The Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) approved a new space studies concentration as part of its science, technology and international affairs (STIA) program Nov. 5.

Beginning in Spring 2026, STIA majors have the option to declare space as a concentration. The SFS’s decision comes after years of advocacy for space studies programming from students and faculty.

Emily Mendenhall, the STIA program director, said that as the leading school in international affairs in the world, the SFS must have a space program.

“Most of the faculty would say that space is the new frontier,” Mendenhall told The Hoya. “It plays a powerful role in how we imagine the future of science and technology, and if we don’t get in the center of it, we’re going to get behind.”

Space studies is a rapidly-evolving field exploring issues such as space security, environmental sustainability, commercial development and governance. In the Washington, D.C. area, only the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs has an initiative, the Space Policy Institute (SPI), to explore these changes in the field. The SFS’s concentration would be the second program in the D.C. area.

Sarah Johnson, a STIA professor who spearheaded the concentration efforts, said Georgetown has been working to expand its faculty and course offerings to meet students’ needs.

“We now have over forty tenure-line, research, teaching and adjunct faculty working on space at Georgetown, and as of this spring, we offer thirty different courses on space,” Johnson wrote to The Hoya. “There’s tons of student enthusiasm, which is what led the STIA faculty to consider creating this new pathway.”

Students from the Georgetown University Space Initiative (GUSI), a student group promoting space studies, research and policy, also advocated with faculty members to add more space classes and space policy opportunities. 

Briana Sparacino (SFS ’25, GRD ’26), the former co-president of GUSI, said a formal space studies education may have made her a more competitive candidate in the job market.

“I think if I had this formalized education from Georgetown, in this STIA pace concentration, I think it would have really added to my ability to get jobs post-grad, and internships,” Sparacino told The Hoya.

Full Disclosure: Briana Sparacino previously served as a Staff Writer for The Hoya from Fall 2021 to Spring 2023.

Sparacino said Georgetown is taking an important step toward space education across U.S. universities.

“I think we’re one of the first prestigious universities really investing in this,” Sparacino said. “And I think that’s a huge thing for universities across America to take a hint. This is a growing interest and growing field that we need to invest in at the undergraduate youth level.”

Sam Chang (SFS ’26), a STIA major working in federal space policy, said the concentration would support an educational community beyond extracurriculars such as GUSI. 

“Students will benefit by having an actual community,” Chang told The Hoya. “GUSI is one part of it, but I feel like there are a lot of people who are not in GUSI who are into space.”

“They would be able to connect with other people interested in space,” Chang added.

Saahil Rao (SFS ’27), a former Georgetown University Student Association (GUSA) senator who introduced a bill in September advocating for a space studies minor, said Georgetown is pioneering the field of space policy studies. 

“This is the SFS claiming ownership over the issue area,” Rao told The Hoya. “So it sends a pretty clear message: if you want to study space, SFS is the school for you.”

Chang said the SFS is widening the scope of space education.

“Space is not just for engineers and scientists,” Chang said. “You have business leaders, you have policy makers, you have activists — everyday people are into space, and they have a venue to work in space. You don’t have to have an engineering background, a science background.”

Chang said that while he may not be able to take advantage of the concentration, he is proud to have a role in providing future Hoyas with the opportunity.

“This will hugely benefit the incoming freshman, the incoming sophomores, even juniors,” Chang said. “At least for seniors, I think the benefit is actually having been working on it for several years.”

Rao reiterated his calls for a space studies minor broader than a STIA concentration, saying he hopes that the opportunity to study space policy will be available to all students. 

“I hope the SFS isn’t too parochial about this and that they make sure that space studies being expanded at Georgetown means space studies being expanded for the entire school, not just students in the SFS,” Rao said.

Johnson said space education is a growing field, and STIA students must engage with its content critically.

“Space is an arena of extraordinary opportunity as well as profound risk, and we want STIA majors who have been trained to think in holistic and interdisciplinary ways on the global stage — future leaders who deeply understand not only the science and technology but also the political and ethical issues involved,” Johnson wrote.

Chang said the concentration allows students to study space in a clear framework. 

“I think it’s just incredible that students can benefit from this concentration very early in their college career, and anyone who really wants to be in space has that structure,” Chang said.

CORRECTION: This article was updated Nov. 7 to reflect that only a space concentration was approved Nov. 5, not a master’s certificate.