COURSE CURRICULUM

The Global Development Studies program’s lower-level requirements include foundational courses such as ECON 100 or 101 (Principles of Micro- or Macroeconomics), GDS 100 (Introduction to Global Development Ideas and Practices), GDS 204 (Development in Sub-Saharan Africa), GDS 220/ANTH 220 (Globalization and Development), GDS 260 (Gender and Global Development), GEOG 260 (Global Goals Studio: Sustainable Communities by Design), and POSC 230 or 260 (Democracies and Authoritarian Regimes or International Relations and Global Politics). Students must also complete a professional communication course like CMNS 125 or ENGL 105 and select an additional course such as ANTH 202 (Ethnographic Toolkit) or GEOG 253 (Introduction to Geographic Information Systems). Upper-level requirements build on this foundation with specialized courses such as ECON 398 (Development Economics) or ECON 361/GEOG 361 (Environmental Economics), GDS 340/GEOG 340 (Geographies of Development), GDS 320 (Decolonizing Aid and Development), GDS 330 or 332 (Humanitarianism or Refugees and Development), and GDS 370 (Global Health and Development). Experiential learning options include internships like GEOG 396 or GEOG 398. Students also choose electives across a range of topics, including Indigenous studies, human rights, social movements, environmental justice, and community development, such as IPK 344, POSC 300, CRIM 335, and CMNS 360. The program culminates with GDS 400, the Global Development Seminar, integrating knowledge and critical analysis in global development issues.