Teaching

I teach undergraduate and graduate courses on international relations, political economy, and international migration. Beyond the classroom, I have the privilege of mentoring undergraduate and graduate students in independent and collaborative research.  Please see below for a list of courses I have taught at Texas A&M, as well at at Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Virginia, and the University of Richmond.

Texas A&M

• Principles of International Affairs (U) [Syllabus]

• International Politics in Theory and Practice (G) [Syllabus]

• Politics of Immigration (G) [Syllabus]

• International Affairs Capstone Seminar (G) [Syllabus]

Carnegie Mellon

• International Relations Graduate Seminar (G)

• Political Economy of International Migration (U)

University of Virginia

• Introduction to International Relations (U)

• Introduction to International Political Economy (U) [Syllabus]

University of Richmond

• Introduction to International Relations (U)

(U) Undergraduate (G) Graduate

What students have said about my teaching

• “Dr. Helms contributed to our capstone paper and project in ways I have never witnessed in my five years of studying. Dr. Helms has the heart and passion to inspire and push others to a level that they had never imagined. I always questioned my ability to write at an academic level and my ability to contribute to such a big project. Dr. Helms provided me with all the resources to produce an outstanding qualitative interview protocol and even allowed me to take part in leading my own interviews...Dr. Helms was always on-call, ready to review my drafts or answer any questions." (Capstone Seminar, Spring 2025)

• “Dr. Helms was great at giving us direction and providing structure, but he also encouraged us to take responsibility for our own project/learning." (Capstone Seminar, Spring 2025)

• “This course has been excellent, especially organizationally, and of all the classes I've taken, it definitely feels like it has prepared me for my future courses the most." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2025)

• “I admire how easily he is able to break down complex concepts and make everything seem simple. He makes class content easy to understand." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2025)

• “This course was designed in a way to make learning exciting and effective. Professor Helms cares about his students and wants us all to do good in his class. He is very understanding and always willing to provide feedback." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2025)

• “Really great instructor. I liked how Prof. Helms guided the class and accommodated everybody when needed. Prompting class discussions to push us to think by ourselves was also very helpful." (Politics of Immigration, Fall 2024)

• “Dr. Helms was a great professor. The readings he picked were all very engaging and relevant to the content we were covering in class. He was always available and willing to meet with students to provide feedback and help on projects or just to chat about anything we found particularly interesting in class...Overall, I really enjoyed this course and Dr. Helms as a professor." (Politics of Immigration, Fall 2024)

• “He is honestly one of my favorite teachers at A&M. This is my favorite class that I've taken at A&M so far." (Principles of International Affairs, Fall 2024)

• “Prof. Helms was amazing! Super organized, teaches well, and is always open to help. Material was very good and informative, I learned a lot!" (Principles of International Affairs, Fall 2024)

• “This is one of the most widely and immediately applicable classes I have taken. From elevating my own personal knowledge and thinking, leading to better discussions in my personal life, and preparing me to engage thoughtfully with the topic in my career, this has been a deeply relevant and applicable course." (Politics of Immigration, Spring 2024)

• “I really appreciated the way the course combined frameworks from different fields like political science and economics...The way the course mixed theory with real-world evidence and data analysis was incredibly engaging." (Politics of Immigration, Spring 2024)

• “An incredible instructor. One of the absolute best I've encountered at the Bush School. I feel lucky to have taken this class before graduating." (Politics of Immigration, Spring 2024)

• “This was by far one of my more difficult courses this semester, but Professor Helms was kind, patient, and understanding through it all. He explained materials extremely well and gave a lot of helpful feedback on the exams/papers. You could tell Professor Helms wanted to be there and help students gain understanding in international affairs." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2024)

• “Dr. Helms was helpful in office hours and always went out of his way to assist students. He does a phenomenal job at continuing the learning process both in and outside of the classroom." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2024)

• “Dr. Helms is hands down the best professor I have had at Texas A&M in terms of teaching ability. His slides were always extremely well-prepared, his lectures informative, and his explanations helpful. I believe he is the ideal professor for an introductory course on international affairs." (Principles of International Affairs, Spring 2024)

• “Glad to have Professor Helms at TAMU. This course helped me pursue topics that I never thought were accessible and I am grateful for the patience he has had to teach me what he could with his time. Highly recommended." (Principles of International Affairs, Fall 2023)

• “Prof. Helms is an extremely organized individual with a lot of passion for his subject. He is hands down the professor that I am most comfortable recommending to anyone who is even remotely interested in international affairs." (Principles of International Affairs, Fall 2023)

• “Professor Helms always gave very clear feedback on assignments, which was very beneficial. The feedback for essays and short answer questions helped give me constructive feedback that I will be able to benefit from in the future." (Principles of International Affairs, Fall 2023)