This fall, the Penn State Berks B.A. in Global Studies degree program has undergone some changes to make the degree more competitive in the increasingly global world in which we live today. The reorganized degree program now emphasizes all major global regions and how these regions function with one another in the larger global environment.
Until now, students in the major selected one of two pathways: Contemporary History and Politics or Latin American Culture. With the new curriculum, students will no longer choose tracks, but instead take courses dealing with diverse areas such as Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Latin America. In addition, students will enroll in courses that emphasize how global regions, institutions, governments, and non-state organizations interact on the global stage.
Students will continue to study abroad and complete an international-oriented internship as part of their degree program, providing valuable real-world experience. Over the years, students have completed internships and studied abroad in nearly forty countries on every continent except Antarctica. They have worked with underserved children in India, studied international law in Switzerland, and much more.
Graduates have pursued careers as attorneys, research analysts for multinational corporations, research assistants in international institutes and foreign ministries, law enforcement professionals, teachers, non-profit and non-governmental organization officials, political researchers in state government, and United Nations workers, among many other careers.
When Penn State Berks faculty launched the B.A. in Global Studies degree in 2003, it was the only such program in the Penn State University system and the only program of its kind in the state of Pennsylvania at the time. Today, the degree remains the only such four-year degree program at Penn State University.
In a time when global knowledge and intercultural aptitudes are more important than ever, the Penn State Berks Global Studies degree program offers students insight, skills, and opportunities to be successful in numerous governmental, corporate, and non-profit careers upon graduation, as well as in graduate and professional schools. The new degree curriculum will enhance students’ ability to succeed in all such endeavors.
