Global Development MSc
Skills For Development SPS5082
- Academic Session: 2026-27
- School: School of Social and Political Sciences
- Credits: 20
- Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
- Typically Offered: Semester 2
- Available to Visiting Students: Yes
- Collaborative Online International Learning: No
- Curriculum For Life: No
Short Description
This course introduces students to key skills and techniques needed to work in global development and related fields. Drawing on first-hand professional experiences in this area, the course embeds deeper questions from global development and related fields around whose voice matters in project design, what types and size of risk can be considered acceptable, and what counts as 'success'. The course is divided into two broad parts. The first addresses key stages of project design including problem analysis, tools for establishing project logics and risks, and processes for evaluation. The second part of the course focuses on skills required for effective advocacy on global development issues, and the challenges faced when engaging groups of stakeholders that are influential in this sector. Throughout the course we pay particular attention to employability skills such as communication, negotiation and reflexive learning.
Timetable
2 hours per week over 11 weeks
Excluded Courses
None
Co-requisites
None
Assessment
4,000-word group project proposal (40%)
3,000-word reflective learning log (60%)
Course Aims
The course aims to build the capacity of students to use key tools and skills and apply these to contemporary socio-economic and socio-political challenges. It responds to an industry and societal need for professionals and sector leaders who can adapt quickly to different contexts, approach problems creatively, and deploy the soft (inter-cultural and diplomacy) skills required to navigate complex situations. Through its practical orientation, and its emphasis on effective communication, teamworking and reflective learning, the course will enable students to build deeper level critical learning around specific development challenges and the innovative and context-appropriate options to address them.
Intended Learning Outcomes of Course
By the end of this course students will be able to:
1. Describe key skills and tools used in the practice of global development
2. Apply these to contemporary challenges with the reflexivity needed to work in the development sector
3. Design independent projects in teams that respond to contemporary socio-economic and socio-political challenges
4. Illustrate their ability to bring together and disseminate information in a clear and confident manner to 'non-academic' development audiences
5. Reflect critically on the process of practical skills learning and its value to global development.