Compulsory Courses
2440601 Development Theory and Practice
Survey of social science theories relevant for understanding development problems in different historical and geographical contexts particularly in East Asia, the theoretical and methodological concerns of the “interlocking problem” between theory and practice in development, and the positive contributions of East Asian experience in illuminating the specificity of Euro-centric and positivist development; understanding the thought behind existing development strategies and approaches, liberalism, Marxism, postmodernism, and alternative development ideas.
2440602 Globalization and Development in the Asia and Pacific
Examination of globalization, its socio-economic consequences, and their implications for state power and governance; focusing on the relationship between politics and economy and the interplay of domestic societies and transnational and international forces, opportunities and tensions arising from increasing cross-border transactions and spillovers, differences within and among countries, the autonomy of governments, the changing function of the state, and international governance based on the principle of nation-state sovereignty; analysis of globalization and limits to politics, and impacts on the nature of governance.
2440603 The Politics of Public Policy
Key concepts of public policy and the structure and dynamics of public policy processes; analysis of cases drawn from various policy areas of development using a number of analytic approaches to critically discuss the process of formulation, implementation, and evaluation; understanding political dimensions and multiple roles of various actors in the policy process; the role of non-state actors, collective actions of social and political movements, interest and pressure groups, civil society organizations, and people’s participation in political and social change.
2440604 Research Methods in Development Studies
Research methods and techniques, both quantitative and qualitative, currently used and abused in development studies; inferential statistical techniques, social surveys, participant observation, interviewing, and the analysis of documents and census and historical data; examining the process of defining researchable development problems, and analyzing when, where, and why certain quantitative and qualitative methods may be appropriate for exploring particular substantive research problems; enabling students to conduct their own research projects as well as to evaluate the quality of research reports and findings by others from a methodological point of view.
2440811 Thesis: 12 Credits Total
Elective Courses
2440607 Development Project Management(Trimester 1)
Focus on adaptive and learning processes for translating development theory to practice; principles and techniques of management, budgeting, finance, and planning; finding problems and defining objectives of development projects, including feasibility studies, assessment of social and environmental impacts, and development project evaluation.
2440608 Environmental Politics and Policy (Trimister 1)
Environmental policy as a complex and constantly evolving area of public policy; examining major concepts used to define contemporary environmental policy with the aim to understand developments in this field at the regional, national, and international levels; focusing on how these concepts apply to certain environmental issues with particular attention to the political dimension of environmental policy formulation and implementation; developing the analytical skills needed to deal with a wide range of policy situations concerning the environment.
2440609 Human Rights and Gender Problems in the Asia and Pacific ( Trimister 1)
Application of theories of gender and human rights to contemporary ethical and social issues arising from “development”; exploring specific and controversial topics in the areas of poverty, social justice, individual and group rights, administration of justice, living standards, work, bio-ethics and genetics, environment, sexual and racial equality, child labour, mental health, illness, human and social security, energy, corruption, Asian values, and cultural diversity; linking these specific and practical areas into gender and human rights questions relevant to the experiences of East and Southeast Asia.
2440623 Disaster and Crisis Management (Trimester 1)
Understanding disaster and its complexity; conventional disaster (floods, tsunamis, earthquakes), emerging threats (climate change-related, infectious disease) and new types of contingencies; Analyzing threats and involving agencies in order to manage crisis before, during and after disaster.
2440229 Human Resource Development for Global Impact (trimester 1)
Needs analysis for human resources, an organization, and its cultures; sustainable management of changes; strategies for developing human resources; learning design; learning assessment, in the context of development and international development studies.
2440606 Conflict Resolution (trimester 2)
Understanding conflicts from the post-cold war period to today’s increasingly globalized society, focusing particularly on conflicts between the state and the people in the development process; analysis of conflicts as an important step to resolution including evaluation of root causes, dynamics, impacts and consequences of conflicts; the relationship between development and conflicts will be examined with an emphasis on the role of globalization in shaping the nature of conflicts and resolutions; observation of the use of violence in conflict processes and exploration of various possibilities of non-violent approaches to conflict resolution, including mediation, negotiation, and mechanisms in democratic decision-making processes.
2440610 Migration as a Development Issue (trimester 2)
Critical framework of economic and sociological approaches to international migration policies; the nature of flows and patterns of population movements in the region and major types of mobility, as well as policy issues in international migration and their implications for regional economic, social and political stability and development.
