Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS)
Encyclopedia
MSFS is recognized as one of the most selective professional international affairs masters programs in the world. It is distinguished by its well-respected faculty, the Washington, DC location, a selection of the world top international affairs students and a multidisciplinary curriculum that integrates theory and practice which integrates core requirements with skills, training, internships and field experience.
The MSFS curriculum is both practical and theoretical. Practical, because most students seek a two-year master's degree as a stepping stone to professional careers. Theoretical, because the opportunity to think conceptually about particular problems is the "value added" that the university brings to professional training.
Attention to the individual student is a hallmark of the MSFS Program, with small classes, faculty-student interaction, and lifelong friendships cited regularly in post-graduation surveys.
Today MSFS is recognized as one of the most selective professional masters programs in the world.
Practitioners serve as Concentration Coordinators for each field of study. Their applied professional insights complement the full-time faculty's role in advising on course selection, internships, career preparation, and employment opportunities. Practitioners also offer optional one or two-day skills clinics; recent examples include global strategy concepts and approaches, international development project design and evaluation, and business risk assessment and management technique
The MSFS faculty encompasses scholar-teachers and practitioners. Faculty teaching MSFS students include Charles Kupchan, Victor Cha, Kathleen McNamara, John McNeill, Carol Lancaster and Theodore Moran. Among the more notable practitioners are Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Georgetown alumnus Andrew Natsios (Director, US Agency for International Development). Adjunct faculty include executives from the World Bank, Citigroup, Exxon, ITT, McKinsey, Sidley Austin, FINCA and Knight Ridder Newspap
ers.
In February of 2009, a survey published in Foreign Policy
magazine ranked the professional masters degrees in the School of Foreign Service, including MSFS, #1 in the world.
The MSFS curriculum is both practical and theoretical. Practical, because most students seek a two-year master's degree as a stepping stone to professional careers. Theoretical, because the opportunity to think conceptually about particular problems is the "value added" that the university brings to professional training.
Attention to the individual student is a hallmark of the MSFS Program, with small classes, faculty-student interaction, and lifelong friendships cited regularly in post-graduation surveys.
History
Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service conferred the first graduate degree in international affairs in 1922, pre-dating the US State Department's adoption of the term "foreign service." Since that initial class, over 3,000 students have completed the Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) Program. Graduates have attained notable success in careers with national governments, international organizations, private businesses and civil society groups.Today MSFS is recognized as one of the most selective professional masters programs in the world.
Curriculum and Faculty
The MSFS Program provides a multidisciplinary course of study that integrates theory and practice through:- A full-time, two-year, 48-credit program
- Small classes with interactive teaching and learning
- Required core courses that provide cross-disciplinary insights into the dynamic international system
- Advanced courses in economics, history, politics and business as well as quantitative methods, analytical skills and foreign languages
- A choice of three professional concentration areas: international relations and security, international development, international commerce and business
- Specializations that integrate classes, skills training, internship opportunities and unique, practitioner-taught workshops
Practitioners serve as Concentration Coordinators for each field of study. Their applied professional insights complement the full-time faculty's role in advising on course selection, internships, career preparation, and employment opportunities. Practitioners also offer optional one or two-day skills clinics; recent examples include global strategy concepts and approaches, international development project design and evaluation, and business risk assessment and management technique
The MSFS faculty encompasses scholar-teachers and practitioners. Faculty teaching MSFS students include Charles Kupchan, Victor Cha, Kathleen McNamara, John McNeill, Carol Lancaster and Theodore Moran. Among the more notable practitioners are Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Georgetown alumnus Andrew Natsios (Director, US Agency for International Development). Adjunct faculty include executives from the World Bank, Citigroup, Exxon, ITT, McKinsey, Sidley Austin, FINCA and Knight Ridder Newspap
ers.
Reputation and Ranking
Attention to the individual student is a hallmark of the MSFS Program, with small classes, faculty-student interaction, and lifelong friendships cited regularly in post-graduation surveys. Other attractions include the Program's distinguished faculty, the Washington, DC location, and a curriculum that integrates multidisciplinary core requirements with skills training, internships and field experience.In February of 2009, a survey published in Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel.Originally, the magazine was a quarterly...
magazine ranked the professional masters degrees in the School of Foreign Service, including MSFS, #1 in the world.
Prominent Alumni
- King Abdullah II of Jordan
- Ambassador Michael A. SheehanMichael A. SheehanMichael A. Sheehan is a United States author and former government official and military officer.-Education:Sheehan graduated from Christian Brothers Academy in New Jersey in 1973 and the United States Military Academy in 1977...
- Ambassador Nancy SoderbergNancy SoderbergNancy Soderberg is an American foreign policy strategist who held several senior level positions in the Clinton administration. She currently is President of the Connect US Fund in Washington DC and resides in Jacksonville, Florida where she is a Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the University...
- Felipe, Prince of AsturiasFelipe, Prince of AsturiasFelipe, Prince of Asturias de Borbón y de Grecia; born 30 January 1968), is the third child and only son of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain....
- Pavlos, Crown Prince of GreecePavlos, Crown Prince of GreecePavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, is the eldest son and heir apparent of Constantine II, who was King of Greece from 1964 to 1973....
- Prince Talal bin MuhammadPrince Talal bin MuhammadHRH Prince Talal bin Muhammad is a Jordanian royal, the eldest son of Prince Muhammad bin Talal, the younger brother of King Hussein of Jordan, and the grandson of King Talal of Jordan. HRH Prince Talal is the 41st generation direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. He has one brother, Prince...
