Introduction to International Relations will survey the contemporary actors, theoretical paradigms, and disciplinary debates of the study of global politics. Students will listen to lectures, participate in discussion groups, and conduct group work in a role-playing crisis situation. This introductory course is divided into two parts. The first part introduces students to the foundational concepts and theoretical approaches to International Relations. The second part of the course shifts to an analysis of more contemporary issues in International Relations through utilizing foundational concepts and theoretical approaches of International Relations. The second part of the course is especially concerned with how traditional theoretical paradigms influence contemporary debates on interstate relations. Thus, this course should be of particular interest to students excited by US foreign policy, US-China, and US-Russia great power competition.