About PhD Program,
The challenges currently facing our world are numerous and varied. Successfully handling these issues requires the brightest and best-trained minds. The School of International Service’s (SIS) PhD in International Relations provides qualified and dedicated students with the training, knowledge, and experience necessary to pursue careers in the scholarly and policy worlds and to contribute game-changing solutions in international affairs as emerging thought leaders.
With its large and diverse faculty, SIS offers a broad, interdisciplinary, and policy-relevant approach to the study of international affairs. We value theoretical diversity, intellectual breadth, analytical rigor, and scholarly excellence. SIS is committed to maintaining, both among its faculty and within its doctoral program, the expertise needed for the rigorous analysis of critical issues in international affairs.
PhD Program Degree Eligibility with GPA,
The PhD program requires 39 credit hours of approved graduate coursework, plus the successful defense of a dissertation. The first year is devoted to core courses and methods training. In the second year, students complete a field concentration.
Students must also successfully complete two comprehensive exams – a qualifying exam at the end of their first year and a concentration comp at the end of the second year. Students are also asked to demonstrate competency in a modern foreign language.
The dissertation must advance knowledge in the field of international relations, broadly defined. Students select and design their own research project in consultation with a committee of at least three experts in their chosen field of study. Students advance to candidacy upon the successful defense of a dissertation prospectus, usually in their third year. A public defense of the dissertation is required for graduation
PhD Funding Coverage,
Applicants who are admitted to the SIS PhD program as full-time students and who maintain good progress towards completing the degree are granted a Dean’s Fellowship, unless they have their own external funding.
Need-based aid is available through AU Central Office and generally takes the form of a federal low-interest loan package.
Unless students bring their own external funding, normally those admitted to the program are offered a Dean’s Fellowship, which is renewable for up to four years for full-time students who maintain good progress toward completing the degree. The Dean’s Fellowship provides full tuition remission plus a stipend that requires the student to work for a member of the SIS faculty as a either a Research or a Teaching Assistant for a maximum of 20 hours per week during both the Fall and Spring semesters.
Other sources of funding are available for summer research, travel for conference presentations, and additional methods training.
Application Requirement,
Undergraduate degree
GRE score
TOEFL/IELTS score if international applicant
Three letters of recommendation
Statement of Purpose
Resume
personal statement
Application Deadline,
Dec 15, 2024
Application Fee,
The application fee for SIS graduate programs is $55.