- Prince of Jordan - Joseph CirincioneJoseph CirincioneJoseph Cirincione is the President of the Ploughshares Fund, a public grant-making foundation focused on nuclear weapons policy and conflict resolution. He was appointed to the presidency by the Ploughshares board of directors on March 5, 2008...
- President of the Ploughshares FundPloughshares FundThe Ploughshares Fund is a public grantmaking foundation that supports initiatives to prevent the spread and use of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons and other weapons of war, and to prevent conflicts that could lead to the use of weapons of mass destruction. Ploughshares is a 501...
and member of the Council on Foreign RelationsCouncil on Foreign RelationsThe Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs... - Denis McDonoughDenis McDonoughDenis R. McDonough is a foreign policy advisor in the Obama Administration. He currently serves as Deputy National Security Advisor.-Early life and education:...
- National Security CouncilNational Security CouncilA National Security Council is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security...
Chief of Staff - Kate SnowKate SnowKate Snow is an American television journalist and correspondent for NBC's newsmagazine Dateline. In addition, she has also filled in as anchor for Nightly News. Prior to joining NBC, she was a co-anchor for the weekend edition of Good Morning America on ABC from 2004 to 2010...
- NBC NewsNBC NewsNBC News is the news division of American television network NBC. It first started broadcasting in February 21, 1940. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is...
, Dateline NBCDateline NBCDateline NBC, or Dateline, is a U.S. weekly television newsmagazine broadcast by NBC. It previously was NBC's flagship news magazine, but now focuses on true crime stories. It airs Friday at 9 p.m. EST and after football season on Sunday at 7 p.m. EST.-History:Dateline is historically notable for...
Correspondent - Maria Eitel - President of the Nike Foundationhttp://www.nikefoundation.com/index.html
- Janet E. Garvey - U.S. Ambassador to CameroonCameroonCameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
http://yaounde.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html - Tatiana C. Gfoeller - U.S. Ambassador to KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
http://yaounde.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html - Marcia Bernicat - U.S. Ambassador to SenegalSenegalSenegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
and Guinea-BissauGuinea-BissauThe Republic of Guinea-Bissau is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Senegal to the north, and Guinea to the south and east, with the Atlantic Ocean to its west....
http://yaounde.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html - Gabor Csaba - Ambassador of HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
to AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... - William F. Powers - author and columnist on international development and conservation issues http://www.worldpolicy.org/william-powers
- Juan Manuel Galán Pachón - Senator of ColombiaColombiaColombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
Prominent Faculty
- Madeleine AlbrightMadeleine AlbrightMadeleine Korbelová Albright is the first woman to become a United States Secretary of State. She was appointed by U.S. President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996, and was unanimously confirmed by a U.S. Senate vote of 99–0...
- former Secretary of State - Victor ChaVictor ChaVictor Cha is a professor and author, as well as former Director for Asian Affairs in the White House's National Security Council, with responsibility for Japan, North and South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. He was President Bush's top advisor on North Korean affairs. He currently holds the D. S...
- former National Security Council official - Chester CrockerChester CrockerChester Arthur Crocker is an American diplomat who served as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from 1981 to 1989 in the Reagan administration. Crocker, architect of the U.S...
- former Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs - Robert Cumby - former Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
- Charles Kupchan CFR profile, Charlie Rose appearances - international relations theorist and Council on Foreign RelationsCouncil on Foreign RelationsThe Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
Senior Fellow - Anthony LakeAnthony LakeWilliam Anthony Kirsopp Lake, best known as Tony Lake, is the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund , author, academic, and former American diplomat, Foreign Service Officer, and political advisor. He has been a foreign policy advisor to many Democratic U.S...
- former National Security Advisor - Carol Lancaster - former Deputy Director of the US Agency for International Development
- Catherine LotrionteCatherine LotrionteCatherine Lotrionte is the Associate Director of the Institute for Law, Science and Global Security at Georgetown University. She also teaches in the Master of Science in Foreign Service Program and Security Studies Program at Georgetown.In 2002, Dr...
- former Counsel to the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory BoardPresident's Foreign Intelligence Advisory BoardThe President's Intelligence Advisory Board is an advisor to the Executive Office of the President of the United States. According to its self-description, it "...provides advice to the President concerning the quality and adequacy of intelligence collection, of analysis and estimates, of... - Princeton N. LymanPrinceton N. LymanPrinceton Nathan Lyman is a diplomat and former United States Ambassador to Nigeria and South Africa , and former Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs...
- former Ambassador - Donald McHenryDonald McHenryDonald Franchot McHenry is a former American diplomat. He was the United States Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations from September 1979 until January 20, 1981.-Biography:...
- former US Ambassador to the United Nations - John R. McNeillhttp://explore.georgetown.edu/people/mcneillj/?Action=View&PageTemplateID=125 - noted historian
- Nancy Bernkopf Tucker - Asian historian and former intelligence official
- Anthony Clark ArendAnthony Clark ArendAnthony Clark Arend is Professor of Government and Foreign Service at Georgetown University. On July 1, 2008, he became the Director of the Master of Science in Foreign Service Program at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. With Christopher C...
- noted international law scholar
External links & Social Media
- MSFS Website http://msfs.georgetown.edu/
- Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs Profile http://www.apsia.org/apsia/members/members.php?institutionID=40
- Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/georgetownmsfs
- Twitter http://twitter.com/msfsinfo
- YouTube http://www.youtube.com/GeorgetownMSFS