotiation and conflict management; international security and cooperation; democracy, development, and the rule of law; global health; global justice; or energy, environment, and resources.

IPS requires completion of the core and concentration requirements, which amount to 90 units of credit. Additional units are required for students who have not fulfilled prerequisites for these requirements.

University requirements for the M.A. degree are described in the "Graduate Degrees" section of this bulletin.

ADMISSION

IPS is designed for students who have a strong undergraduate background in economics and political science. To enroll in the program, students must have taken calculus-based undergraduate courses in statistics, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. Stanford courses satisfying these requirements are ECON 51, 52, and ECON 102A or POLISCI 150A. In addition, students must have completed one advanced undergraduate course in international economics; the Stanford course that meets this requirement is ECON 165.

Applicants from schools other than Stanford or applicants from Stanford who did not apply in their senior year should submit a graduate admission application including a statement setting forth relevant personal, academic, and career plans and goals; official transcripts; three letters of recommendation; Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores; a writing sample of at least ten pages; an area of concentration form; and resume. TOEFL scores are required of applicants for whom English is not their first language or who did not attend an undergraduate institution where English is the language of instruction. To apply or for information on graduate admission, see http://gradadmissions.stanford.edu. Applicants are expected to have a B.A. or B.S. degree from an accredited school. Applications for admission in Autumn Quarter must be filed with supporting credentials by January 6, 2009.

Undergraduates at Stanford may apply for admission to the coterminal master's program in IPS when they have earned a minimum of 120 units toward graduation, including AP and transfer credit, and no later than the quarter prior to the expected completion of their undergraduate degree. The coterminal application requires the following supporting materials: two letters of recommendation from University faculty, a writing sample of at least ten pages, and a statement of relevant personal, academic, and career plans and goals. Applications must be filed together with supporting materials by January 6.

For University coterminal degree program rules and University application forms, see http://registrar.stanford.edu/shared/publications.htm#Coterm.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

To receive the M.A. degree in International Policy Studies, students must complete the items below. These requirements entail 4 units of core courses, 36 units of policy skills, a 10-unit practicum, a 5-unit writing and rhetoric seminar, a 5-unit course in international economics, and an additional 30 units from the concentration curriculum. These courses have the following prerequisites: ECON 51, 52, 102A or POLISCI 150A, and ECON 165.

Core Courses—

IPS 300. Public Policy Colloquium (1 unit)
IPS 201. Managing Global Complexity (3 units)

Policy Skills—

IPS 204A. Microeconomics (4 units)
IPS 204B. Cost-Benefit Analysis and Evaluation (4 units)
IPS 205A. Principles of Research Design and Analysis: Methods (4 units)
IPS 205B. Principles of Research Design and Analysis: Tools (2 units)
IPS 205C. Foundations of Statistical Inference (2 units)
IPS 206A. Politics and Collective Action (4 units)
IPS 206B. Organizations (4 units)
IPS 207A. Judgment and Decision Making (4 units)
IPS 207B. Public Policy and Social Psychology: Implications and Applications (4 units)
IPS 208. Justice (4 units)

Writing and Rhetoric Seminar—One of the following (5 units):

IPS 210. Politics of International Humanitarianism
IPS 211. The Transition from War to Peace: Peacebuilding Strategies
IPS 212. Issues in Development
IPS 219. Roles of Intelligence in U.S. Foreign Policy
IPS 314S. Decision Making in U.S. Foreign Policy

International Economics—IPS 202, Topics in International Macroeconomics; or IPS 203, Issues in International Economics (5 units)

Practicum—IPS 209, Practicum (10 units)

Concentration Curriculum—Students are required to complete 30 units of IPS approved courses for their area of concentration (see list below). A gateway course in the area of concentration must be taken prior to enrolling in subsequent courses. A complete list of the courses in these areas is available from the IPS program office.

Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law

Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources

Global Health

Global Justice

International Negotiation and Conflict Management

International Political Economy

International Security and Cooperation

Language Requirement—Proficiency in a foreign language is required and may be demonstrated by completion of three years of university-level course work in a foreign language or by passing an oral and written proficiency examination prior to graduation.

Grade Requirements—All courses to be counted toward the degree, except IPS 300, must be taken for a letter grade.

Financial Aid—Financial aid is available for graduate students entering the IPS program.

COGNATE COURSES

The courses listed below fulfill elective requirements within the various areas of concentration. Not all courses are applicable for every area of concentration. Additional relevant courses may be offered; for updated information, please visit the program office or website. For course descriptions, see respective department listings.

