When The Fletcher School opened in 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression, it was an act of hope in a time of despair and a boost to internationalism in a time of isolationism.
Today, as the oldest exclusively graduate school of international affairs in the United States, we continue to meet the demands of a world in which the only constant is change.
The primary aim of The Fletcher School is the same as it was when conceived by its founders: to offer a broad program of professional education in international relations to a select group of graduate students committed to maintaining the stability and prosperity of a complex, challenging, and increasingly global society.
Our mission remains:
- To educate professionals from around the world and to prepare them for positions of leadership and influence in the national and international arenas;
- To increase understanding of international problems and concerns through teaching, research, and publications;
- To serve local, national, and international communities in their search to develop relationships of mutual benefit, security, and justice in an increasingly interdependent world.
Alumni, students, faculty, and friends continue to invest their time and money, ideas and hard work to ensure that The Fletcher School remains true to this mission.