History & Mission of the School of Foreign Service

The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service was founded in 1919 as a direct response to the involvement of the United States in the First World War. Five years before the diplomatic corps of the United States was reorganized and named the Foreign Service, Georgetown created a program dedicated to educating students on global issues and preparing them for lives of service in the international arena. This mission reflected both the University's Jesuit heritage, with its emphasis on intercultural understanding, and its origins as an institution of the American Enlightenment, dedicated to the rights of man and the education of citizens. Today the School of Foreign Service offers the only liberal arts degree in the United States that features a full four-year international affairs curriculum.

Graduates of the School of Foreign Service are a diverse group who pursue careers in many different areas. The tradition of public service remains strong, especially in the areas of diplomacy, international organizations, and humanitarian work. A significant proportion of students take doctorates in a variety of social science and humanities subjects and pursue scholarly careers as members of university faculties or research organizations. In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in the number of graduates attending medical school or earning graduate degrees in public health or the natural sciences. Perhaps the largest group of graduates works in the private sector, with law and business providing a wide range of career opportunities.