You are here: 17吃瓜在线 School of Public Affairs Gap Year Course Topics

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Earn Academic Credit

The Gap Program provides a platform for ambitious and diverse learners to explore headline topics from a distinctly DC perspective.听

During the semester you can expect to meet with engaging guest speakers. These experts are the leaders in their field, those impacting students鈥 lives today.

Each semester in the Gap Program you will have a professional internship, an internship course,听and a headline topic seminar. You also have the option to enroll in an 17吃瓜在线 elective听--听听for a total of听either听7听or 10听credits.听Students can enroll for fall, spring or both semesters in an academic year.

Courses

Supplementing the professional internship experience, you will participate in an internship course, which focuses on the key skills you need to听land听an internship and become a successful employee in today's workplace. You will use these same skills to secure your first job out of college and beyond.

Led by an experienced 17吃瓜在线 instructor, this听course enables you to have a successful experience at your internship, as it provides a forum for exploring common challenges and opportunities in the workplace, including goal setting, job responsibilities, communication with co-workers, and diversity in the workplace.

International Peace and Security

This course introduces students to the major concepts听and听issues currently shaping the fields of听international听security听and听international听peace听and听conflict studies. Students explore a variety of听contemporary听security听issues听and听challenges to听peace, the main strategies for responding to conflicts,听and听how to recognize听and听critique the assumptions upon which these strategies rest. Topics include classic听security听concerns ranging from causes of violent conflicts to terrorism, as well as a broad range of extended challenges to human听security听including environmental, health, gender,听and听resource听security.

U.S. Presidency: History and Current Controversies

In this course, we will examine the American presidency, along with several controversies related to the office. We will begin by studying the constitutional origins and history of the presidency and steadily work toward a more comprehensive understanding of the institution before arriving at the presidency of Joe Biden. Along the way, we will consider both 鈥渃lassic鈥 and contemporary works on the presidency. Although we will study several recent controversial issues related to the presidency, please note that this is not a public policy or a public law course.听

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Students can enroll in an 17吃瓜在线 elective course in addition to their Gap coursework. Your academic advisor will review course selections during the registration process to ensure that electives do not conflict with your Gap course or internship schedule.

** Please note that enrolling in an optional 17吃瓜在线 elective will听impact student tuition. See the Tuition and Costs page for more details. **

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Please note that the University reserves the right to make program/subject cancellations and changes or substitutions in cases of enrollment interests or changed conditions in the interest of the group.