Our Mission
As mandated by the CSU charter, ISCOR is committed to teaching as its primary responsibility. The program is designed to address changes in the nature and meaning of national and international security, peace, and conflict resolution. ISCOR envisions international security as involving more than the traditional focus on military power and the threat or use of force. It extends to encompass broader analyses of global affairs, with an in-depth focus on global justice and the environment. The program exposes students to a multiplicity of ideological, regional, and cultural perspectives with the aim of making them informed global citizens.
The ISCOR program features three areas of emphasis: Justice in the Global System; Conflict in the Global System; and Environment in the Global System. All students are expected to study abroad and given the option of doing an internship or a senior thesis.
- Learn a range of theoretical concepts dealing with the nature of socio-economic and
political systems, the origins of conflicts, and political struggles surrounding questions
of justice, broadly speaking.
- Develop the capacity to compare and interpret theories, critically analyze specific
texts, and understand the importance of normative underpinnings of diverse worldviews.
- Demonstrate knowledge of prominent institutions (such as the United Nations, the International
Criminal Court, the World Trade Organization etc.) and critical themes (such as human
rights, terrorism, North-South relations, the Climate crisis) in global politics.
- Depending on the Specialization chosen:
- Classify a range of commonly accepted international human rights, identify major historical developments, summarize the issues and conflicting world views at play in one or more substantive areas of global justice (e.g., economic distribution, humanitarian intervention, etc.)
- Display an in-depth knowledge of at least one longstanding political conflict (major historical developments, identification of major actors, etc.); identify a range of recurring factors that lead to conflict; identify a range of policy approaches to resolving conflict.
- Identify major global policy developments in addressing environmental challenges (such as major treaties, global organizations); Describe some substantive and technical themes at stake in particular global environmental concerns, like global warming.
- Based on the study abroad experience, demonstrate a deeper and more specific understanding of historically rooted political struggles that have shaped the host country, as well as its specific cultural practices. In addition, develop a deeper knowledge of an issue area specific to the host country and apply this expertise to deepen understanding of one or more central themes in global affairs