Current Students
Hello International Affairs majors and minors! Please look through the series of topics below and find helpful information to meet your IAFS needs. If you have questions, please reach out to our staff and advisors.
If you are a prospective student, please see our webpage specifically for IAFS prospective students.
If you want to know which classes you can take will meet the needs of your IAFS degree, use the semester list of courses. We publish this list for when you are registering for the upcoming semester, and note that these are subject to change as departments change their courses.
- Semester Course Lists webpage
- Related: Syllabi webpage (look at a past year's syllabi for a course you are interested in taking)
- Related: Major Requirements and Minor Requirements
We publish a lot of events, news and opportunities on our News & Events webpage that we find are relevant and of interest to IAFS students.
- Events: Events offered by CU and non-CU organizations
- News: A collection of articles about IAFS students, faculty, staff, and other news related to the IAFS program
- Global Grants: Updates and stories from students who are studying abroad
- Internships and Job Opportunities: Find a collection of internship and job opportunities
The Academics page has links to major/minor requirements, semester course lists, syllabi, honors, internships, certificates, etc.
The Student Resources page has links to advising, education abroad, complementary minors/certificates, career development, mentorship program, student organizations and awards, etc.
When you participate in various student group and volunteer initiatives aligned with what is valuable to you, don't be surprised to see other IAFS students in your same group. IAFS students are interested in domestic and international efforts.
- Student Organizations & Awards: Learn about the IAFS Club, other CU Boulder student organizations, and IAFS awards.
- Center for Student Involvement (CSI) - Discover the many student groups open to CU students!
- Learn where to start on their Involvement 101 page.
- Volunteer Resource Center (VRC) - Partner with the VRC to help people.
- Learn about Alternative Breaks.
- Conference of World Affairs (CWA) - Work to bring together leaders for the annual CWA.
- Model UN- Participate in simulating international relations and work to solve global issues.
Learn about resources made specifically for IAFS students.
- Mentorship Program: Develop a mentorship relationship with IAFS and CU alumni
- Global Grants: Scholarship for IAFS students who study abroad
- Social Media: Follow us for updates and news!
CU has a strong connection with the Peace Corps and many IAFS students go on to volunteer or complete the Peace Corps Prep undergraduate certificate program. Look for virtual and in-person Info Sessions.
Your advisor will be listed when you log into your Buff Portal Advising. If you have more than one degree plan (double major, minor, etc) then you might have more than one advisor. On your Buff Portal Advising, it will tell you who is your advisor for which degree of yours. You should communicate with all of your advisors regularly.
- A&S Academic Advising and Coaching
- IAFS Program Administration People Page
- Related: Academic Coaching: in addition to your advisor, you can work with an academic coach if you are: 1) an A&S student who wants to talk to an academic coach for any reason, 2) on academic alert/probation, 3) receive a mid-semester course alert notification
Buff Portal Advising, the undergraduate online advising appointment scheduling system, will help you with the following:
- Advisor(s) / Success Team contact information
- Schedule advising appointments
- View your enrolled major/minors, academic records & grades, class schedule
- View alerts & holds on your account and messages
- Links to calendars, campus offices, degree audit, MyCUInfo, etc
On our Advising webpage, there are helpful FAQs for prospective and current IAFS students, as well as other selections. Familiarize yourself with our Advising webpage and get answers to your questions in one spot.
Did you know we have an IAFS Education Abroad webpage? It is full of resources on how to start your program search, our Global Grants scholarship to support IAFS students going abroad, and making sure you get class credit, including internships and the off-campus experience requirement.
- Be Inspired: Read our Global Grants articles about IAFS students who've gone abroad with the Global Grants scholarship and talk to your academic advisor
- Be Involved: Dig deeper in programs you are interested in (year, semester, summer session, global seminar) and attend info sessions
- Be International: Choose a program that intrigues you and will fulfill your IAFS requirements (and/or an internship)
“I am going abroad next semester and don’t know which classes to pick!”
- Start by running a degree audit to see what remaining requirements you have for GenEd, your major, etc. Review the list of pre-approved courses on the Education Abroad website, filtering to your program, then check to see if any courses have already been approved to cover those specific requirements.
- If there are courses being offered by your study abroad program that are not on the pre-approved list, you can have courses evaluated (please note this process can take 3-5 weeks). Please review the information available on the Fulfilling Credit Abroad website.
Not only can IAFS majors fulfill the Off-Campus Experience major requirement through the IAFS Internship Program, but an internship for credit also has other benefits.
- Some organizations require students to receive credit
- Your internship will be part of your academic transcript for employers or graduate and professional schools
- Allows students to reflect on their experiences in a structured way, and to connect those experiences to research that interests and motives them
- Please note: all internships for IAFS 4930 must have clear international content!
Internships in general can be completed at anytime, but the IAFS 4930: Internship in International Affairs 3-credit class is open to junior and senior IAFS majors.
Plan ahead! Work with your academic advisor and let them know what you are considering (study abroad, internship(s), CU in D.C.) and they can help you map out the best semesters to complete your goals. They might be able to find overlap too! Internships for credit can be completed while studying abroad and as part of the CU in D.C. Program.
Through the IAFS Honors Program, students can graduate with honors (cum laude, magna cum laude, and summa cum laude), awarded by the University Honors Council, based on overall academic record, written honors thesis, and oral defense exam. Students apply to the IAFS Honors Program in the early spring semester of the year prior to their final year at CU Boulder. Learn full details on the IAFS Honors Program webpage.
Keep these tricks up your sleeve to be prepared for the IAFS Honors Program:
- Tell your IAFS academic advisor that you are thinking about completing IAFS Honors
- Keep in contact with faculty you want to potentially be on your future faculty committee
- Know your deadlines! Check when applications are due each semester.
- Meet with the IAFS Honors Director to go over ideas.
- Look over the past syllabi for IAFS 4800 (fall) and IAFS 4810 (spring)