Stanford University

International Security

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International Security

Discover this specialization's requirements

Area of Specialization Curriculum

The International Security area of specialization is guided by the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) at FSI. Students must complete two required courses, and choose at least three electives from the pre-approved list below - for a minimum of 20 total units.

Courses

Required Courses

INTLPOL 240: Contemporary Issues in International Security  
INTLPOL 296:  Strategic Technology and Global Challenges

 

Approved Electives

Currently Offered (AY 2025-26)
 
ESS 164: Fundamentals of Geographic Information Science (GIS) 
HISTORY 261G: Presidents and Foreign Policy in Modern History 
HISTORY359E:  American Interventions, 1898-Present (HISTORY 259E, INTNLREL 168A)
INTLPOL 211: A New Cold War? Great Power Relations in the 21st Century 
INTLPOL 222: Global Futures: History, Statecraft, Systems  
INTLPOL 231B: Understanding Russia: Its Power and Purpose in a New Global Order 
INTLPOL 239: Entrepreneurship Inside Government 
INTLPOL 242S: Special Operations Forces in an Era of Great Power Competition
INTLPOL 247: Verification for 21st Century Arms Control Treaties 
INTLPOL 248: China and its Military 
INTLPOL 250: Ethics and Law of War (PSYCH 315)
INTLPOL 252: India in the Indo-Pacific
INTLPOL 259: Research Topics in Technology and National Security
INTLPOL 260: Technology, Policy, and US-China Relations  
INTLPOL 265: AI, Autonomy, and the Future of Warfare (PUBLPOL 119, PUBLPOL 219)
INTLPOL 280: Transitional Justice, Human Rights, and International Criminal Tribunals 
INTLPOL 288: The Asian Triangle: Japan, Korea and China
INTLPOL 300V: Silicon Valley and the U.S. Government
INTLPOL 311N: Nuclear Strategy, Law, and Politics (POLISCI 211N, POLISCI 311N)
INTLPOL 324: Economic Statecraft 
INTLPOL 340: Technology, Innovation and Great Power Competition (*Required for Class of 2023 & earlier) 
INTLPOL 340S: Innovating for National Security
INTLPOL 350: International Law   
INTLPOL 357: Transitional Justice
INTLPOL 358: Business, Social Responsibility, and Human Rights
INTLPOL 363: Confronting Misinformation Online: Law and Policy 
LAW 7821: Negotiation 
MS&E 297: "Hacking for Defense": Solving National Security issues with the Lean Launchpad 
 

Not Currently Offered

EASTASN 243: Taiwan's Democratic Evolution
EASTASN 289K: Korea and the World 
HISTORY 261D: Democracy in Crisis: Historical Perspectives 
HISTORY 303E: Infrastructure and Power in the Global South 
HISTORY 349: Bodies, Technologies, and Natures in Africa 
INTLPOL 210: The Politics of International Humanitarian Action 
INTLPOL 213: International Mediation in Civil Wars 
INTLPOL 214: Refugees in the Twenty-First Century 
INTLPOL 217: The Future of Global Cooperation 
INTLPOL 200: The Social & Economic Impact of Artificial Intelligence 
INTLPOL 221: Politics of Data: Algorithmic Culture, Big Data, and Information Waste 
INTLPOL 226: Current Issues in Southeast Asia
INTLPOL 232: Foreign Policy Decision Making in Comparative Perspective 
INTLPOL 233: Presidential Decision Making in Wartime 
INTLPOL 236: American Grand Strategy 
INTLPOL 238: Social Movements in the Post Spring Arab World 
INTLPOL 244: U.S. Policy Toward Northeast Asia
INTLPOL 244D: Asia-Pacific Transformation  
INTLPOL 246: China's Foreign Policies: Objectives, Instruments, and Impacts 
INTLPOL 249: War and the Making of Modern China
INTLPOL 250: International Conflict Resolution (currently active under a different title)
INTLPOL 256: Technology and National Security: Past, Present, and Future 
INTLPOL 257: Technology & Public Purpose: Practical Solutions for Innovation's Public Dilemmas 
INTLPOL 266: Managing Nuclear Waste: Technical, Political, Organizational Challenges 
INTLPOL 282: Global Human Rights and Local Practice 
INTLPOL 285: American and Chinese Approaches to Managing Global Challenges 
INTLPOL 353: Policy Practicum: Human Rights & International Justice 
INTLPOL 354: International Criminal Law and Its Enforcement 
INTLPOL 355: International Human Rights
INTLPOL 356: Human Trafficking: Law and Policy 
LAW 5036: Law and Ethics of War     
LAW 7109: Foreign Affairs and the Constitution 
LAW 7823: International Negotiation: Solving Intractable Conflict     
POLISCI 218T: Politics of Insurgency, Terrorism and Civil War  
POLISCI 314R: Challenges and Dilemmas in American Foreign Policy   
POLISCI 348: Chinese Politics
POLISCI 443S: Political Economy of Reform in China
PUBLPOL 353B: Regulating Emerging Technology: Risks, Opportunities, and Reality
SOC 217B: Chinese Politics and Society
SOC 309: Nations and Nationalism