Development Studies

DPhil in International Development

Course Code | 002695

The Oxford Department of International Development (QEH) admits students wishing to study for a doctorate in International Development (including aspects of forced migration).

The degree focuses on processes of social, political and economic development and change in all parts of the world. It may involve the study of local processes in particular contexts, regions and countries, or comparative or international dimensions. Grounded in the social sciences, the degree encourages theoretical, empirical and multidisciplinary methods and perspectives.

MPhil in Development Studies

Course Code | 002690 

The aim of this two-year course is to provide a rigorous and critical introduction to development studies as a process of social transformation and managed change.

The approach adopted is both interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary. Attention is paid to the intellectual history of development studies, paradigmatic shifts and conflicts within the discipline, and the contemporary relevance of the field to public policy and academic research.

Students normally undertake field research for their thesis during the summer between the first and second years. Although the cost of the field research is borne by students themselves, there is some departmental support available.

• Length of programme: Twenty-four months
  
• Courses taken in the first year: Core courses, research methods plus two out of three: economics, history and politics, social anthropology foundation courses
  
• Optional courses taken in the second year: Students choose two from a selection of optional courses
  
• Programme specification

MSc in Economics for Development

Course Code | 002750 

This MSc is a one-year specialist degree concerned with the economics of developing countries and is taught jointly with the Department of Economics.

The course covers modern economic theory and econometrics and their application across a wide range of topics central to economic development.

The topics offered may change slightly from year to year. For the previous academic year, the topics included the microeconomics of households and markets in developing countries; human development, health and education; poverty and risk; urban-rural linkages; globalisation, trade and capital flows; macroeconomic management; and institutions and the political economy of development.

• Length of programme: Ten months
• Core courses: Economic Theory (macroeconomics, microeconomics, international trade); Quantitative Methods
• Optional courses: Selection of eight modules out of which students typically follow five
• Programme specification

MSc in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies

Course Code | 002931

This one-year interdisciplinary degree involves an intellectually rigorous examination of forced migration resulting from conflict, state practices, environmental change, and development policies.

The degree aims to place forced migration in historical, global and human context. It encourages academic reflection on the causes and consequences of displacement and critically interrogates responses to forced migration by states, international organisations and NGOs.

• Length of programme: Ten months
• Core courses: Introduction to Forced Migration, International Refugee and Human Rights Law, Asylum and the Modern State, Research Methods
• Optional courses: Students choose two from a selection of optional courses
• Programme specification

MSc in Global Governance and Diplomacy

Course Code | 003450 

The aim of this one-year degree is to provide high-quality graduate training on the institutions and processes of diplomacy, multilateralism, regional integration and global governance.

• Length of programme: Ten months
• Core courses: One foundation course chosen from either Global Governance or International Diplomacy; mandatory course on research methods in the social sciences
• Optional courses: Students choose two from a range of courses available within the department
• Programme specification

MSc in Migration Studies

Course Code | 001675

This MSc is jointly offered by the School of Anthropology and the Department of International Development. The course draws on the intellectual resources of three world-class migration research centres at Oxford - the ESRC Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS), the International Migration Institute (IMI), and the Refugee Studies Centre (RSC). It explores human mobility in a historical and global perspective, and addresses the complex relations between global political economy, migratory experiences, and government and social responses. 

The degree introduces students to key concept, research and analysis in the economics, politics, sociology and anthropology of migration, enabling them to understand the nature of both internal and international migration and its role in global social and economic change.

• Length of programme: Ten months
• Core courses: International Migration in the Social Sciences: An interdisciplinary introduction; Key themes in international migration; Research methods
• Optional courses: Students can choose two from a selection of options courses on thematic and regional topics
• Programme specification

The Bodleian Social Science Library houses the main collection of books and journals relevant to Development Studies, and a large collection of books and grey literature on forced migration and related issues.

Many other valuable resources for Development Studies are located elsewhere in the University, in particular the Bodleian Library, the Indian Institute, the Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House, the Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology and the Latin American Centre.

DPhil in International Development and MPhil in Development Studies

Many graduates go on to academic posts and work on development issues in international agencies, NGOs, governments and private institutions.

Msc in Economics for Development 

Graduates may also go on to work as professional economists on development issues in international agencies, governments or the private sector.

MSc in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies

Graduates may enter international and national organisations working on matters related to humanitarian assistance, development aid and forced and economic migration, in addition to careers in academia, policy institutes and government service.

MSc in Global Governance and Diplomacy

Graduates will often go on to careers in diplomacy and/or the transnational and regional institutions of international governance such as international and non-governmental organisations, and private sector firms interacting with these institutions.

Some students also employ the MSc GGD as preparation for DPhil work and academic careers

MSc in Migration Studies

Graduates go on to work with governments, NGOs and international organisations, and to careers in public media, academia and consultancy.