About International Development, MA - at University of Sheffield

We're currently reviewing the title and structure of this course and there may be changes to core and/or optional modules. If you apply and are made an offer for this course we will be in touch once any changes are approved.

Learn about social and environmental justice, rural and urban development, citizenship and sustainability and develop a global network of expertise through industry and sector specialists.

In the face of persistent global inequalities, a deepening climate crisis and polarised political debate on the role of overseas aid and investment, the challenges of international development have never been more pressing. Our MA International Development – taught collaboratively by the School of Geography and Planning, Department of Politics and International Relations, and Department of Sociological Studies – provides you with the theoretical and practical knowledge to undertake careers in development research and practice in the public, private and third sectors.

The course is rooted in principles of interdisciplinary learning, decolonising knowledge, connecting theory with policy and practice. You'll also have the flexibility to tailor the course to you own interests.

Through this approach it offers a unique combination of academic excellence, tailored professional skills teaching, an optional field class, and a research-based dissertation (based on placements, research collaborations or independent research).

Core modules will teach you about changing ideas of ‘development’ since the mid-twentieth century and how these have translated into very different policy approaches and outcomes. You'll will learn about poverty and how it has changed, about how development ideas and processes connect to questions of gender, culture and race, about how processes such as migration, urbanisation and technological evolution intersect with development, and about the global governance of international development.

You'll have the opportunity to build a range of professional skills, and will be trained in core research methods in order to undertake an individual piece of original research. Our placement-based dissertation option also enables you to gain valuable work experience.

Optional modules from across the University are also available. These include subjects as diverse as food security, public health, urban development, and climate change.

An optional international field class encourages you to engage with overseas development and community organisations through an intensive week of activities. We also offer a lower cost and more sustainable UK-based ‘hybrid’ field class as an alternative. International field class locations are subject to variation and subject to the number of students participating, but previous destinations have included Peru, Nepal and South Africa.

The costs of optional field classes modules and placements are not included in your tuition fees. A limited amount of funding, accessed through a competitive process, is available to students to help finance field classes.

Field class

An optional international field class encourages you to engage with overseas development and community organisations through an intensive week of activities.

We also offer a lower cost and more sustainable UK-based ‘hybrid’ field class as an alternative.

International field class locations are subject to variation and subject to the number of students participating, but previous destinations have included Peru, Nepal and South Africa.

The costs of optional field classes modules and placements are not included in your tuition fees. A limited amount of funding, accessed through a competitive process, is available to help finance field classes.

Placement

The dissertation with placement gives you valuable practical experience of working in a development organisation and engaging with development issues.

You'll spend six to eight weeks in June or July based in a host organisation, where you'll carry out a research project identified by the organisation and approved by the University. Your project will have clear practical relevance and will generate findings that form the basis of your dissertation. Students may also spend time working directly on the organisation's core activities.

We currently work with over 30 host organisations in the UK and across the globe. Some have a wide remit, others have a specialist focus on issues such as conservation, education or health.

Placements to overseas destinations are subject to the same potential constraints imposed by travel conditions and health risks due to Covid-19.

The costs of the dissertation with placement module are not included in your tuition fees. A limited number of low-cost local placements are also available.

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Entry requirements for this course

Contact University of Sheffield to find course entry requirements.

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