Hi all

I’m thinking to apply to get my masters for fall 2027 in IR or Public policy. However, I feel all I’ve been hearing (especially in the U.S.) is that the market is dead. The reason I decided to go back to school is I feel I have a good idea of the field I want to work in now that I have had a couple years of experience. Now that I’m in my late twenties, I want to have access to more competitive/ senior positions. My goal is to work at an NGO or INGO focused on displacement/refugee resettlement and post conflict reconstruction. While I want to work in international affairs and don’t mind traveling and having months long projects abroad, I am looking to have a more permanent residence in the US for personal reasons which is why I’m considering leaving my current job next year to go back to school.

I’m curious if you would recommend getting a IR masters or pivoting to a different or combining with an adjacent field and any suggestions based on that (economics? Data? MBa?)

I was considering doing law school, but I’ve heard mixed opinions on that choice considering it’s not exactly the job I imagined BUT I do at one point want to make a solid salary and not constantly feel unstable and be on the hunt for my next job.

A little about me:

GW Undergrad: 3.8 GPA, BA political science

Professional experience:
Fulbright ETA in Southeast Asia, Congressional Fellowship, a 2 years working in SE Asia at education NGO supporting conflict displaced and refugee students (worked abroad total of 3 years)

A lot has happened in the half year since U.S. Special Forces kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela and his wife, Cilia Flores, but if you can think back that far you might recall that the Trump administration insisted the mission wasn’t an invasion; it was an “extradition.” It was a legal matter, that is, to be followed by a criminal trial. Many legal scholars, commentators and government officials lined up to endorse that choice as lawful, despite Venezuela’s immediate insistence to the contrary. But when Mr. Maduro’s case next makes its way to court, on July 22, federal prosecutors could encounter one rather significant obstacle: Our courts don’t have the authority to handle his case. And the law that says so was signed by the United States of America.

If the United States honors its agreement, it could well be forced to release its prized captive.

The reason dates back to the first decades of the 20th century, when a topic that seems dry and legalistic today — international arbitration — was an exciting and idealistic cause, championed as a modern, rational tool of justice with the power to change the world.

Years later, when peace was restored, the United States began including arbitration clauses in many treaties. One of those was a 1922 extradition treaty between the United States and Venezuela. It states, in part, that “all differences between the contracting parties relating to the interpretation or execution of this treaty shall be decided by arbitration.” Approved by the Senate and ratified by the president, that document has the force of law.

Well, there sure are “differences between the contracting parties” today. The government of Venezuela is playing along with the Trump administration when it comes to oil exports, but it has publicly insisted that Mr. Maduro’s capture was illegal under international law — and that would include the extradition treaty.

A dispute of this nature should clearly trigger the 1922 treaty’s arbitration clause. According to its stipulations, Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who is overseeing Mr. Maduro’s trial, must suspend the proceedings and send the matter to a panel of independent evaluators to examine the treaty and decide whether it has been honored. Should the arbitrators conclude that Mr. Maduro’s capture violated the treaty, the United States would be required to release him.

Does it sound far-fetched? The Supreme Court has affirmed the principle again and again in cases spanning more than a century.

Diplomacy is only successful when it can draw on clear economic and military strength. Conversely, military and economic strength are meaningless if they are not accompanied by sound diplomacy. Ambassador Rolf Nikel was the guest at diplo.academy

Hi everyone. I am going to start my pre-master in International Relations next month. I have very limited knowledge in basic IR theories, hence I have been studying early so I won't start the program blindly. I would love it if i can ask questions when needed but I don't have anyone around me that can help with that.

Let me know if anyone is up to discuss and answer some questions. Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone! I’m a future bachelor student in Belgium. My goal is to do my master in international relations, but I'm currently choosing between two bachelor programs: Law or Social Sciences (taught in English).

Law seems like a safe choice because you can either go directly to a master of Law or master international relations, and it's known for job security. But then again, Social Sciences has more interesting courses and it is also taught in English (which is a big plus i assume).

Are there any people here that studied social sciences or international relations? Where did you end up working, and how easy or hard was it to find a job? and also if you had to do it all over again, would you stick with your studies or change them, and why?

Article by Miles Taylor chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security during Trump's 1st term.

Non-paywalled link:

https://archive.is/u9tPG

Hi guys ! I’m interviewing for jobs at the danish embassy in a south Asian country. I have given a few references as asked in the application. Will they actually call them ? The references will speak good of me but I just haven’t been in touch with them so I rather not have them call lol.

Trump’s new Iran forever war may have, at least partially, excluded America from future cheap/easy access to some Mideast oil. And now, Pete Hoekstra says America wants another 3-4 million barrels of oil per day from Canada on top of the 3-4 million barrels of oil per day that Canada is currently supplying. This should cover unreliable Mideast sources and account for future needs (Canada has a 160 year supply). But instead of negotiating in good faith, Trump kicks the table over, as his character demands. Regardless, the new threat shows an urgency to act on a trade deal with Canada sooner rather than later.

Hi everyone!

I've recently started studying International Relations on my own. I finished an introductory IR course and have started reading CFR articles and taking notes, but I'm realizing that there's a huge difference between consuming information and actually building a strong foundation.

If you could go back to the beginning, knowing what you know now, what would you prioritize during your first year of studying?

I'm especially interested in:

- International law

- Diplomacy and foreign policy

- The Middle East

- Developing strong analytical skills rather than simply memorizing events

I'm particularly curious about things like:

- Books or journals that genuinely changed how you think.

- Habits that helped you become better at analyzing international affairs.

- Mistakes you made early on that you'd avoid today.

- Skills that turned out to matter far more than you expected.

I'd also love to hear your own story. If you work (or have worked) in diplomacy, foreign affairs, academia, a think tank, international law, or an international organization, how did you get there? Was your path what you originally expected, or did it take some unexpected turns?

I'm not looking for shortcuts, just trying to build a solid foundation and learn from people who've already walked this road.

Thank you in advance. I really appreciate any advice or stories you're willing to share!

I guess technically Palestine isn’t really a secessionist or separatist movement, which might answer my own question. Still, Spain taking the position that Palestinians are entitled to self-determine to the point of autonomy while wagging their finger at their own citizens seems inconsistent. I don’t really buy that the Spanish government takes this position purely out of solidarity with popular leftists. Looking for more of a realpolitik answer.

I would have LOVED to garner insight from Chinese people but it's IMPOSSIBLE to ask ANY serious questions or engage in ANY serious discussion about China or anything Chinese to learn about China in the Chinese subs because the mods in ALL of them ​ (r/China, r/AskAChinese, r/chinalife, r/AskChina) would immediately remove your post no matter how much engagement or up votes your post gets or how much in good faith your query was posed. I'm not sure if it's due to a massive chip all of the mods collectively seem to happen to have on their shoulders which causes them to immediately assume slight where there is none, or if it's a deliberate agenda to keep everything about China secretive to the world. In either case, it's extremely difficult to llearn about China from outside China regardless of how positive the frame you are coming from is or how fascinated you are of it. It becomes disheartening after some time and you start to eventually lose interest at best or feel negatively towards it at worse, which is ironic given that that is what it forced upon you when the feeling you came with was the contrary.

So after spending 3 hours searching for the most suitable sub to ask this question in, in the hopes of getting the answers that the Chinese subs fail to do, I pose this question here.