Government and International Affairs
Government and International Affairs
International Affairs
Our department is home to two majors, the Government Major and the International Affairs Major, reflecting two different areas of study within political science. While students in each major take courses in both areas, students in Government focus on American politics or political theory, and students in International Affairs focus on international politics and political dynamics within countries around the world.
If you want to change the world, understand how it works or make a big splash in it, the study of government and international affairs can help you achieve your goals. Our students study politics because they love it and because they can see that the department’s faculty love teaching it. Along the way, they learn to think critically and write clearly, building a broad liberal arts perspective and useful skills.
Meet Dr. Victoria Gilbert
Dr. Victoria Gilbert, assistant professor of government and international affairs, teaches courses on world politics, Middle East politics, war and conflict and comparative politics. Her research focuses on the legacy of violence, rebel governance and identities in the Middle East as well as the participation of women in wartime Syria.
Meet Sam Smith ’23
Sam Smith majored in government and Spanish and graduated summa cum laude. He was selected as a Publius Fellow with the Claremont Institute. He says the study of classical political theory, as well as the foundations of American political theory, provided the tools he needed to succeed in the program. He works in the South Carolina Governor’s Office, after which he plans to attend law school.
Government and international affairs students have pursued postgraduate studies at:
American University
Clemson University
Duke University
Texas A&M University
University of Alabama School of Law
University of Georgia
University of North Carolina
University of South Carolina
Vanderbilt University School of Law
Wake Forest University
William and Mary College Law School