Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies

The School of Global Policy and Strategy (IR/PS), at the University of California, San Diego, was created in 1986 as the University of California’s only professional school of international affairs. The school is unique in its geographical focus on the Pacific (the Americas and Asia). IR/PS is the only professional program in the United States to concentrate exclusively on the diverse political and economic systems of this region. The school’s programs have been developed in response to the increasing importance of the Pacific in global economic and political affairs. When IR/PS was founded, the globe was still locked in the Atlantic-centric world of the cold war. Today, we see the emergence of nations such as China, Brazil, Korea, Singapore, and Mexico as important players in a globalized world. The degrees offered by the school include a professional master of Pacific international affairs (MPIA), a master of advanced studies in international affairs (MAS-IA), a doctorate in political science and international affairs offered jointly with the Department of Political Science, and a five year bachelor of arts/master of international affairs (BA/MIA) offered jointly with the International Studies Program. Training emphasizes international relations, economics and management, public policy, country and regional studies, and languages of the region.