BA Global Development and...
| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2023-10-10 | - |
| 2024-01-16 | - |
| 2024-04-24 | - |
Program Overview
Have you got a passion for addressing the major issues and challenges facing today’s global community?
This stimulating programme examines key topics in international development, while analysing the roles and impact of a wide variety of regional and international actors. By the time you graduate, you will have cultivated a deep knowledge of the causes of and responses to poverty, marginalisation and vulnerability in developing countries and the process of dramatic social, economic and political change.
Additionally, the nature of the Combined Honours degree enables you to develop a specialist pathway for yourself by studying a second subject.
Why study Global Development Combined Honours at SOAS?
We are ranked 2nd in the world for Development Studies (QS World University Rankings 2023).
You will have the opportunity to take work placements as part of your degree, and we offer internships in the department and in partner organisations.
Get placed in a development organisation with our exclusive
Professional Placement
module - available to final year Development Studies studentsOur academic staff create an intellectually stimulating and challenging space across the many branches of international development and humanitarianism that make up Development Studies. All modules engage with questions of climate crisis, recognising its impact and interaction with processes of inequality and change.
Our staff specialise in a range of thematic areas including sustainability and climate change, migration and displacement, conflict, humanitarian action, labour, political ecology, and aid and institutions.
Combined with exceptional resources and our interdisciplinary approach, we offer a unique learning and research opportunity for our diverse and vibrant student community.
Program Outline
Students take
120 credits per year
composed of Core, Compulsory and Optional modules.
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.
Year 1
Core modules
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Introduction to Global Development |
30 |
Compulsory modules
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Introduction to Political Economy of Development |
30 |
Students also take
60 credits
from second subjectYear 2
Compulsory modules
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Development from Below |
30 |
Guided options
Students take 30 credits of Y2 guided options,
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
The Working Poor and Labour |
15 |
|
Key Development Thinkers |
30 |
|
Political economy of finance, debt and development |
15 |
|
Development and conflict |
15 |
|
Our Planetary Future: Environment and Development (15Cr) |
15 |
|
Politics of Development |
15 |
|
Development Economics |
15 |
|
251 Anthropology of Economic Life |
15 |
Students also take 60 credits from second subject.
Year 3
Compulsory modules
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Making Change Happen |
30 |
Guided options
Students take 15 credits of Y3 guided options from the list below (availability may vary):
| Module | Credits |
|---|---|
|
Independent study project in Development Studies |
30 |
|
BA Professional Placement |
30 |
|
Issues in Gender and Development |
15 |
|
Global Forced Migration |
15 |
|
Issues in Borders and Development |
15 |
|
Issues in Cities and Development |
15 |
|
Political economy of finance, debt and development |
15 |
|
China and World Development |
15 |
|
Global Economic Policy |
15 |
|
Conflict, Rights and Justice |
15 |
|
351 Migration, Borders and Space: Decolonial Approaches |
15 |
|
353 Anthropology and Climate Change |
15 |
Open options
Students take open options to value of 15 credits at Level 6.
Language open options
Non-language open options
Students also take 60 credits from second subject.
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 guided reading as well as conventional lecturing. Assessment of most modules is through a combination of coursework and written examination.
The introductory and core modules provide the solid disciplinary grounding, whilst options allow students to develop deeper expertise in areas of their own interest. In their final year, students have the opportunity to complete either an Independent Study Project, an extended 10,000 word essay, supervised by one of the Department staff; or an assessed Professional Placement.
Contact hours
All full-time undergraduate programmes consist of 120 credits per year, in modules of 30 or 15 credits. They are taught over 10 or 20 weeks. 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. It will also include class time, which may include lectures, seminars and other classes. The format and length of teaching sessions varies by module. In the Department of Development Studies, most undergraduate modules have a 2-hour lecture and a 1-hour tutorial every week. A few modules, which are jointly taught with PG students, have a 1-hour lecture and a 1-hour tutorial every week.
Year abroad
If Global Development is combined with a Language in a four-year degree programme, students spend a study year abroad in their third year.
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.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.
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