Grad School for International Development

[piquant777]

Throughout a couple of application seasons now, I have asked and been asked many questions about going to graduate school for people in the field of international development. The range of choices is so wide (MPA? MIA? MPA-ID? PhD? MBA? JD? MPH?) and the application process can be quite opaque. Now that I've finally finished my first year (at Princeton WWS), I thought I'd write up a quick FAQ for posterity's sake and pass it along to those still thinking about the process. Feel free to share/comment.

 

http://beccazsky.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/graduate-school-for-international-development/

[NGP]

You should include Harvard GSD's MUP program and MIT DUSP's MCP program.  Both of them deal a lot with international development.

[Pinkman]

Also should include the GPED at Vanderbilt..

Edited May 31, 2013 by Pinkman

[piquant777]

Thanks for the thoughts! It wasn't meant to be comprehensive obviously, and is definitely east-coast biased as that was my geographical focus when I applied. Feel free to comment though so others can have additional suggestions when they read.

 

I don't consider UP to be specifically a development degree as it is a specialty degree, and covers both domestic and international. Same with MPH, masters in education/teaching, and other things that can be done internationally but aren't international development programs per se. 

[NGP]

True, but there are international development specializations within both programs.

[Eclectic4]

MPA-Development Practice at Columbia SIPA. I'm currently entering my second year. Very focused on practical skills. Amazing professors, colleagues, and connections. Being connected to and within the greater SIPA community, I can take so many different amazing classes. And, the amount of doors open to you both at Columbia and in New York City are really key.

 

It is roughly comparable to the MPA-ID at Harvard but perhaps a tad bit more practical.