Washington-Area Universities Open Up World of Learning by Anna Gawel Finding the right ìfitî when it comes to college can be a grueling process for both students and parents. Size, cost and academics are just some of the many considerations to take into account. But for students looking to pursue a degree in international studies, that right fit can be especially elusive. Fewer than 20 major universities nationwide offer schools that specialize in programs such as international relations or foreign service. And historically, U.S. schools have not placed a very strong emphasis on teaching from a global perspective. Even in light of Sept. 11, many administrators say it will take much more time to see if the curriculum actually changes to reflect the growing worldwide focus. Fortunately though, as a hub of international activity, Washington, D.C., is uniquely qualified to provide students of all backgrounds with a truly global education experience. With courses in international leadership, affairs, history, politics, business, economics, diplomacy and countless others, there is no shortage of degree options at Washington-area universities. Moreover, students seeking to fully immerse themselves in the international experience will find that most schoo ls offer an array of additional programs ranging from language dorms to various study abroad and exchange initiatives. Georgetown University, American University and The George Washington University together form the touchstone of international learning in the nationís capital, along with Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and to a lesser degree, the University of Maryland at College Park. Already one of the leading universities in the country, Georgetown University also enjoys a reputation as one of the leaders in international academicsóa reputation that can be traced back to its inception in 1789. ìLooking at Georgetown from the outside, I think people can really appreciate how international it is,î said Michael Vande Berg, director of International Programs, who noted that there was no one defining moment when the school began promoting its globally oriented curriculum, but rather ìitís a tradition that has continued unabated since the very beginning.î Nestled in the heart of the posh Georgetown community, the university is home to a diverse mix of students, researchers and faculty that hail from more than 130 foreign countries. With an acceptance rate that hovers just above 20 percent, competition to get into the prestigious school is tight. The price tag for the roughly 6,400 undergraduates accepted each year is heftyóapproximately $25,000 plus another $9,000 for room and boardóbut 55 percent of students do receive some sort of financial aid package. The backbone of Georgetownís international program is the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, where undergraduates can design their own major or choose from seven interdisciplinary fields of study including history, culture and politics, economics, regional studies, and science and technologyóall with an international bend. Six graduate programs are also available in the areas of foreign service, security studies and various regional studies. The security studies program, a hot topic in todayís turbulent times, ranks as the nationís largest academic program devoted solely to graduate-level, professional education in national and international security matters. Finally, students can compliment any of their degrees with certificates in international business diplomacy, refugee and humanitarian emergencies, Australian and New Zealand studies, Islam and Muslim-Christian understanding as well as a host of other themes that explore major international issues. Interestingly, the graduate program holds the core of Georgetownís international population. Only about 8 percent of international students are actually undergraduates, but that figure skyrockets to 34 percent once students reach the masterís of business administration program. To escape the pressures of academia, the Office of International Programs provides foreign students with a myriad of social activities as well as support services, such as immigration advising and personal counseling. The office also sponsors a global living center and study abroad programs in virtually every pocket of the globe. Closer to home, events such as I-Week, featuring intercultural performances, draw large crowds, and students can always join the Caribbean Culture Circle, Club Filipino, Iranian Cultural Society or any of the 34 other student-run organizations on campus. Once students graduate, about 25 percent go on to careers in the public sector. Georgetownís alumni roster reads like a whoís who of government leaders and includes former President Bill Clinton and CIA Director George Tenet. The U.S. Foreign Service is another popular option for graduates. According to Andrew Steigman, associate dean of the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown grads comprise the single largest contingency in the Foreign Serviceómore than Harvard and Yale combined. Despite its patriotic name, American University boasts a very strong international presence. AU touts itself as the most diverse campus in the countryóand with good reason. The university attracts students from more than 140 nations. Even its American students can be described as internationalómore than one-third have lived outside the United States at some point in their lives. AUís mission over the next century is to build a ìdistinctively American, distinctively global universityî that addresses current trends in world affairs and connects them to a broader liberal arts and sciences foundation. At the heart of AUís commitment to international learning is the School of International Service, where eight fields of study tackle complex global issues such as peace and conflict resolution, U.S. foreign policy and global environmental policy. Although a large number of the international majors are concentrated in the School of International Service, a significant number are also spread out among the other collegesómost notably the international business and marketing program at the Kogod School of Business, ranked one of the top business schools in the country. Despite the popularity of the business programs, Louis Goodman, dean of the School of International Service, said that no one major has emerged as the dominant choice among international students, but he noted that one of AUís strong suits is the ability to give students of all majors ìa classic American liberal arts education with an international twist to it.