MSc International Development: Public Policy and Management / Course details

MSc International Development: Public Policy and Management seeks to provide an interdisciplinary training and education that will enable policymakers, economists, planners, managers and researchers to be fully conversant with current issues of public policy and management, in an international development setting.

It will provide you with the conceptual and analytical tools needed to understand and critically review issues relevant to public policy and public sector reform.

While the course was conceived primarily for those already working in the public sector environment, it has evolved into a highly successful multidisciplinary course that is appropriate to modern professionals from a wide variety of backgrounds, who have an interest in issues of public policy.

• Develop your understanding of the different conceptual and theoretical perspectives applied to public policy and management, and public sector reform. 
• Expand upon your understanding of the principles and practices underlying the implementation of public policy processes and provide knowledge of 'real-world' examples of public policy/sector reform. 
• Learn about the role and importance of institutions for public policy and management. 
• Grow your skills and provide you with a significant cross-disciplinary (development economics, public policy, management and development studies) skill set that will enable you to critically analyse and communicate your analysis effectively. 
• Build your awareness and knowledge of a variety of global public policies and how they are implemented.  
• Develop your command of current theory, policy and practice in relation to some of the following specialist areas: public policy process and methods; public sector economics; development and economic policy; privatisation and public enterprise reform; public sector accounting and organisational change. 
• Build upon your independent research skills through a supervised dissertation research project.

• We're Europe's largest dedicated development research and teaching institute and have been at the  forefront of development studies for over 60 years .   
• We're ranked second in the UK and seventh in the world for development studies (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022).
• We bring cutting-edge insights from our research into all our postgraduate teaching. Our courses bring different development perspectives and voices to Manchester, from  activists from the Global South  to the leaders of multinational companies.   
• We are home to the internationally recognised  African Cities Research Consortium ,  Effective States and Inclusive Development  and  FutureDAMS  research centres.  
• Students are part of our vibrant research community, including our public lecture series  which brings world experts, former heads of state, and leading development thinkers, to discuss current issues in development.

Part-time students 

Part-time students complete the course over 24 months. 

There are no evening or weekend course units available; you should, therefore, discuss course requirements with the Programme Director and seek approval from your employer. 

Timetabling information is usually available from late August. 

You can discuss course unit choices during induction week with the Programme Director.

Important notice  

The School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED) recognises the value of fieldwork. However, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff remains our priority. The School will assess on a regular basis the viability of any travel and fieldwork and communicate any significant changes to our students at the earliest possible opportunity. 

The ability of fieldwork and travel to proceed, and whether any changes to proposed fieldwork and travel might be necessary, will remain subject to factors such as the: 

• rules and guidance on travel and activities implemented and published by the UK and overseas governments; 
• outcome of any risk assessments conducted by the University; 
• educational value and student experience of the fieldwork, if significant changes to the proposed fieldwork would be necessary; 
• availability of appropriate insurance cover; 
• availability of appropriate travel and accommodation and any significant changes to their financial costs.

All fieldwork and travel will be subject to a rigorous risk assessment process and the implementation of any protective measures identified by the risk assessment to ensure the health and safety of all our students and staff. 

In some circumstances, it may become necessary to make changes to fieldwork or programme related travel. The University will notify you of those changes at the earliest opportunity. If any fieldwork does not go ahead as planned, then the School's focus will be on seeking to offer a suitable alternative and ensure that the Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) of the programme are met.

Please note that countries may change their immigration and visa regulations at short notice. The School cannot guarantee that where visas are required for fieldwork, they will be granted but we will take steps so that if a visa is refused, affected students are not academically disadvantaged.

The taught elements of the course, carrying 120 credits overall, is continuously assessed by a variety of methods (e.g., project-based reports, essays), involving largely individual submissions, but also elements of group work.

You must also complete a 12,000-15,000-word dissertation on a topic of your choice approved by the Programme Directors.

You are encouraged to base your dissertation on topics of direct professional concern.

Find out how our students feel about studying at The University of Manchester by visiting Student Spotlights .