International Development and Social Change Major

Core Courses (5 credits)

• ID 125 - Tales from the Far Side: Third World Development and Underdevelopment in the Age of Globalization
• ID 120 - Introduction to Socio-Cultural Anthropology OR ID 121 - Culture, Health and Development: What makes us sick?
• ECON 128 - Introduction to Economic Development (Note: ECON 010 - Economics and the World Economy or an equivalent is a prerequisite for ECON 128)
• Politics of Development (choose from a variety of electives)
• Environmental sustainability (choose from a variety of electives) 

Area of Specialization (4 credits)

IDSC majors take at least four elective courses in an area of specialization. Students may follow established specializations that relate to international development and social change (e.g., Gender, Political Economy, Peace and Conflict, Global Health, Culture, Participatory and Community-based Approaches, Environment and Sustainability, Migration and Refugees, Land, Food and Natural Resource Governance) or they may design their own area of specialization with the approval of their IDSC advisor.

Two of these courses should be taken with core IDSC faculty, and at least two should be at the 200-level.

One of the 200 level courses must be taken in the Senior Year with a core IDSC faculty member and will serve as the ‘capstone eligible seminar’. Capstone eligible seminars are noted as such at the time of course registration.

Methods (1 credit)

The required methods class, ID 132 - Research Methods for International Development and Social Change , is usually offered during the fall semester. This course will prepare you for independent research during study abroad, your capstone, and your honors thesis. Hence, students are strongly encouraged to take ID 132  before beginning these endeavors.

Note: ID 132  does not fulfill the Formal Analysis (FA) requirement.

Skills Courses (2 credits)

IDSC majors will take two skills courses in computers, statistics, GIS, cartography, conflict negotiation, service learning, a foreign language at the intermediate level and above (105 or higher), or any other skills relevant to careers in international development and social change. Students who wish to substitute language courses must complete a petition and submit it his/her adviser and the IDSC Undergraduate Program Coordinator before enrolling in a substitute course.

Internship or Field Research (1 credit)

Students may either take:

• ID 298 - Internship
• ID 299 - Directed Study

Honors Thesis (1 additional credit)

Those wishing to graduate with honors register for ID 297  with a thesis supervisor in the second semester of senior year.

*IDSC majors must earn at least a C- in core and required courses to count toward the major.

Honors

To graduate with Honors in the major and to be considered for admission into the accelerated BA/MA program in IDSC, a student must complete an original Honors Thesis on a topic of relevance to the field of international development and social change.

Eligibility

Majors who have maintained at least a 3.5 grade point average in IDSC major courses and a 3.25 overall grade point average are eligible to apply for an Honors Thesis. Admission to the Honors Thesis program does not automatically guarantee the awarding of Honors. Students must first satisfy a number of requirements:

• Identification of a faculty supervisor by March 1 of the junior year
• Application to the IDSC Honors Committee by April 15 of the junior year
• Presentation of a chapter and detailed outline of the entire thesis to the thesis supervisor at the end of fall semester of senior year
• Completion of the thesis during the spring semester of the senior year, with the approval of the thesis supervisor
• Oral defense of the completed thesis before the first and second (of which one must a core IDSC faculty member) during mid-spring semester.
• Presentation of the thesis at Academic Spree Day

The IDSC Undergraduate Coordinator and the IDSC Accelerated BA/MA Coordinator oversee the Honors program in consultation with the IDSC program faculty. Their roles are to evaluate applications to the program, coordinate procedures, and serve as a source of information to students and faculty participating in the program.

For further information on procedures and dates, please see the IDSC undergraduate handbook at: http://www.clarku.edu/departments/idce/id/ba/

The Double Major

Many students double major or major in IDSC and minor in related departments, such as Economics, Geography, Government (especially international relations), Sociology, and Women’s Studies. Up to two courses can be counted toward both majors.

International Development and Social Change Internships

Internships provide an opportunity to gain insight and experience in development through work in government or nonprofit agencies. Recently, students have had overseas internships with the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, the American Jewish World Service in El Salvador, the London Internship Program, and the World Health Organization in Geneva. Other interns have worked in the United States on national and international development issues with the Environmental Defense Fund, Grassroots International, Oxfam America, Habitat for Humanity, MassPIRG, Save the Children, Aid to Artisans, and Lutheran Community Services Refugee Program.

All International Development majors must undertake an internship for academic credit. Internships for credit must be supervised or sponsored by core ID faculty or affiliate IDCE faculty with the approval of your faculty adviser. You should register for ID 299 the semester during the internship to receive credit. If your internship is during the summer, you should register through COPACE.

Study Abroad

Many international development students have learned about development issues first-hand through Study Abroad programs, such as those in Namibia and the Dominican Republic. Students have also studied abroad on related programs at the University of East Anglia in England, with the School for Field Studies in Mexico and Costa Rica, and with the School for International Training in Nepal, Mali and Morocco. Please contact the Study Abroad office at Clark for information on study-abroad options. You should discuss your study-abroad plans in advance with your major adviser to maximize your learning experience. For more information, visit www.clarku.edu/offices/studyabroad/.