Tufts University offers a PhD in International Affairs through its Fletcher Graduate School of International Affairs. Most PhD students first complete the MALD (Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy) degree at Tufts before beginning the doctorate, but a small number of outstanding students with equivalent master's degrees are accepted each year.
Students take classes in breadth areas such as economics, law and statistics before delving into areas of specialization. All PhD students are required to choose three areas of specialization out of choices ranging from Humanitarian Studies to Islamic Civilization or International Business Relations. In consultation with an adviser, students can take classes from other graduate programs at Tufts or nearby Harvard University to partly fulfill the course requirements for these areas of specialization. Study-abroad opportunities include a fellowship program in which one student a year receives full funding for a year of dissertation research in Germany.
The Fletcher School
Tufts University
160 Packard Avenue
Medford, MA 02155
617-627-3040
fletcher.tufts.edu/phd/default.shtml
The University of Pittsburgh offers a PhD in Public and International Affairs at the school's main Pittsburgh campus. Students can be admitted with only an undergraduate degree, although the most competitive applicants will have completed a master's degree in international affairs or a related field.
While the program itself emphasizes research, students are also strongly encouraged to complete a practicum to gain work experience in the field before graduation. Students are also given the option to take advantage of the offerings of the University Center for International Studies and earn a graduate certificate in Global Studies or Area Studies (such as African or Eastern European Studies).
Alumni of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public and International Affairs have gone on to careers with the federal government, major corporations, and universities in the United States and abroad.
University of Pittsburgh
Graduate School of Public and International Affairs
3601 Wesley S. Posvar Hall
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
412-624-4141
gspia.pitt.edu/Academics/Programs/DoctorofPhilosophy/tabid/104/Default.aspx
Rutgers University offers a PhD in International Affairs through the Division of Global Studies on the Newark, N.J., campus. Applicants are not required to have had an undergraduate degree in international affairs, but prior experience studying a foreign language is recommended, as all PhD students must either pass a reading competency test or complete four semesters of study in a language other than English.
Apart from the language requirement, students must take at least 18 credit-bearing courses. Six of these courses are taken in a concentration of the student's choosing. Possible concentrations include Criminal Justice, History, and Public Affairs.
Nearby New York City offers many internship opportunities for students looking to gain experience outside the classroom, and those who wish to study abroad can take advantage of a Rutgers program that allows students to take economics and government courses in English at a German university.
Division of Global Affairs
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
123 Washington Street, Suite 510
Center for Law and Justice
Newark, NJ 07102
973-353-5585
dga.rutgers.edu/academic.html