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School of international affairs at Georgetown University From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It grants degrees at both undergraduate and graduate levels.
| |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Established | 1919[1] |
| Founder | Edmund A. Walsh |
Parent institution | Georgetown University |
Religious affiliation | Roman Catholic (Jesuit) |
Academic affiliations | APSIA |
| Dean | Joel Hellman |
Academic staff | 134 (main campus) |
| Students | 2,273[1] |
| Undergraduates | 1,423[1] |
| Postgraduates | 850[1] |
| Location | , , U.S. 38°54′32″N 77°4′25″W |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | sfs |
Founded in 1919, SFS is the oldest continuously operating school for international affairs in the United States,[2][3] predating the U.S. Foreign Service by six years; many of its graduates have assumed prominent roles in American and international politics,[4] as well as in journalism, finance and business.[5][6][7]
SFS was established by Edmund A. Walsh with the goal of preparing Americans for various international professions in the wake of expanding U.S. involvement in world affairs after World War I. Today, the school hosts a student body of approximately 2,250 from over 100 nations each year. It offers an undergraduate program based in the liberal arts, which leads to the Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service (BSFS) degree, as well as eight interdisciplinary graduate programs.[1]
With the help of Georgetown University president Fr. John B. Creeden, S.J., Fr. Walsh spearheaded the founding of the School of Foreign Service and its establishment was announced on November 25, 1919.[2][3] The school's use of the name “Foreign Service” preceded the formal establishment of the U.S. Foreign Service by six years. The school was envisioned by Fr. Walsh to prepare students for all major forms of foreign representation from commercial, financial, consular to diplomatic.[8]
In 1921, it graduated its first class of Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service (BSFS) undergraduate students.[9] The following year, the school began to offer the first international relations graduate program in the United States, the Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS).[10][11]
In August 1932, the SFS was moved to the Healy Hall, a National Historic Landmark.[12]
In 1958, two years after the death of Fr. Walsh, the school was renamed after him[13] and moved to the Walsh Building in a ceremony dedicated by President Eisenhower in honor of Fr. Walsh.[14]
Since 1982, the school has been housed in the Edward B. Bunn, S.J. Intercultural Center (ICC) on the main campus.[15][16]
From 1975 until 2016, the school's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy awarded the Edward Weintal Prize for Diplomatic Reporting to journalists in recognition of their distinguished reporting on foreign policy and diplomacy.[17][18]
In 2002, the school studied the feasibility of opening a campus in Qatar Foundation's Education City in Doha, Qatar. In 2005, the School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Q) was officially opened and welcomed its first class of undergraduate students.[19] In 2015, the school was renamed to Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) as it broadened its remit to include executive masters and professional programs.
In 2005, Saudi prince Al-Waleed bin Talal gave $20 million to the school's Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding to promote interfaith understanding and the study of the Muslim world. The gift was the second-largest ever given to Georgetown at that point, and the center was renamed in his honor.[20][21]
In June 2023, the administrators announced the plan to rename the school in honor of the late Madeleine Albright, who served as a professor at SFS both before and after her tenure as U.S. secretary of state. It attracted criticism due to Albright's controversial legacy and the lack of consultation with the school's community members.[22][23] In October 2023, Georgetown announced that it was no longer considering renaming the school after Albright.[24]
In November 2023, Indonesian president Joko Widodo announced Georgetown's partnership with the Indonesian government to open a satellite campus in the country.[25][26] In January 2025, Georgetown SFS Asia-Pacific (GSAP) campus will be open in Jakarta, Indonesia, to offer graduate masters and visiting student programs.[27][28]
The Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service (BSFS) degree is offered by the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. The degree is rooted in the liberal arts. Following completion of the core requirements, students declare one of the following interdisciplinary majors:
There is also a joint degree — Bachelor of Science in Business and Global Affairs — offered in partnership with the McDonough School of Business (MSB).[37]
Graduate students can pursue eight interdisciplinary graduate degrees in the school:[38]
There are two joint executive degrees offered in partnership with Georgetown's McDonough School of Business: the Global Executive MBA offered in collaboration with the ESADE Business School in Spain and the INCAE Business School in Costa Rica, and the MA in International Business and Policy (MA-IBP). The school's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy also offers the Executive Master in Diplomacy and International Affairs (EMDIA) at the SFS campuses in Doha, Qatar, and Jakarta, Indonesia.[39] SFS is a member of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA), a group of public policy, public administration, and international affairs schools.
