The International and Area Studies program is undergoing an internal review and potentially faces significant changes to its structure and requirements.

New ideas for the department include adding a larger research component, developing a methodology class and revamping the requirements.

“We’re rethinking everything from the core courses to the capstone experience. We’re even thinking about the graduate program,” Timothy Parsons, the new director of the department, said during a forum for majors and prospective majors on Monday.

Along with the Sigma Iota Rho Honor Society (SIR), Parsons hosted the forum to allow students to offer their suggestions and ask questions regarding the changes.

“I expected to learn what the department was tentatively thinking about, and I was pleasantly surprised,” said junior Gabriel Magraner, treasurer of SIR. “I think it went really well.”

There are currently about 200 International and Area Studies (IAS) majors. The majority of students who major in IAS specialize in Latin American or East Asian studies, and the department is trying to determine whether these programs should become separate altogether.

The department is also considering making Crossing Borders—a mandatory introductory course—into an optional, upper-level course.

All existing requirements are up for review. Students attending the forum greeted this news with interest, and several had suggestions about which aspects could be changed or added.

Some recommended increased peer or faculty advising for freshmen and sophomores interested in joining the department and the addition of more specific regional or thematic tracks.

Parsons welcomed all comments and encouraged the students to e-mail the department with their thoughts following the forum. He admitted that there are some constraints on the actions that the department can take, however.

“The only limitations are the usual: ‘person power’ and finances,” Parsons said. “But these are obstacles every department has to face.”

According to Parsons, interdepartmental meetings will occur to discuss the possibility of changing the structure, requirements and classes offered throughout the year.

Currently, the program is split into three elements, starting with the core course Crossing Borders and ending with a capstone program. The middle part, however, varies, as each student chooses how to focus his or her studies differently.

“I like this program because it lets me take every class I’m interested in,” sophomore Bonnie Friedman said.

In Friedman’s case, that means trying to get a new concentration in international relations approved.

“The department is pretty flexible, and lets me pick what I want to study,” Friedman said. “I might not be getting an entirely focused education, but I think I’m still getting the critical academic skills that undergraduates should.”

There are no deadlines for publishing the changes, though a broad outline might come out as early as January. According to Parsons, many of the new changes may be implemented as soon as fall 2011.