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Balsillie School of International Affairs

The Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA) is a centre for advanced research and teaching on global governance and international public policy, located in Waterloo, Ontario. As one of the largest social sciences initiatives in Canada, the school is a collaborative partnership between the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, and the Centre for International Governance Innovation. The BSIA is an affiliate member of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs, a group of schools that educate leaders in international affairs. The BSIA is housed in the north and west wings of the CIGI Campus. Admission to BSIA is highly selective.

Other name

BSIA

Public–private partnership graduate school

2007 (2007)

Ann Fitz-Gerald

100+ including BSIA and postdoctoral fellows

80+

History[edit]

The BSIA partnership was announced in 2007 when Blackberry co-CEO and CIGI Founder Jim Balsillie donated $50 million to the initiative. Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Waterloo would also make investments toward the school totaling $50 million ($25 million from each) over the next decade. From 2007 to 2011, classes at the BSIA took place at Laurier University and University of Waterloo.


In 2009, plans were announced to house the BSIA within a "CIGI Campus" that would be built alongside the think tank's headquarters in Waterloo. The resulting $68 million complex received federal and provincial funding totaling $50 million through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program and Ontario's 2009 Budget. The City of Waterloo donated the land for the campus through a 99-year lease. Construction began in 2009 and lasted for approximately two years. In October 2011, the BSIA held its first classes in the CIGI Campus.[1]

Rankings and reputation[edit]

Canadian international relations scholars have ranked the Balsillie School the 4th best school in Canada for students seeking a career in public policy, as well as the 4th best school in Canada for students seeking an academic career studying international relations. CIGI was also ranked 1st as the most prominent think tank in Canada. Scholars who were polled noted both that the Balsillie School has gained prominence rapidly since its founding in 2007, and has attained a reputation for being well-funded.[2][3]

Conflict and Security

Global Political Economy

Global Social Governance

Global Environment

Global Justice and Human Rights

Multilateral Institutions and Diplomacy

Partnerships[edit]

The BSIA Master of Arts in Global Governance has partnerships with the School of International Service at American University and the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick. Students can also spend a term abroad on exchange, either with the International Conflict Administration and Management program at the University of Konstanz in Germany or the School of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Queensland in Australia.


Other partnerships include organizations such as the United Nations Association in Canada, Global Affairs Canada, Canadian Red Cross, Civicus, Bonn International Center for Conversion, The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Academic Council on the United Nations System

Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute (CPI)

The International Migration Research Centre (IMRC)

The Laurier Centre for Sustainable Food Systems (CSFS)

Canadian Network for Research on Terrorism, Security, and Society

The Water Institute

WISE Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy

Official website

CIGI’s Official Website