Additionally, exceptional undergraduate SFS students can apply for the accelerated bachelor’s/master’s dual-degree program, which allows enrollment in one of the graduate programs (e.g. BSFS/MSFS, BSFS/MASIA, etc.) during the final undergraduate year and completion of both degrees in approximately five years.[40][41]
Georgetown offers a number of undergraduate and graduate certificate programs: African studies, Arab studies, Asian studies, Australian & New Zealand studies, German and European studies, international business diplomacy (honors program)[42], international development, Muslim-Christian understanding, Jewish civilization, justice & peace studies, Latin American studies, medieval studies, Russian & East European studies, social & political thought, and women's and gender studies.
Georgetown's programs in international relations have consistently ranked among the best in the world in surveys of the field's academics that have been published biennially since 2005 by Foreign Policy.[43] In 2014 and in 2018 Foreign Policy ranked Georgetown's master's programs first in the world and its bachelor's programs fourth.[44] In 2024, Georgetown's master's programs were ranked first by all three groups of respondents: international relations faculty, policymakers, and think tank staffers. Its bachelor's programs were ranked first by policymakers and think tank staffers and third by international relations faculty.[45]
In a Pipeline to the Beltway survey of makers of American foreign-policy from 2011, Georgetown ranked second overall in the quality of preparation for a career in the U.S. government, regardless of degree earned.[46] In 2023, U.S. News & World Report ranked Georgetown fifth for graduate studies in global policy and administration.[47] In 2024, Niche ranked Georgetown first in the United States for international relations.[48]
There are a vast array of clubs and student organizations at Georgetown University that students from the School of Foreign Service join. The elected representative organization of the SFS is the SFS Academic Council, also known as the SFSAC. The SFSAC advocates for the SFS student body and works with the Dean's Office to address student concerns, spearhead new initiatives, and coordinate events. In addition to elected representatives, the SFSAC has several committees, including Community Service and Outreach, Special Events, Professional Development, General Membership, Diversity Equity and Inclusion, and Communications.
The School of Foreign Service main campus, which is part of the main campus of Georgetown University, is located in the Georgetown neighborhood in Northwest Washington, D.C. In 2005, it opened another campus, the School of Foreign Service in Qatar (also known as SFS-Q or GU-Q), in Qatar Foundation's Education City in Doha, Qatar. Many SFS undergraduates spend a minimum of one semester or a summer abroad, choosing from direct matriculation programs around the globe as well as programs of other universities and those run by Georgetown, including SFS-Q and Villa Le Balze.
In November 2023, the president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, announced the Walsh School of Foreign Service planned to partner with the Indonesian government to open a satellite campus in Jakarta, Indonesia in 2024.[25][26] The campus, known as Georgetown SFS Asia-Pacific (GSAP), is expected to open in January 2025.[27][28]
| No. | Name | Years | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edmund A. Walsh SJ | 1919–1921 | [49] | |
| 2 | Roy S. MacElwee | 1921–1923 | [49] | |
| 3 | W. F. Notz | 1923–1935 | [49] | |
| 4 | Thomas H. Healy | 1935–1943 | [49] | |
| 5 | Edmund A. Walsh SJ | 1945–1950 | Acting dean | [49] |
| 6 | Frank L. Fadner SJ | 1950–1958 | Acting dean | [49] |
| 7 | John F. Parr | 1958–1962 | [49] | |
| 8 | William E. Moran, Jr. | 1962–1966 | [49] | |
| 9 | Joseph S. Sebes SJ | 1966–1968 | [50] | |
| 10 | Jesse Mann | 1968–1970 | [50] | |
| 11 | Peter F. Krogh | 1970–1995 | [50] | |
| 12 | Robert Gallucci | 1995–2009 | [50] | |
| 13 | Carol Lancaster | 2010–2013 | [51] | |
| - | James Reardon-Anderson | 2013–2015 | Interim dean | [52] |
| 14 | Joel Hellman | 2015–present | [53] |
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