MSc Research for International Development
London, United Kingdom
DURATION
1 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 25,320 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for overseas student fees | home student fees: GBP 12,220 per year
Introduction
The MSc Research for International Development is a cutting-edge degree funded and supported by the UK’s ESRC (The Economic and Social Research Council).
The programme equips you with the theoretical background and analytical skills to inquire into the relationship between theory, research methods and politics in international development. Our academic staff provide students with knowledge about the plurality of methodological approaches in key areas of international development research, and the policy choices and strategies associated with these. The module offers students the opportunity to engage with a selection of methods used in international development research.
Why study MSc Research for International Development at SOAS?
- We are ranked 3rd in the world for Development Studies (QS World University Rankings 2024)
- 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. This year MSc students were offered placements in the International Organisation for Migration, the London International Development Centre and international NGOs
- Get a placement in a partner organisation working in international development with our International Development Placement module - (virtual delivery)
- 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.
Ideal Students
Who Should Apply
The degree has been developed to meet the needs of both development practitioners and researchers on international development, including those wishing to pursue an MPhil/PhD in International Development. The programme will suit students with a variety of backgrounds in social sciences, including politics, sociology, economics, and so on. It would also meet the needs of people working, or hoping to work in international agencies, humanitarian organisations, and NGOs. Students with a strong interest in research and research methods will thrive on the MSc's distinctive focus on training in research methods.
Admissions
Curriculum
Students must take 180 credits per year comprised of 120 taught credits (including core, compulsory and optional modules) and a 60-credit dissertation.
Open modules: Students can choose up to 30 credits from other Departments as open options.
Core
- Dissertation in Research Methods for International Development
Compulsory
- Fundamentals of Research Methods for Development Studies
- Evaluation Methods in International Development
Guided Options
Students must choose from the guided options list:
- Civil Society, Social Movements and the Development Process
- Gender and Development
- Development Practice
- Issues in Forced Migration
- Fundamentals of Research Methods for Development Studies
- War to Peace Transitions
- Security
- Borders and Development
- Aid and Development
- Migration and Policy
- Labour, Activism and Global Development
- Energy Transition, Nature, and Development in a Time of Climate Change
- Environment, Governance and Development
- Global Health and Development
- Cities and Development
- Feminist Political Economy and Global Development
- Global Approaches to Peace
- Structural Change and Economic Development in Africa
- Macroeconomics
- Microeconomics
- Political Economy of Development and Change in the Middle East
- Economic Development in the Asia Pacific Region
- Financial Systems and Economic Development
- Economics of Environment and Development
- Global Economic Policy Analysis
- China and World Development
- Green Finance
- Principles of Statistics and Econometrics with R Coding
- Economic Development of Africa (PG)
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
A degree from the Department of Development Studies at SOAS will further develop your understanding of the world and how society is organised, with a 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.
Recent Department of Development Studies graduates have been hired by:
- Amnesty International
- BBC World Service
- British Embassy Brussels
- Department for International Development
- Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)
- Embassy of Japan
- Government of Pakistan
- Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
- International Labour Organization (ILO)
- KPMG LLP
- Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
- National Health and Medical Research Council
- Overseas Development Institute
- Oxfam
- Royal Norwegian Embassy
- Save the Children UK
- The World Bank
- Thinking Beyond Borders
- US Department of State
- UN World Food Programme
- UN High Commissioner for Refugees
- WaterAid
Program Leaders
Program delivery
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 weekly guided reading and discussions, as well as conventional lecturing.