MSc Research for International Development
| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2024-09-01 | - |
Program Overview
MSc Research for International Development
Key Information
- Start date: September
- Duration: 1 year
- Attendance mode: Full-time or part-time
- Location: On Campus
- Fees:
- Home: £12,220
- International: £25,320
- Course code: PGTF0021
- Entry requirements: We will consider all applications with 2:2 (or international equivalent) or higher.
Course Overview
The MSc Research for International Development is a cutting-edge degree funded and supported by the UK’s ESRC (The Economic and Social Research Council). The programme equips you with the theoretical background and analytical skills to inquire into the relationship between theory, research methods and politics in international development.
Structure
- Dissertation in Research Methods for International Development (60 credits)
- Fundamentals of research methods for Development Studies (15 credits)
- Evaluation Methods in International Development (15 credits)
- Guided options List A (30 credits)
- Guided options (60 credits)
Teaching and Learning
Our teaching and learning approach is designed to support and encourage students in their own process of self-learning, and to develop their own ideas, responses and critique of international development practice and policy.
- Dissertation: In addition to the taught part of the masters programme, all students will write a 10,000 word dissertation.
- Contact hours: All Masters programmes consist of 180 credits, made up of taught modules of 30 or 15 credits, taught over 10 or 20 weeks, and a dissertation of 60 credits.
Employment
A degree from the Department of Development Studies at SOAS will further develop your understanding of the world and how society is organised, with specific focus on violence and conflict, the role of aid, refugees and forced migration. Graduates leave with a range of transferable skills, including critical thinking, analytical skills and cultural awareness.
Recent Department of Development Studies graduates have been hired by:
- Amnesty International
- BBC World Service
- British Embassy Brussels
- Department for International Development
- Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)
- Embassy of Japan
- Government of Pakistan
- Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
- International Labour Organization (ILO)
- KPMG LLP
- Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
- National Health and Medical Research Council
- Overseas Development Institute
- Oxfam
- Royal Norwegian Embassy
- Save the Children UK
- The World Bank
- Thinking Beyond Borders
- US Department of State
- UN World Food Programme
- UN High Commissioner for Refugees
- WaterAid
Scholarships
- Tibawi Trust Award
- Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Studentships
- Felix Non-Indian Scholarship
- Felix Scholarships
- Sasakawa Studentships
- SOAS Master's Scholarships (Home)
Research
- Border crossings: Exploring history and community through virtual reality at the 75th anniversary of the Partition
- London International Development Centre Migration Leadership Team
- Research and Evidence Facility: Informing migration policy in the Horn of Africa
- Drugs & (dis)order
- The AGRUMIG project: "Leaving something behind"
- Industrial Development, Construction and Employment in Africa (IDCEA): A comparative analysis
Events
- Violence, conflict and changing global orders: Marking 25 years of the MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development at SOAS
Program Outline
Students must take
180 credits per year
comprised of120 taught credits
(including core, compulsory and optional modules) and a 60 credit dissertation.
Core modules:
A core module is required for the degree programme, so must always be taken and passed before you move on to the next year of your programme.Compulsory modules:
A compulsory module is required for the degree programme, so must always be taken, and if necessary can be passed by re-taking it alongside the next year of your programme.Optional modules:
These are designed to help students design their own intellectual journey while maintaining a strong grasp of the fundamentals.
Important notice
The information on the website reflects the intended programme structure against the given academic session. The modules are indicative options of the content students can expect and are/have been previously taught as part of these programmes. However, this information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change.
Core and Compulsory modules
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Fundamentals of research methods for Development Studies |
15 |
|
Statistical Research Techniques in Internatonal Development with R coding |
15 |
Optional modules
Students also take
one
of the following:
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Theory, policy and practice of development |
30 |
|
Political Economy of Development |
30 |
List of modules (subject to availability)
Development Studies
Students choose modules to the value of 60 credits from the list below:
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Civil society, social movements and the development process |
15 |
|
Gender and Development |
15 |
|
Development Practice |
15 |
|
War to Peace Transitions |
15 |
|
Problems of Development in the Middle East and North Africa |
15 |
|
Global Commodity Chains, Production Networks and Informal Work |
15 |
|
Agrarian Development, Food Policy and Rural Poverty |
15 |
|
Aid and Development |
15 |
|
Migration and Policy |
15 |
|
Labour, Activism and Global Development |
15 |
|
Water Justice: Rights, Access and Movements (Development Studies) |
15 |
|
Water and Development: Commodification, Ecology and Globalisation (Development Studies) |
15 |
|
Global Health and Development |
15 |
|
International Development Placement |
15 |
|
Cities and Development |
15 |
|
Feminist Political Economy and Global Development |
15 |
Economics
Students need to get approval from the Module Convenor in order to take modules from the list below
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Introductory Statistics |
15 |
|
Political Economy of Development and Change in the Middle East |
15 |
|
Economic development in the Asia Pacific region |
15 |
|
China and World Development |
15 |
|
Economics of Environment and Development |
15 |
|
Financial Systems and Economic Development |
15 |
|
Global Economic Policy Analysis |
15 |
|
Green Finance |
15 |
|
Institutions and Governance |
15 |
|
Macroeconomics |
15 |
|
Microeconomics |
15 |
|
Economic development of Africa: microeconomic approaches |
15 |
Dissertation
All students enrol in the dissertation module.
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Dissertation in Research Methods for International Development |
60 |
Our teaching and learning approach is designed to support and encourage students in their own process of self-learning, and to develop their own ideas, responses and critique of international development practice and policy.
We do this through a mixture of lectures, and more student-centred learning approaches (including tutorials and seminars). Teaching combines innovative use of audio-visual materials, practical exercises, group discussions, and weekly guided reading and discussions, as well as conventional lecturing.
Dissertation
In addition to the taught part of the masters programme, all students will write a 10,000 word dissertation. Students develop their research topic under the guidance and supervision of an academic member of the Department. Students are encouraged to explore a particular body of theory or an academic debate relevant to their programme through a focus on a particular region.
Contact hours
All Masters programmes consist of 180 credits, made up of taught modules of 30 or 15 credits, taught over 10 or 20 weeks, and a dissertation of 60 credits. The programme structure shows which modules are compulsory and which optional.
As a rough guide, 1 credit equals approximately 10 hours of work. Most of this will be independent study, including reading and research, preparing coursework, revising for examinations and so on. It will also include class time, which may include lectures, seminars and other classes. Some subjects, such as learning a language, have more class time than others. At SOAS, most postgraduate modules have a one hour lecture and a one hour seminar every week, but this does vary.
SOAS Library
SOAS Library
is one of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, attracting scholars from all over the world. The Library houses over 1.2 million volumes, together with significant archival holdings, special collections and a growing network of electronic resources.Pre-entry reading
A degree from the Department of Development Studies at SOAS will further develop your understanding of the world and how society is organised, with specific focus on violence and conflict, the role of aid, refugees and forced migration. Graduates leave with a range of transferable skills, including critical thinking, analytical skills and cultural awareness.
Recent Department of Development Studies graduates have been hired by:
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