Master of Arts in International Studies (MAIS)
Our Master of Arts in International Studies (MAIS) program serves as your gateway to a global career.
Housed in the Department of International Studies, we are dedicated to training the next generation of leaders in global affairs and equipping them with the competencies to influence and shape our intricately interconnected world.
Curriculum and mission
Our curriculum offers a multidisciplinary approach, combining insights from history, political science, sociology, anthropology and philosophy. This broad-based program enables students to gain a deep understanding of complex global challenges, ranging from geopolitical conflicts to the intricacies of international diplomacy and social and economic currents.
Our mission is to cultivate globally conscious citizens, prepared to adapt in a swiftly changing world. The MAIS program is tailored for students who aspire to make a significant impact in the world, through roles in foreign service offices, NGOs, multinational corporations, or further academic study in international relations or related fields. We benchmark our curriculum against prestigious programs like the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, American University of Beirut's Master of Arts in Public Policy and International Affairs, and the Master of Global Affairs program at Rice University, maintaining a strong focus on the implications and processes of globalization.
Expert faculty
We are proud to be staffed by a team of highly qualified faculty members who are passionate educators and scholars with degrees from some of the world’s top universities. The robust growth of our department over the last two decades reflects the ever-increasing interest in international studies in the region, as well as the remarkable success of our alumni. The MAIS program highlights innovation and ethical problem-solving skills. It offers students the analytical tools to comprehend ongoing developments in the Arab world and beyond, and prepares them for diverse careers in government, NGOs, law, education, multinational corporations and more. In the face of pressing challenges of our world today, we consistently reinforce our global programs and foster an inclusive learning environment.
We warmly invite you to embark on this intellectually stimulating journey, guided by our supportive and innovative faculty, and underpinned by our dynamic curriculum.
FInd our program brochure here.
Program Goals and Outcomes
Goals
The Master of Arts in International Studies program aims to:
- equip students with a multidisciplinary analytical framework to understand historical, emerging and current global challenges
- enable students to understand ongoing developments in the Arab world (and beyond) in order to situate regional changes within global transformations
- promote critical problem-solving expertise, grounded in a contextual comprehension of specific issues, and the development of ethical and equitable solutions
Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the Master of Arts in International Studies, students will be able to:
- analyze the roles, responsibilities and interests of states and non-state actors at local, national, regional and global levels
- synthesize theoretical and factual knowledge with quantitative/qualitative research to produce high-quality written material
- employ an interdisciplinary perspective to analyze key international issues and identify critical areas of concern
- apply advanced oral communication skills to relay accurate information and explain complex ideas and concepts
- evaluate disparate points of view to design effective, ethical and sustainable solutions to global challenges
Degree Requirements
To qualify for graduation with a MAIS degree, students must successfully complete all the requirements of the program, which consist of a minimum of 30 credit hours in required and elective courses, inclusive of a research thesis, with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00. Students must successfully complete the degree requirements within five years from the time of initial enrollment in the program.
Graduation residence requirements must be met. For details, refer to Graduation Requirements in the Academic Policies and Regulations section in the graduate catalog.
To be awarded a MAIS degree, students must successfully complete the following requirements:
- 12 credit hours of required course work
- a minimum of 12 credit hours of elective courses
- six credit hours of Master’s Thesis
Required Courses (18 credit hours)
Students must successfully complete all the required courses, for a total of 18 credit hours, including a six-credit-hour master’s thesis.
- INS 501 Advanced International Affairs
- INS 503 Research Methods
- INS 505 Theory and Practice of Leadership
- INS 507 Conflict Resolution
Master’s Thesis (6 credit hours)
- INS 699 Master’s Thesis
Elective Courses (12 credit hours)
Students must successfully complete a minimum of four elective courses (for a minimum of 12 credit hours). Students select their elective courses from the following list of courses, in consultation with their advisor:
- INS 511 Advanced International Security
- INS 513 Topics in Global Affairs
- INS 515 Environmental Ethics
- INS 517 Global Migration
- INS 519 Advanced Social Theory
- INS 521 Women’s and Minority Rights
- INS 523 Civil Wars in History
- INS 525 Law, Politics and International Crime
- INS 527 Contemporary MENA Politics and the World
- INS 529 The Transnational Gulf
- INS 531 Governing Environmental Sustainability: Theories and Practices
- INS 694 Approved Special Topics in INS
With the approval of the student’s advisor and the student’s head of department, students may choose to take one elective course outside of the list of elective courses. The course must provide knowledge and skills that contribute to the program learning outcomes. The request must be approved by the student’s associate dean for graduate affairs, who will inform the Office of the Registrar before course registration.
Students could elect to complete courses outside of the list of elective courses that do not meet the above conditions; such courses will not meet any of the degree program graduation requirements. Approvals of the student’s advisor and the student’s head of department are required.
Master’s Thesis
Students must complete their master’s thesis under close supervision of a faculty member from the Department of International Studies who will act as the student’s principal advisor.
The master’s thesis must be defended to the satisfaction of the thesis review committee, which consists of the principal advisor and two additional faculty members, one of which must be selected from outside the program. A complete guide for forming the thesis committee and for preparing the master’s thesis is given in the Graduate Studies Policies and Procedures document available on iLearn and accessible using the following path: iLearn-Community-Graduate Studies-Graduate Studies Policies and Procedures.
For the master’s thesis registration details, please refer to Master’s Thesis, Professional Project and Dissertation under the Academic Policies and Regulations section in the graduate catalog.
Applicants are required to fulfill the general university requirements for graduate admission. Applicants who meet the general university requirements for graduate admission but have not completed undergraduate level courses on globalization, imperialism, global political economy or international organizations may be required to complete remedial courses offered through the Department of International Studies at AUS or an accredited institution recognized by the UAE Ministry of Education’s Higher Education Affairs Division. The undergraduate remedial course does not generate credit hours towards completion of the degree program graduation requirements. Students required to complete the remedial course are normally not eligible to register for degree program courses prior to successful completion of these courses. For further details, refer to Bridging Courses in Registration and Course Information within the Academic Policies and Regulations section in the graduate catalog.
Waiver Policy
The remedial course could be waived by the MAIS Admissions Committee depending on the student’s background. For details, refer to the Admission to Graduate Studies/Course Waiver section in the graduate catalog.
Accelerated Master’s Program – AUS Undergraduate Students
AUS undergraduate degree-seeking students interested in pursuing a MAIS degree may register for a maximum of six credit hours from MAIS courses while completing their undergraduate degree program by seeking acceptance to the Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP) of the MAIS degree program. The master’s level courses may be counted towards meeting the graduation requirements for both the bachelor’s and master’s degrees. To qualify for acceptance to the AMP, students must satisfy the following requirements at AMP application time:
- have earned a minimum of 90 credit hours (excluding credit hours earned in Achievement Academy/Bridge Program courses and preparatory courses)
- have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.50
For further details on the AMP, refer to Accelerated Master’s Program in the Academic Policies and Regulations section of the AUS Undergraduate Catalog. For the list of MAIS courses available to AMP students, consult the Course Descriptions section of the graduate catalog. Course prerequisites and background requirements must be met.
