Program Overview

The International Development (ID) Program has been an active department in the School of International Service (SIS) at American University since 1975. Currently two Master's degrees are available through the ID Program - a multi-disciplinary degree in International Development (M.A.I.D.) and a program focusing specifically on Development Management (M.S.D.M.). The ID Program also supports the Ph.D. degree in International Studies offered by SIS through a Ph.D. level field in International Development. Approximately 100 graduate-level students are in residence in the ID Program; the ID Program also supports several other graduate degree programs on campus, including applied anthropology, economics, international communication, international education, international affairs, public administration, comparative politics, and sociology.

Both the MAID and MSDM degrees combine theory and practice, are anchored by a required multidisciplinary core, and give students the opportunity to select a particular focus of concentration. The approach of the ID Program in general is multidisciplinary, combining both micro and macro-level analysis that links theory with practical skills, and research with action to provide training in implementation skills as well as critical analysis. Students are able to choose from a variety of different concentrations, based on a core program that emphasizes the following:

• General understanding of the major contending theories and approaches to international development, their basic assumptions, and their relationship to present development-related policies in both rich and poor nations.
• Analysis of the major development related institutions at the international, national, and local levels, the impact of this institutional environment upon development policy choices, and ways in which individuals can become effectively involved both at home and abroad.
• Development of skills of critical analysis, active listening, and effective monitoring and implementation to enable students to dissect and evaluate present theories, policies and programs, as well as prepare and carry out alternative approaches.
• Critical evaluation of current international development issues and problems, such as debt, sustainability, women in development, hunger, and conflict, with particular attention to the implications and dilemmas for the politically and economically disenfranchised.

TheMaster of Arts in International Development (MAID) course overview is available here. A portable document format (PDF) of the MAID Advisement Sheet (which shows a breakdown of credit requirements) is available here.

TheMaster of Science in Development Management (MSDM) course overview is available here. A portable document format (PDF) of the MSDM Advisement Sheet (which shows a breakdown of credit requirements) is available here.

Undergraduate Study

Presently there is no formal program of undergraduate study, but individual courses are available.

Special Opportunities

Skills Institutes The International Development Program is actively involved in professional training, both on and off-campus. For the past ten years, it has offered a series of international development Skill Institutes which provide both degree students and outsiders intensive short-term training in particular development techniques.

Tinker-Walker Travel Fellowship Named in honor of Drs. Irene Tinker and Millidge Walker, the International Development Program offers travel fellowships for the purpose of assisting students involved in SRP or Thesis Research, Practicum, or Internship.

Steve Arnold Innovative Small Grant Named after the founder and first Director of the International Development program, students have the opportunity to apply for these grants. They are for innovative, helpful development ideas that may be useful to a community, an organization, and/or the ID program, or serve as catalysts or provide leverage for other undertakings.

Opportunities in Washington, DC The program makes extensive use of its Washington, D.C. location which is one of the key world centers of international development activity. Not only is Washington the central source of key documents and data, but it also serves as the home base for thousands of international development professionals working in both large and small organizations. The ID Program relies on Washington for most of its adjunct faculty, and its intern program is established to help students learn about the policy making process and network with Washington-based organizations. The wide variety of libraries, as well as policy-makers and development experts available in the area serve as important sources of information.