ANTHRO 109/209. Archaeology: World Cultural Heritage

ANTHRO 277. Environmental Change and Emerging Infectious Diseases (Same as HUMBIO 114.)

ANTHRO 336. Anthropology of Rights

ANTHRO 356. The Anthropology of Development

BIO 180/280. Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture (Same as EARTHSYS 280.)

BIO 247. Controlling Climate Change in the 21st Century (Same as EARTHSYS 247, HUMBIO 116.)

BIOMEDIN 432. Analysis of Costs, Risks, and Benefits of Health Care (Same as MGTECON 332, HRP 392.)

CEE 242A. Creating Sustainable Development

CEE 265A. Sustainable Water Resources Development

CEE 265C. Water Resources Management

CEE 265D. Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries

CEE 275A. Law and Science of California Coastal Policy (Same as EARTHSYS 275.)

COMM 336G. Democracy, Justice, and Deliberation

COMM 338. Democratic Theory: Normative and Empirical Issues

COMM 344. Democracy, Press, and Public Opinion

ECON 106. World Food Economy

ECON 127. Economics of Health Improvement in Developing Countries (Same as MED 262.)

ECON 214. Development Economics I

ECON 216. Development Economics II

ECON 265. International Economics I

ECON 266. International Economics II

GES 253. Petroleum Geology and Exploration

HISTORY 102. The History of the International System

HISTORY 227/327. East European Women and War in the 20th Century

HISTORY 257/347. The Politics and Ethics of Modern Science and Technology (Same as STS 221.)

HISTORY 304G. War, Culture, and Society in the Modern Age

HISTORY 326G. Civilians and War in Modern Europe

HISTORY 378A. The Logic of Authoritarian Government, Ancient and Modern

HISTORY 391E. Maps, Borders, and Conflict in East Asia

HRP 207. Introduction to Concepts and Methods in Health Services and Policy Research I

HRP 208. Introduction to Concepts and Methods in Health Services and Policy Research II

HRP 212. Crosscultural Medicine

HRP 231. Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases

HUMBIO 122S. Social Class, Race, Ethnicity, Health (Same as SOC 141A.)

HUMBIO 153. Parasites and Pestilence: Infectious Public Health Challenges

INTNLREL 140C. The U.S., U.N. Peacekeeping, and Humanitarian War

LAW 330. International Human Rights

LAW 336. International Jurisprudence

LAW 338. Land Use

LAW 407. International Deal Making: Legal and Business Aspects

LAW 605. International Environmental Law: Climate Change

MED 242. Physicians and Human Rights

MGTECON 331. Political Economy of Health Care in the United States (Same as HRP 391, PUBLPOL 231.)

MS&E 243. Energy and Environmental Policy Analysis (Same as IPER 243.)

MS&E 248. Economics of Natural Resources

MS&E 294. Climate Policy Analysis

PHIL 176/276. Political Philosophy: The Social Contract Tradition

POLISCI 110B. Strategy, War, and Politics

POLISCI 110D/110Y. War and Peace in American Foreign Policy

POLISCI 113F. The United Nations and Global Governance

POLISCI 116. History of Nuclear Weapons (Same as HISTORY 103E.)

POLISCI 134. Democracy and the Communication of Consent (Same as COMM 236.)

POLISCI 215. Explaining Ethnic Violence

POLISCI 216E/316. International History and International Relations Theory (Same as HISTORY 202/306E.)

POLISCI 218. U.S. Relations in Iran

POLISCI 221. Tolerance and Democracy

POLISCI 223S. The Imperial Temptation: U.S. Foreign Policy in a Unipolar World

POLISCI 231S. Contemporary Theories of Justice

POLISCI 236. Theories of Civil Society, Philanthropy, and the Nonprofit Sector

POLISCI 336. Justice (Same as PHIL 271.)

POLISCI 348R. Workshop: China Social Science (Same as SOC 368W.)

POLISCI 440B. Political Economy of Development (Same as HISTORY 378E.)

PSYCH 215. Mind, Culture, and Society

SOC 141/241. Controversies about Inequality

SOC 210. Politics and Society

SOC 218. Social Movements and Collective Action

SOC 240. Introduction to Social Stratification

SOC 247A. Comparative Ethnic Conflict

SOC 314. Economic Sociology

SOC 345. Seminar in Comparative Race and Ethnic Relations

STS 210. Ethics, Science, and Technology

Registrar's Office

Stanford Bulletin, Archive 2008-09

Stanford Bulletin, Archive 2008-09

Alphabetical Index

Bulletin Archive

Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Policy Studies

MASTER OF ARTS IN INTERNATIONAL POLICY STUDIES