Seniors majoring in IECA engage in a year-long independent research project. During the Fall semester they choose their topic and in the Spring their research culminates in a 30-40 page paper, under the supervision of 2 faculty readers in appropriate disciplines.

 Topics and representative projects from previous years have included the following: 

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES OF HUMAN MOBILITY • The Bullying of Immigrant Students: The Unfortunate Consequence of a Multicultural Celtic Tiger • Immigration: Japan’s Only Real Solution RIGHTS AND WRONGS • Closing the Gap: Legislative Efforts to Achieve Equality for Women in the French Workforce • "The Border Crossed Us:"  The Human Costs of Economic Development in Mexican Maquiladoras SECURITY • The Russian-Georgian Conflict and What it Means for Border Security • Food Security in China: Alleviating Global Worries • The Challenges and Opportunities of Human Mobility THE ENVIRONMENT • Costs of Environmental Policies: German Industry and the European Union • Mexico Cleans Up Its Act: Environmental Consequences of NAFTA DEMOCRACY AND CAPITALISM • The Restraints of Capitalism: How Asian Capitalism is Stifling the South Korean Economy • The New Poland ISSUES OF SOVEREIGNTY: WHO CONTROLS WHAT? • Giving up or Retaining Power? A look at Agriculture and France's Role in the European Union • Sacred Struggles: The Indigenous Fight for Land Rights in Historical and Modern Chile THE CHALLENGES OF GLOBALIZATION • Making Coffee Fair: Globalization, Fair Trade, and Their Effects on Small Scale Coffee Farmers in Mexico • Closing the Gap: Reversing China's Income Inequality Through Globalization