Mission Statement
Global Studies is a pan-University program comprised of five vibrant, diverse, and interwoven learning communities re-imagining undergraduate education in the 21st century. The innovative and interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts curriculum prepares students to assess and navigate complex social, political, and economic systems. They connect with local communities, institutions, and places, in order to imagine flourishing futures for particularly and differently situated people in communities, locally and globally. Students critically examine and engage pressing global conditions while questioning the “global,” particularly in relation to knowledge production, power, and perspective. Interdisciplinary learning illuminates interconnected human and natural systems—from the local to the planetary.
The Global Studies Program works to support the struggles of politically and economically oppressed peoples in the US and around the world through pedagogy, programing, diversification of faculty, and engagement in the larger University and local communities. We condemn police brutality and support those who protest against, and work to overturn, racial and related forms of inequality. While statements are insufficient actions to meet the challenges of our times, they are necessary steps that we take as an organization in solidarity with movements to reform our world in more just terms.
Program Structure
The interdisciplinary Global Studies major is comprised of five concentrations: Global Commerce in Culture and Society (GCCS), Global Development Studies (GDS), Global Environments and Sustainability (GSVS), Global Public Health (GPH), and Global Security and Justice (GSSJ).
UVA students may apply to this competitive program after their first or second year. Explore the concentration websites to learn more about our faculty and curriculum. When you are ready to apply, visit our admissions page for instructions. Please contact Director of Global Studies, Prof. Phoebe Crisman, or the Director of each track if you have questions.
Contact Us
Phoebe Crisman | Global Studies Program Director
Caterina Eubanks | Finance and Administration Manager
Concentration Directors:
Laura Goldblatt | Global Commerce in Culture & Society
David Edmunds | Global Development Studies
Phoebe Crisman | Global Environments & Sustainability
Katy Quissell | Global Public Health
Peter Furia | Global Security & Justice