Program Overview and Advising Contact Information
What is Global Studies?
Global Studies was established as an interdisciplinary major within the Global and International Studies Program in 1998. It provides an undergraduate major that is distinctive in its emphasis on transnational processes and interactions that bring the world together across traditional national boundaries. It is one of the first programs in the nation to offer a degree with contemporary as well as historical globalizing trends as the central organizing theme.
The major includes two introductory gateway courses in global history, culture, and ideology and on global socioeconomics and politics and is built around four upper-division core courses that provide a coherent introduction to global culture and ethics, global ideologies and world order, global economy and development, and global racial justice.
The major also affords students an opportunity to take additional courses offered by other departments and programs in the university, with some in global issues and others centered around one particular region of the world (Africa, the Middle East, South/Southeast Asia and the Pacific, East Asia, Europe and Eurasia, Latin America, or North America).
While students have a high degree of flexibility in how they fulfill major requirements, the department has developed some suggested thematic pathways for career preparation in areas such as political economy and sustainable development, politics and human rights, and global cultures. A full detailing of these thematic pathways can be found posted on our Careers page.
The Global Studies major requires multiple years of language study (information on the full requirement can be found at that link, including options for shortcuts using prior knowledge of an additional language). This is consistent with the program’s belief that language study is essential to the study of the global and the international, whether it leads to greater facility in a single language or broadened familiarity with the way two different languages can open windows on the world.
Is the Global Studies Major for Me? As a prospective or recently-admitted student, what do I need to know?
- Do you have a passion for world events and global issues like human rights, environment, and social justice?
- Do you like to immerse yourself in other cultures or get excited about learning new languages?
- Are you interested in bringing a well-informed global worldview to any career path you choose, whether domestic or international?
- Do you like to explore multiple perspectives and compare diverse regions and countries across the globe?
If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, this might be the major for you!
What career opportunities exist within this major?
Global Studies is a broadly-applicable field; there is no one career path that graduates of our undergraduate program follow. We see our alumni excell in a wide variety of careers and job descriptions - think of the jobs where you benefit from:
- the ability to compare and contrast across cultural perspectives
- a deep knowledge of how historical, political, cultural, economic, and social forces have shaped our world into what it is today
- a perspective that allows you to "think globally but act locally"
- strong knowledge of at least one other foreign language
Some fields that Global Studies graduates go on to work within:
- Global organizations, including non-profits
- NGOs (non-governmental organizations)
- Cultural exchange programs
- Business (domestic and international)
- International affairs, international relations, diplomacy
- Education (K-12 and beyond)
- Healthcare, including public health
- Governmental agencies and public policy organizations
- The legal field
- The tech industry
What Global Studies is not:
- We're not a business major (although you will be challenged to understand how economic systems shape political and cultural landscapes around the world)
- You don't have to move abroad or work in international relations after UCSB with a Global Studies degree - our local communities benefit greatly when the members of that community understand what life is like in other countries and cultures
Visit our careers page for more information and resources!
Global Studies Advising
Questions regarding the major, registration, and/or your academic progress? Take a look at the menu of links under the "undergraduate" button at the top of the page for answers to many frequently asked questions about the major (major and pre-major requirements, joining the major, petitioning courses, the foreign language requirement), registration resources, study abroad, career planning, and other common topics.
After reading through these topics, if you still have questions, we are here for you! See below for contact information for all of our advising team members.
Contact us
- Email the undergraduate advising office:
- global-advising@ucsb.edu
- Include your name and perm # and email from your UCSB email account, if you are a student (emails often go into our spam folder if sent from a personal email)
- Please allow at least one full business day (M-F, excluding holidays) for a response to your email, and longer during busier times of the quarter (for example, the beginning of registration pass times and the first two weeks of each quarter.)
- Schedule an appointment or attend drop-ins (no appointment necessary) - read on for options
FERPA disclaimer: Student records are protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Academic advisors may not release a student's educational record to any third party without the student's written consent. This includes parents, siblings, and roommates. If you would like to include a third party in your meeting, please email us and we will send you the required form. To assure our meeting is private, please make sure you find a quiet place where you won't be interrupted or where our Zoom conversation won't be overheard. Headphones are strongly recommended if you will be attending our meeting in a more public location (campus spaces, coffee shop, etc.)
Meet your advisors
Special note for Fall 2025 - We'll be hosting some special outdoor drop-ins around the first few days of fall quarter on the SSMS lawn as follows:
- Wednesday, September 24th, 2-3 pm (as part of our Week of Welcome event)
- Thursday, September 25th, 2:30-3:30 pm
- Friday, September 26th, 11 am-noon
- Monday, September 29th, 2:30-3:30 pm
Meet with a peer advisor for:
- Routine progress checks, foreign language questions, study abroad brainstorming, early career and internship exploration, how to join the major, schedule planning, petitioning courses, final graduation checks, and other quicker questions
- Select an advisor whose schedule works with yours:
Meet with a staff advisor for:
- All of the above, plus more complex situations (academic difficulty, complex foreign language situations, schedule planning for students joining the major later, including juniors and seniors and transfers, complex petition questions, careers and internships, study abroad petitions, course waitlists and enrollment issues, returning Gauchos, etc.)
- Select an advisor whose schedule works with yours: