Institute
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE
The Institute of International Studies (IMS) is part of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Charles University in Prague (FSV UK), which was established in 1990 to respond to the current needs of the society. The IMS was founded in 1994 as the youngest part of the FSV UK. Its current structure is the result of a long-term process characterized, among others, by the deliberate formation of a new field of study "Area Studies." It is also positively influenced by the rising and changing demand of students, i.e. by satisfying the increasingly urgent "social demand" of the missing field of area studies, which is so important for further development in the practice of the Czech foreign and domestic politics.
Graduates of the study fields which are taught at the IMS are characterized by a contextually, regionally and methodologically based knowledge of modern history and of the legal, political, economic and socio-cultural background in those regions which are the contents of the Institute's scientific and pedagogical work. Furthermore, they orientate themselves in the practical consequences of recent historical events and essential contemporary problems and are equipped with basic analytic-interpretive skills. The graduates of these fields find jobs in all types of governmental and non-governmental institutions that focus on the issues of the respective regions, both domestic and foreign, in their historical and contemporary context.
News
-
Short Documentary – 30 Years of the Institute of International Studies
We invite you to watch a short documentary created for the 30th anniversary of the institute. Academics, students, and alumni share their reflections. A look back, a touch of nostalgia, and plenty of humanity. -
Post(Wars) Research Center Hosts ERC "Leviathan" Team for Collaborative Workshop
On June 25, 2025, the Post(Wars) Research Center at the Institute of International Studies hosted a joint workshop with the team of the ERC-funded project Leviathan, based at the Institute for the History of Medicine at Charité Berlin. The project looks at how medicine and social policy helped shape postwar European societies and new forms of governance after 1945. -
Successful Dissertation Defense by PhDr. Ladislav Beneš
PhDr. Ladislav Beneš has successfully defended his dissertation. As a doctoral student in the Modern History programme, he examined the relations and material transfers between the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren and the Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland during the Cold War period (1948–1989). -
Call for Participants "Decolonial Approaches and Fieldwork: Theory and Practice"
We invite MA and PhD students in the social sciences, humanities, and related fields to apply for the workshop “Decolonial Approaches and Fieldwork: Theory and Practice”, which will take place in two parts in October and November 2025 at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague. -
Associate Professor Slavomír Horák has been appointed as the new Head of the Department of Russian and East European Studies
Associate Professor Slavomír Horák has been appointed as the new Head of the Department of Russian and East European Studies. He will assume the position on 1 August 2025 for a four-year term, ending on 30 July 2029. -
PROFFORMANCE Label of Teaching Excellence
As part of the prestigious PROFFORMANCE Label of Teaching Excellence awards, Charles University achieved the highest overall score this year by submitting a total of eight projects. One of these was the PLECS project (Participatory Learning and Expert Climate Solutions), which was led by Dr. Magdalena Fiřtová (KSAS). Dr. Eliška Ullrichová (KES) and Dr. Zuzana Lizcová (KNRS) were also involved in the project.
