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Center for Comparative Immigration Studies CCIS
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Academic Programs

CCIS has collaborated with other departments and programs at UCSD to create academic programs for undergraduate and graduate students.

Undergraduate Minor in International Migration Studies

This is the first undergraduate instructional program with this focus to be offered at any university in the United States. The minor will give students an in-depth understanding of the causes, politics, and social consequences of international migration from a broad comparative perspective. This program of study helps to prepare students for a career in research and teaching, immigrant service-providing organizations, government agencies, or law. The unique research and writing opportunities offered by this minor also make it excellent preparation for graduate school.

The minor is interdisciplinary in content and method. It covers a wide range of topics, including the economic, cultural, demographic, and political impacts of immigration; laws and government policies for controlling immigration and refugee flows, and the outcomes of these laws and policies; ethnic, gender, citizenship, and transnational dimensions of immigration; the integration of immigrant and ethnic minorities; and immigrant history and literature. Students learn about other countries of immigration (especially in Western Europe and East Asia) in order to place the U.S. experience in comparative perspective.

Students can earn a minor in International Migration Studies by completing one of three tracks:  the Field Research track, the Internship track, or the Coursework track.  Watch the video below, then check out the official website of the International Migration Studies Minor.

M.A. in Latin American Studies with Concentration in International Migration

The Master of Arts program in Latin American Studies at the Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies (CILAS) offers a concentration in International Migration that provides interdisciplinary training to students who are particularly interested in migratory movements involving Latin American populations. For further information, go to the CILAS website.

CCIS academic staff members teach courses for this concentration and advise students writing theses on immigration topics. Students doing the international migration concentration are encouraged to participate in CCIS research seminars, professional skills workshops, and conferences. In addition, they will have opportunities to serve as research assistants for CCIS research projects.