Disciplines and areas of study
International Development
Program Coordinator: Dr Wendy Mee (Sociology and Anthropology)
Since 1945, national governments, multilateral agencies (such as the United Nations, the World Bank, and USAID), and non-governmental organisations have pursued Programs of social and economic change (referred to as ‘development’ or ‘modernisation’) for people mainly in Africa, Latin America and Asia. These Programs are aimed explicitly at improving the welfare of people and relieving social problems such as poverty, disease, landlessness, economic ‘backwardness’, inequality and illiteracy. Keeping in step with the implementation of development Programs are studies about developmental issues, emanating from a range of disciplines including anthropology, economics, history, law, politics, and sociology. While some of these advocate certain developmental theories, policies and practices, several provide critical evaluations of developmental issues and programs.
The International Development Program enables students to become familiar with and acquire an understanding of the various developmental issues covered in several selected subjects (listed below) offered from a range of disciplines across the university. Issues assessed in the various subjects include development and underdevelopment, imperialism, dependency, the emergence of newly industrialising countries (particularly in East Asia), gender and development, global environmental problems and development practice.
Programs of study
Students may take a sub-major in international development as part of their Bachelor of Arts degree, structured according to the following requirements. The sub-major of 110 credit points should include:
- at least 30 credit points of first year subjects including ANT1CAG and POL1EEH,
- Students are also encouraged to take additional first year subjects from the following disciplines: economics, history, legal studies, politics, sociology or anthropology,
- at least 40 credit points of second year subjects, selected from the list of approved international development subjects including the subject, SOC2GAD,
- at least 40 credit points of third year subjects, selected from the list of approved international development subjects including the subjects ANT3MQA or SOC3MSR.
Important notice: Not all of the subjects listed below will be available every year. See the subject lists for the specific disciplines, where subjects unavailable in 2010 will be noted.
| Subject title | Subject code |
|---|---|
| First year subjects (15 credit points) | |
| Culture and Globalisation: introduction to anthropology | ANT1CAG |
| Economy, Environment and Human Rights | POL1EEH |
| Migration Stories in a Global Context | HIS1GMS |
| Monsters, Savages and Us: tales of others | HIS1MSU |
| Second- and third year subjects (20 credit points) | |
| Aborigines and the State | ANT2AAS/ANT3AAS |
| Applied Anthropology | ANT2APA/ANT3APA |
| Anthropology of Popular Culture | ANT2PCP/ANT3PCP |
| Asian-Pacific Cities | SOC2APC/SOC3APC |
| Australian Environmental History: Gondwana to global warming | HIS2AEH/HIS3AEH |
| Charting the Colonial Pacific | HIS2CCP/HIS3CCP |
| Contesting Social Policy | SOC2CSP/SOC3CSP |
| Crises in South Asia: weapons, women, well-being | POL2CSA/POL3CSA |
| Development, Globalisation and Culture | ANT2DGC/ANT3DGC |
| Displacement, Flight and Refuge | ANT2DFR/ANT3DFR |
| Gender and Development | SOC2GAD |
| Genocide and the Holocaust: Europe, Asia, Africa | HIS2GAH/HIS3GAH |
| International Law and International Organisation | POL2ILO/POL3ILO |
| International Relations: the Cold War and the great powers | POL2INR/POL3INR |
| Doing Anthropology | ANT2MQA/ANT3MQA |
| Social Research Methods | SOC3MSR |
| Living with Colonialism: resistance and accommodation | HIS2LWC/HIS3LWC |
| Native American Endurance: Indians, Hollywod and history | HIS2NAE/HIS3NAE |
| Nature, Conservation and Society: the human impact | SOC2SOE/SOC3SOE |
| Peace and Change | POL2PAC/POL3PAC |
| Political Change and Development in the Third World | POL2DDA/POL3DDA |
| Politics and the Economy | POL2PAE/POL3PAE |
| The Politics of Economic Regions | POL2PER/POL3PER |
| Politics of Non-violent Activism | POL2PNV/POL3PNV |
| Social Policy, Welfare and the State | SOC2SWS/SOC3SWS |
| South-East Asian Politics: change and conflict | POL2SEA/POL3SEA |
| The World Since 1945: historical justice in the modern world | HIS2WOR/HIS3WOR |
| Worlds of Exclusion: global social inequalities | SOC2WOE/SOC3WOE |
| Other subjects may be available, by agreement with the program coordinator. |
Honours
The faculty offers a Bachelor of Arts with honours in international development for students who have completed a Bachelor of Arts. Students who intend to undertake honours in international development are normally expected to have completed an international development sub-major with a B average at third year level. Interested students who do not satisfy these requirements are encouraged to consult the Chair of the International Development Committee.
Students enrolled in the pass degree who hope to proceed to honours should contact the chair of the committee as early as possible in their course.
The course consists of a research thesis of 12,000 to 15,000 words, together with two fourth year subjects from different disciplines, determined in negotiation with the lecturers in charge and the Chair of the International Development Committee.