Master's Programme in Development Management

Study programme code MASTDEVM

ECTS credits 120

Admission requirements Entering students will need to have at least a bachelor's degree in a social science discipline, with at least an 80 ECTS concentration in a relevant major area, or a two-year integrated specialization. Relevant fields of specialisation are business and public administration, other areas of management or development studies, geography and other fields of social science, such as political science, sociology, or anthropology. In addition, applicants need to have a strong command of the English language, oral and written. They must be familiar with the use of PCs and Internet communication. Students who do not have the necessary experience with Information and Communication Technology tools (ICT-tools), and who are otherwise qualified, may take an up-date preparatory course in the use of the computer.

Recommended previous knowledge Preferably students should have relevant working experience, e.g. within administration, management, teaching, research or relevant project work.

General description and profile of the programme The Development Management Programme is primarily concerned with development, and with facilitators and obstacles to development, whether these are environmental or social, economic or political. On a global level, several interacting factors have led to increased pressure on the environment, such as population growth; over-exploitation and mismanagement of natural resources and environmental pollution. This also means discussing how some countries have progressed to a very high level of income without having strong resource endowments, how other countries have been able to develop by making effective use of their natural resources, how some countries have been able to propel periods of strong growth by excessively exploiting their resource base, and how some countries seem to be prone to "cleptocratic" and dictatorial rule - amazing riches to the few and poverty to the many. The objective of the study programme is to familiarize students with theories and findings concerning development, and to offer managerial tools to practical problems. Solutions to problems need to be sought from at variety of disciplines, including economics and the functional areas of management, political science, sociology, anthropology, and geography. A wide variety of institutional contexts need to be considered, including local and international private business, non-government organizations, central and local governments, international and national regulatory and donor institutions.

Specific arrangements for recognition of prior learning (formal, non-formal and informal) Arrangements for the recognition of prior learning are described in the information on the institution under "General arrangements for the recognition of prior learning (formal, informal and non-formal)".

Examination regulations and grading For a description of the examination regulations, see the Examination Regulations of the University of Agder.

For information about the Norwegian grading system, see ECTS credits and grades. Specific information on grading for each course is found in the individual course descriptions.

Graduation requirements The Examination Regulations of the University of Agder regulate the graduation requirements for each programme of study.

Learning outcomes At the completion of the Master programme in Development Management, the students will: have knowledge of major theories and findings concerning sustainable development have developed a critical attitude to mainstream theories and findings concerning environment and development issues. have developed an understanding on to which degree and under what circumstances environmental factors affect development, and vice versa. have acquired managerial skills necessary for improving the development process be able to use management and planning methods as tools for sustainable development recognize and see linkages and synergies between environment, development and management. be able to to seek solutions to development challenges from an interdisciplinary perspective, combining knowledge from a variety of fields, including management, economics, political science, sociology, anthropology, and geography. be able to write an academic paper be able to use research methodology

Teaching methods The Master's Programme is innovative in its linking of education and research on sustainable development with new information technologies, with a particular emphasis on on-line learning (e-learning pedagogy). Most of the teaching, instruction, tuition and supervision will take place on the Internet through the Fronter Learning Management System. As the pedagogy has a learner focused, socio-constructivist pedagogical approach with many-to-many communication, group work, group hand-ins, discussions and joint assignments are important. Each student is expected to participate actively, taking his or her share of responsibility for own learning as well as taking part in the development of an optimal learning environment. The beginning of the first semester starts with a face-to-face session of 2-3 weeks where students, professors and tutors will meet. The first face-to-face meeting will be at Agder University College in August. The idea of the first face-to-face session is to get to know each other, have a brief introduction to learning resources, computer technology and applied pedagogics. The second face-to-face session will take place at the end of May / beginning of June (4 weeks), second semester, at one of our partner institutions. NB! Please note that face-to-face sessions are compulsory. Literature and tuition is in English.

Assessment methods Assessment is based on portfolio, term papers, home exams, fieldwork and thesis. A study guide and calendar for each course will provide more detailed information at the beginning of the semester.

Student exchange Student exchange is not feasible in this programme.

Requirements for continuing in the study programme Students will need to have passing grades in ME-505 and UT-504 before submitting the master's thesis.

Occupational profiles of graduates and access to further studies A serious constraint in many poor countries is the lack of managerial competence. Such competence is needed for the development and implementation of policies and practical solutions to social, economic, and environmental challenges. It is clearly recognised both by national and international institutions that there is a need to increase the competence and capacity that can contribute to a positive development process. The programme seeks to recruit students who are interested in working with development programmes internationally or in their home country. Applicants should have an interest in seeking careers in NGOs and national and international institutions, or in special "development" roles of public service or business administration. The master programme may qualify for admittance to relevant doctoral programmes.

Qualification awarded Successful completion of the programme awards the degree of Master in Development Management

Other information The master's programme in Development Management is part of the Norad's Programme for Master Studies (NOMA) 2006 - 2010. The master's programme is run in collaboration with the UNU network, under the over-all auspices of the United Nations University in Tokyo and is implemented by a network of universities from the South and the North. University of Agder's (UiA) main partner in the programme is the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. The other partners are universities in Africa: Mzumbe University in Tanzania, Mekelle University in Ethiopia, Makerere University in Uganda and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. The master´s thesis Half of the third semester (15 ECTS) and the whole of the fourth semester (30 ECTS) will be fully devoted to the writing of a master's thesis - building upon coursework and personal experiences, and focusing on problems and issues of high interest to the individual student and the societies and institutions they represent. Students are encouraged to do fieldwork (collect her/his own data from the field, most often in some combination with data from literature sources) in connection with the master's thesis. We will encourage Norwegian students to do fieldwork in a developing country as we consider this experience to be of particular value for research on environment and development issues. Students from partner universities in Sri Lanka and Africa will do fieldwork in their own country. Co-operation is a fundamental idea for the entire Development Management programme, also for the thesis work.

Contact person Arne Olav Øyhus