Curriculum
Curriculum
The program consists of four semesters, with mobility between universities in the first three semesters and a research stay or internship in the fourth. To ensure the internal coherency of the program, the curriculum is fixed for the first three semesters. The first semester at Palacky University (Czech Republic) provides a balanced overview of development issues from various disciplinary perspectives. The second semester at the University Clermont Auvergne (France) gives students a solid quantitative and economic background and prepares them for development-oriented courses in the third semester at the University of Pavia (Italy). In the fourth semester, the students conduct their research or internship and write their thesis.
Each university offers orientation week/days and also language courses (Czech, French, Italian) to help the students to integrate into daily life in the respective countries. Career days are an integral part of the curricula in each semester. Students receive advice on their professional portfolio and have an opportunity to meet potential employers.
1st semester – Palacky University (Olomouc, Czech Republic) – September – January in the 1st academic year
Development Geography | 6 ECTS
The aim of the course is to provide students with an overview of geographical, socio-economical, political and environmental issues related to development in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The course analyses specific development opportunities and challenges in these regions.
Economics of Development | 6 ECTS
The aim of this course is to analyze development issues from an economic perspective, including the role of national and international policies. The course focuses on the following topics: concept and measurement of development, poverty and inequality, human resources, economic structure and trade, finance for development.
Development Theories and Political Processes | 6 ECTS
The first part of the course critically analyzes various development theories that evolved over time (classical and neoliberal theories, structuralism, neo-Marxism and post-development). In the second part, the course discusses internal political processes in developing countries, such as political regimes, democracy, good governance and failed states.
Development Challenges | 2 ECTS
This course is designed for hosting external lecturers.
Environmental Challenges | 4 ECTS
The course Environmental Challenges provides an understanding of the relations between environment and society in developing countries, and the political dimension of local and global environmental change. The course emphasizes environmental protection in developing countries and related issues. The course bridges knowledge from environmental studies and environmental geography.
Research Methods in Development | 6 ECTS
This course provides an introduction to quantitative and qualitative research methods applicable to development issues. The course focuses on theory, philosophy, and the ethics of science and research in developing countries as well as on practical application of research methods.
2nd semester – University Clermont Auvergne (Clermont-Ferrand, France) – February – June in the 1st academic year
Economic Theory and Policy | 8 ECTS
The module Economic Theory and Policy consists of three courses. Financing for Development covers public and private funding available for development. Macroeconomics and Growth presents the stylised facts of economic growth. Political Economy and Policy Reform covers political constraints of reforms.
Economics of Development II | 7 ECTS
The module Economics of Development II consists of three courses. Microeconomics covers the fundamentals of microeconomics related to development issues such as rural households, with a focus on impact analysis. Poverty and Development deals with issues related to the definition and measurement of poverty, and highlights poverty changes in the developing world during the last decade. Seminars will cover selected development topics based on case studies.
Sustainable Development | 7 ECTS
The module Sustainable Development consists of two courses. Economic Analysis of Sustainable Development aims to give the students a better understanding of the sustainable development concept through the lens of an economist. Seminars will cover case studies such as the role of sovereign funds and global public goods.
Quantitative Methods | 8 ECTS
The module Quantitative Methods consists of three courses. Econometrics covers introductory econometrics, it focuses on core estimation techniques (OLS, instrumental variables estimators) and on the main econometric tests (normality, homoscedasticity, weak instruments etc.). Survey Techniques provides students with both theoretical underpinnings and practical knowledge to build their own sampling methods in order to implement surveys in developing countries. GIS course aims to analyze and present geo-referenced data which is increasingly used in the assessment of development policies.
3rd semester – University of Pavia (Pavia, Italy) – September – January in the 2nd academic year
Health Economics | 6 ECTS
The course provides an analysis of the fundamental issues in Health Economics, from a theoretical and practical view. The objectives of this course are: to develop an understanding of the link between health and human and sustainable development; to analyze the main health challenges in the developing countries; to understand the relevance of economic and social factors in the healthcare sector and in the development of public policy, with a specific focus on management of public healthcare institutions, health technology assessment and monitoring and evaluation of health projects. Seminars from practitioners will offer first-hand experience and an introduction to health projects.
Economics of Cooperation and Development | 9 ECTS
The course offers students the opportunity to get acquainted with the fundamental features of international cooperation for development. The course is divided in two main parts. The first part presents the major actors in international cooperation and the significant policies which have been achieved over the last thirty years. The second part examines the general theme of financing for development with a specific focus on recurring financial crises and the issue of sustainability of foreign financing.
Food Economics and Agricultural Development | 6 ECTS
The course focuses on developing countries and aims to describe the main features of food security and food security policies in the current context, and to understand the role of agricultural development. The specific focus is on food security, agriculture, and climate change.
Project Cycle Management | 3 ECTS
The main objective of the course is to familiarize the students with the conceptual and practical dimensions of project cycle management (PCM) and to provide the students with the essential skills to formulate a project proposal in accordance with internationally recognized standards, highlighting the conceptual and practical interrelations between the different PCM components.
Quantitative Policy Analysis for Development | 6 ECTS
The course offers an introduction to the quantitative methods commonly used in policy analysis. It introduces solutions to policy development problems through analytical techniques and practical tools appropriate to professional work. Students also learn how conclusions may be drawn from such analyses. Appropriate software such as GAMS, GITAP and Excel are used.
4th semester – Internship/Research stay – February – June in the 2nd academic year
The fourth semester is dedicated to an obligatory internship or research stay. The students may spend their research stay at one of the Consortium Institutions or at the academic associates. Internship stays may be carried out at non-academic associates. The thesis (30 ECTS) will be the outcome of the internship/research stay.
The study materials for the courses are placed at GLODEPnet.
Updated: 13.11.2017
