IAS Courses

IAST 290 Sophomore Seminar The sophomore seminar in international and area studies is intended to provide an opportunity for IAST majors to bring their skill in comparative study and their knowledge of a specific area of the globe together around a common theme. Students will compare the regional and area similarities and differences with regard to the topic of the seminar as well as develop increased expertise in their area of focus through exploration of the seminar topic's ramifications in that region. While specific topics change from year to year, possible topics include, but are not restricted to hunger, war, the environment, international relations, population and migration, human geography and ecology, race and class, religious fundamentalism, the literature of women, and the literature of war. This course does NOT satisfy the Shared Passages Sophomore Seminar requirement. Sophomore IAST Majors Only
IAST 290 Immigration Politics According to the UN Charter of Fundamental Rights, one has a fundamental right to leave one's country of origin (1948, Article 13), yet there is no corresponding right to enter another country. This seminar considers the consequence of this tension with attention to normative questions of who should be allowed entry to and citizenship within (other) states and explores the empirical complexities that inform and result from these judgments. This course does NOT satisfy the Shared Passages Sophomore Seminar requirement.
IAST 490 Senior Seminar Consideration of issues and problems affecting the global whole and the various geographical areas of the world through focusing on a broad topic or theme; emphasis on discussion of the topic and problems from a broadly interdisciplinary perspective. Specific topics will change from year to year. For 2019-2020 our focus is on human rights theories and practices. Senior IAST Majors Only
IAST 593 Senior Integrated Project Each program or department sets its own requirements for Senior Integrated Projects done in that department, including the range of acceptable projects, the required background of students doing projects, the format of the SIP, and the expected scope and depth of projects. See the Kalamazoo Curriculum -> Senior Integrated Project section of the Academic Catalog for more details. Permission of department and SIP supervisor required.
IAST 600 Teaching Assistantship