Moving forward: the Master's in Development Practice
Back to ListJuly 17, 2009
Recently Emory's Graduate School received one of ten planning grants from The MacArthur Foundation to develop a new Master's of Development Practice (MDP). The MDP will train a new generation of development specialist with an interdisciplinary curriculum that combines academic training with practical experience. IDN will play a key role in the year-long planning process.
The MDP promises to offer a fresh approach to training development specialists. The curriculum will train development practitioners who are generalists by offering a multidisciplinary array of courses. The academic training will be complemented by two extended practicum experiences undertaken in collaboration with a wide range of institutional partners working developing countries.
This is a significant acknowledgement that development problems are embedded in complex social, economic and political systems and a wide range of professionals working in this field must have the expertise to see and understand the complexity. This approach will also give graduate students hands-on experience with development practice.
I anticipate a lot of good will come from the MDP: a cadre of development professionals who are trained to see and grapple with multi-dimensional problems; new kinds of relations between academics and development organizations that will foster a growing emphasis on development research and new ways to make academic research more accessible and useful to development practitioners; and perhaps most importantly, a deeper appreciation for local expertise and knowledge within developing countries.
Much will depend on the planning process that will commence in the new academic year. But this could be the beginning of a new kind of engagement for higher education and development. My hopes are high.
For more information on the MDP see http://www.graduateschool.emory.edu/about/special.php?entity_id=131
Director, Institute for Developing Nations,
Emory University
