Franklin University Switzerland is a small, international university located in the southern Swiss city of Lugano. Founded in 1969, Franklin was among the first institutions to bring American Liberal Arts education to Europe, and it is the only liberal arts university in the world accredited in the United States and Switzerland. It is the only university in the world that offers interdisciplinary, experiential learning, placing Academic Travel at the core of its curriculum.
Work directly with our Admissions representatives to find out what makes a Franklin education unique, complete the application process and determine your eligibility for merit or need-based financial aid. See our travel schedule to find out when a representative will be in your area or better yet, schedule a campus visit and come see for yourself.
Regardless of the program, your education at Franklin will be rigorous, academic and professional, with a focus on cross-cultural study and learning through direct experience. Our curriculum encourages multi-disciplinary study, and our Academic Travel program, included in tuition, provides an off-campus study opportunity for two weeks every semester.
Students at Franklin come from over 50 countries. Interacting with students from other traditions and cultures makes social life a part of the Franklin learning experience. Activities, on-campus housing and dining, and a strong support network help you to build lasting relationships with your peers and provide everything you need to be successful in your studies.
Franklin students, faculty and staff are active and involved in many academic and social initiatives. Our calendar is full of events organized by faculty and students for learning and interaction that go beyond the classroom environment. Take a few minutes to read our stories and find out how our students and faculty are succeeding in their endeavors all over the world.
Franklin offers a wide range of services for students, faculty, staff and friends to support life, work and learning on campus. Making use of these services will give you the tools you need to be successful both in and out of the classroom.
The minor in International Relations takes an applied approach to global political and societal issues, and is a good complement for students majoring in other applied disciplines, who are considering professions in the multinational arena.
Not open to majors in International Relations, International Relations (any emphasis) or Political Science or minors in Political Science.
This course provides the basic analytic tools necessary for the understanding of international relations. After a brief introduction to the realist and liberal approaches to the study of international relations, the course covers various fundamental concepts, such as national power, foreign policy, conflict, political economy, international trade, and international organizations.
This course concentrates on the major approaches, models and theories in the study of international relations. Micro and macro theories, deductive and inductive methods are explored from historical, political and economic perspectives. The relations between the major powers in the twentieth century are examined for their relevance in the study of international politics.
The focus of this course is the development of supra-national and international agencies and entities. The United Nations, the European Union, the IMF, the World Bank, trading blocs, and other specialized agencies are studied as examples-in light of increasing economic interdependence in the international system.
The interplay between political and economic issues has become central to the study of international relations in the modern world. This course will examine the traditional theoretical foundations of International Political Economy (the views of the liberals, the Marxists, the nationalists, etc.) and their applicability to today's world. Using an inter-disciplinary approach, the course will look at both historical background and present-day issues and conditions. The problems of development and North-South relations and the question of sustainability will be examined. International trade issues, such as the relations between trade globalization and environmental and human rights concerns and the role of institutions such as, the WTO, the IMF and G8 meetings will be studied. Finally the course will also consider new problem areas such as the internet and its control and e-commerce and the emerging role of non-governmental organizations.(Formerly POL 277. Students cannot earn credit for both POL 277 and POL 377.)
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