î The relatively small student bodyóabout 5,500 undergradsólends itself to smaller classrooms and a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1. AUís interdisciplinary degree programs also allow students the flexibility to tailor coursework to their specific goals or interests. For example, Fanta Aw, director of International Student Services, pointed out that students majoring in international relations frequently combine studies by double majoring in a foreign language or economics or by simply individualizing a planned field of study. Students are also heavily encouraged to participate in overseas internships with international organizations, such as the European Union in Brussels, and AUís study abroad programs extend to almost every continent on the globe. For those looking for an alternative to frat life, students can elect to live in Leonard Hall, an international dorm where they are exposed to a flood of different cultures and languages. As with most private universities, the costs of attending AU are high. Tuition and fees amount to about $26,000 per year (with room and board, that number exceeds $33,000), although some 60 percent of the student body receives financial assistance. Another top-tier international institution is The Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University, one of only nine schools in the nation to focus exclusively on the subject of international affairs. Although the Elliott School is only 12 years old, GW has a long tradition of teaching international affairsóone that dates back more than a century to the original School of Comparative Jurisprudence and Diplomacy in 1898. The current school has experienced significant growth in its 12 years, and to accommodate the expansion, a new building is being constructed for the school and is scheduled to be completed this fall. Graduate-level courses have also been revamped to reflect a more career-based curriculum. The vision that Dean Harry Harding had in 1995 was to maintain a solid theoretical curriculum while providing a practical education that helps students hone the real-life skills needed to succeed in the professional world. GWís faculty certainly espouses Hardingís vision. Drawn from Washingtonís pool of political and governmental elite, faculty members and visiting professors include ambassadors, diplomats, national security advisers and other professionals who bring a wealth of experience to the classroom. Undergraduates at the Elliott School can choose from four primary disciplinesóinternational affairs, Middle Eastern studies, Asian studies and Latin American studies, all of which further branch out into more targeted concentrations, such as global public health, Russian and Eastern Europe, conflict and security, and international media and communications. Graduate students can choose from 10 degree and certificate programs, many of which mirror the undergraduate concentrations. Graduates also have the luxury of overlapping their studies with different colleges under the joint-degree and dual-degree programs. Seventeen language programs are offered and the cultivation of a foreign language is a top priority for Elliott students. On the flip side, the school also stresses English instruction for its foreign students to ease the transition into a new school and a new country. ìI think the issue of speaking a second language is compounded in an academic environment,î said Angela Snyder, assistant director of the International Services Office. ìAll of a sudden you donít have the capacity to express yourself, so thatís really a struggle.î Synderís office provides workshops that teach foreign students English conversation, classroom norms, how to interact, how to establish friendships, even how to date in the United States. And for the American students who want to trade places with their foreign counterparts, they can take advantage of any of the 50 overseas programs that ship students to more than 40 nations worldwide. In cost and size, GW is for the most part on par with Georgetown and AU. Enrollment currently stands at nearly 18,500, with international students representing more than 11 percent of the total student body, and tuition runs between $26,000 and $35,000, depending on if the student lives on or off campus. Outside the beltway and on the other end of the spectrum is the University of Maryland at College Park, a public university that is twice the size and costs about half as much as most Washington, D.C., universities. UMís stats are impressive: Situated on 1,500 acres of rolling land, it is home to 13 colleges, 200 undergrad and graduate majors, and about 33,000 students, not to mention 3,500 faculty members. The flagship of the University of Maryland System, it does not have an international school per se, but with so many programs and an extremely diverse campus to boot, the university entices a wide range of students. ìItís fantastically diverse,î said Valerie Woolston, director of International Educational Services. ìWe have students from 140 countries and the largest African American population on campus.Ö Thereís been a big push here for years to bring in more and more diversity.î That push has apparently paid off: Nearly a third of the student body is from a minority background. As far as the degree programs, courses run the gamut from Germanic studies to Arabic and Russian. The business, journalism and engineering schools consistently earn top national rankings, and the School of Public Affairs carries the same accreditation of the nationís premier international colleges. Moreover, Woolston said that undergraduate students can incorporate an international concentration into virtually any major, and most departments, particularly government and politics, make it a point to translate the curriculum into a broader global context. Indeed, the pervading sentiment on campus is an openness and embrace of other cultures. In addition to the sweeping study-abroad program, an intensive English-training institute and the scores of international clubs, students can live in either a language house, which helps them practice a second language, or an international house where they can mix with students from 30 countries. Despite the universityís tremendous size, the majority of classes remain relatively smallóin fact, the student-faculty ratio of 13-to-1 is actually smaller than that of AU, a university with one-sixth the number of students. At some point all students will become that anonymous face in a sea of 300 freshmen, but once they reach the upper echelons of their majors, classes rarely exceed 30 students. And with a total tab of about $5,000 per year for in-state tuition, UM appeals to many cost-conscience families. One caveat though: Yearly tuition can soar to more than $13,000 for out-of-state students; tack on an additional $8,000 for room and board, and the total bill can easily surpass $20,000. Anna Gawel is the assistant editor for The Washington Diplomat.