2440615 Development Practicum (trimester 2)
An opportunity for practical application of previously studied development theories, conceptual frameworks and methodologies, including problem analysis and needs assessment, project development and innovation, assessment and evaluation, and problem solving activities; working with development organizations for a short period of time on a mutually agreed subject.
2440617 Innovation for Inclusive Development in Southeast Asia (trimester 2)
New ways of thinking about poverty and its alleviation in Southeast Asia; principles, policy planning, technology and innovative methods for inclusive development; work collaboration between students and organizations as guidelines for effective solution to problems related to poverty.
2440625 Digital Technology and Development (trimester 2)
In a new era of digitalization, it is crucial to understand the relationship between digital technology development, human development, and sustainable development. Digital technology, consisting of digital networks, big data, cloud computing, and IoT, significantly and continuously shapes our economy and society. Policymakers believe that digitalization will create new industries and jobs, increase productivity, provide new paths to markets, enhance government services, and improve people's well-being. However, some issues caused by digitalization emerge, such as digital literacy, inclusiveness, the impact on vulnerable groups, interoperability, data security, and AI fairness. In this course, students will examine the development of digital technology, analyze development policy in relation to digitization, and explore the benefits and challenges of the policy and its practices with different approaches at local, national, and international levels. The course will be conducted through lectures, discussions, in-class activities, and a domestic field visit.
**The following courses will not be opened in the 2025-26 academic year.
2440605 Democratization, Communication and Development
Focusing on the role of communication in the political and developmental process of modern democracies, and especially on the way that political and community leaders and ordinary citizens interact within the realm of networked communications; Shows how technological and regulatory changes altered the stakes for key groups concerned with democracy and development and how these groups have adjusted to these changes.
2440611 Selected Topics in Development and Economy
Exploring selected issues in economic management in developing countries; experience from one or more countries used as case studies; economic reforms, structural adjustment, hunger and famine, etc.; political aspects of economic policy formulation and implementation.
2440613 Individual Studies
2440614 Seminar in Development Problems
An in-depth examination into specific development issues based on students’ research interests
2440616 Critical Issues in Development Studies
Contemporary fundamental development problems as well as new emerging social phenomena: intellectual property rights, debt crisis, poverty, development assistance, bio-diversity, and new forms of risk societies.
2440618 Urban Development and Water Resource Management
Main characteristics of various issues and dimension of the effects of urban development and water resource management; the link between the urban and water systems during the time of speedy urban development and changes world, effective guidelines of collaborating with communications for solutions to the problems.
2440619 Conceptualizing Human Security
Conceptualizing Human Security: origin and development of the concept, ethical background, and linkages with other development concepts such as human development, human rights, social equality, and social welfare; different schools of thought and approaches to security including comparison with traditional security systems; human security critique and practical implications.
2440620 Seminar in Interdisciplinary Research on Human Security
Analysis of research findings in various disciplines that shape people’s security - including environment, food, health, economics, politics, and education – and that can construct knowledge on Human Security thus questioning conventional security definitions and allowing for new definitions to emerge in significant issues such as development, migration, and gender; Interdisciplinary discussion on ontology to identify research questions that can interconnect fragmented knowledge and lead to new insights on Human Security.
2440621 Food Security
Studying the issue of food security and the role of food production in development; development challenges that require interventions in areas such as tackling poverty, hunger, malnutrition and sustainable natural resource management; study of factors such as good governance, strategic food reserves, and market access that relate to accessibility, affordability, availability and sustainability of food security; case studies and policy context, in-depth analysis, simulation exercises and interactive debates on ensuring food security and mitigating risks.
2440622 Social Risk, Risk Management and Public Policy
A comprehensive understanding of social risks and social crisis and other related issues; social and cultural dimension of risks, politics of risk and actors involvement in risk management; social risk and public policy making, policy implementation, policy change and organizational change in public sector.
2240624 Selected issues in Development and Environment
Critical issues in development and environment; the relationships between ecosystem and economic systems, socio-cultural aspects of biodiversity, political dimensions of sustainable development, political dimensions of sustainable development, political ecology and green movements, and varieties of environmentalism and post-ecologist politics in the age of globalization; focusing on new theoretical directions of environmental sociology, ecological economics and philosophical discourses on ecologism and eco-postmodernism.