students on a study abroad trip working in the field

School of Global Studies and Languages

At the School of Global Studies and Languages, UO students engage with diverse cultures, languages, histories, and lifeways across the world. GSL prepares our graduates for life after college with an interdisciplinary curriculum, innovative language teaching, and abundant learning opportunities outside the classroom.

GSL Ring Lectures

The School of Global Studies and Languages at the UO has launched an annual Ring Lecture series to inspire fresh paths forward in our fraught and fractious global climates. The lecture series consists of three events per year and invites vibrant engagement of all UO citizens as well as the public. We welcome pedagogically oriented experimentation with new modes of scholarly presentation and exchange.

2024-2025 Ring Lectures

18
languages offered in person
100
core faculty members
5

languages ranked in the top ten for degrees awarded

27

majors, minors, masters, and PhD programs

What you can do with a Global Studies and Languages degree

Students in the School of Global Studies and Languages graduate with the skills necessary for a robust career in the global sector. Professional Concentration Areas such as Law and Human Rights or Business, Trade and Tourism provide students with career-relevant electives and language learning, all centered on a theme.

Aneesh Aneesh headshot

From the Executive Director

At this moment of world history, the importance of GSL’s mission cannot be overstated. Caught between the forces of globalization and still resilient communal loyalties, every society is facing contradictory pulls on its social fabric. GSL may help light up the path forward in this fraught and fractious global climate.

The University of Oregon boasts a long tradition of international education and research, and the School of Global Studies and Languages is a bold, new rendering of this tradition. As a first-generation immigrant from India who came to the US as a graduate student, I know how international education can transform a student’s life.

GSL is also a unique experiment. While there exist many schools of international studies, there are few that take the question of language seriously. In a rapidly expanding world society, cultures talk in multiple tongues. And each language opens up the world in a different way. Whether our students seek employment in foreign service, international organizations, think tanks, or global businesses, they will bring multilayered, plural understandings of the issues with their ability to analyze emerging problems from the horizon of more than one language.

They will be our contribution to the global public good.

Aneesh Aneesh is a professor of global studies and sociology and the executive director of the School of Global Studies and Languages. 

Amy poses with a cherry tree in the background

How Global Studies and Languages Kick-Starts Your Career

“The coursework in global studies, coupled with Arabic studies and political science, taught me about the origins and current state of our international relations system, as well as cross-cultural communication. My courses and collaboration with peers set me apart from other folks in the DC area who have gone to other universities on the East Coast and gave me a view of what it meant to work in the international affairs world. 

"That preparation helped me get a job right after college, starting with the United Nations, and it set me up to succeed in my current position with the British Embassy in Washington, D.C.”

—Amy Schenk, BA, global studies and double minors in Arabic studies and political science, '17

Our Degree Programs

The new School of Global Studies and Languages brings together roughly 100 core faculty members across four language and literature departments, five area studies programs, the Yamada Language Center, and the Department of Global Studies. The School has an integrated curriculum that combines experiential learning programs and new ways to study and apply languages, while incorporating social science education, cultural competency, and professional training to create a hub for global careers and language learning at the UO.

Affiliated Programs, Centers and Institutes

Angers, France

Learn from Experts in the Field

The School of Global Studies and Languages faculty specialize in a range of research fields that deal with some of the most important contemporary and historical issues, including:

  • global health, media, and culture
  • environmental studies
  • social and political justice
  • language and cognition across cultures
  • migration
  • food studies
GSL-Real World Experience

Get Real-world Experience

To prepare students to thrive in a globalized workforce, our aim is to provide exceptional academic and professional development opportunities both at home and abroad. A few ways we do this:

  • GlobalWorks Internship Program
  • Academic Residential Communities
  • First-year Interest Groups
  • Global Education Oregon centers in Spain, Italy, and the UK

Scholarships and Funding

Our participating departments offer a variety of funding opportunities to undergraduate majors and graduate students. The College of Arts and Sciences and the UO also offer scholarships to all students.

Undergraduate Scholarships 
Graduate Funding

Academic Support

Academic help for undergraduate students is available through Tykeson College and Career Advising. Located in Tykeson, the Global Connections Flight Path serves as a framework for you to explore internationally focused majors and help align your personal interests with a rewarding career track.

Undergraduate Advising

Global Studies and Languages Events and News

GIS Day OPEN HOUSE
Nov20
GIS Day OPEN HOUSE Nov 20 UO Library
Let's Talk - Wednesdays Noon-2MP (Peterson Hall/Zoom)
Nov20
Let's Talk - Wednesdays Noon-2MP (Peterson Hall/Zoom) Nov 20 Peterson Hall
Let’s Talk – Wednesdays 2PM-4PM (BCC/Zoom)
Nov20
Let’s Talk – Wednesdays 2PM-4PM (BCC/Zoom) Nov 20 Lyllye Reynolds-Parker Black Cultural Center
Natural Sciences Club Fair
Nov20
Natural Sciences Club Fair Nov 20 Willamette Hall
Intertextuality of Seasonal Imagery in Japanese Literature and Woodblock Prints
Nov20
Intertextuality of Seasonal Imagery in Japanese Literature and Woodblock Prints Nov 20 Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art (JSMA)
Three Minute Thesis Competition
Nov21
Three Minute Thesis Competition Nov 21 Erb Memorial Union (EMU)
Women in Economics Club
Nov21
Women in Economics Club Nov 21 Allen Hall
University Theatre Presents "Frankenstein: Playing with Fire"
Nov21
University Theatre Presents "Frankenstein: Playing with Fire" Nov 21 Miller Theatre Complex
Human Physiology Seminar Speaker: Dr. David Doolette, Scientific Director, U.S. Navy Experimental Diving Unit
Nov22
Human Physiology Seminar Speaker: Dr. David Doolette, Scientific Director, U.S. Navy Experimental Diving Unit Nov 22 Lawrence Hall
Organic/Inorganic/Materials Chemistry Seminar: Hazardous Waste Determinations and New TSCA Legislation at University of Oregon
Nov22
Organic/Inorganic/Materials Chemistry Seminar: Hazardous Waste Determinations and New TSCA Legislation at University of Oregon Nov 22 Willamette Hall

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GLOBAL LANGUAGES – Migration “crises” continue to make headlines, but according to Professor Eleanor Paynter, the ways we often talk about migration in public debate rarely line up with the experience of migrating across a border. She's been researching the issue and published her findings in her new book, "Emergency in Transit: Witnessing Migration in the Colonial Present."
GLOBAL STUDIES - Jennifer Esparza served in the Marines Corps for 11 years, earning the rank of staff sergeant and a half-dozen awards. In 2011 she enrolled at the UO, and in 2017 she earned a bachelor's degree in international studies and went to law school at Georgetown University. She worked for the Biden-Harris administration as a White House liaison and now is senior adviser to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Secretary Tanya Bradsher, the department’s second-highest official.
GLOBAL STUDIES - From Oct. 17 to 19, the College of Arts and Sciences School of Global Studies and Languages hosted its first-ever conference. Titled “Climate Clashes, Climate Governance, Climate Justice,” the inaugural conference’s theme was focused on interdisciplinary approaches to climate change and resolution. The conference brought together local and global academics who focus on different specific aspects of climate change.

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