BSc Global Development / Course details

Year of entry: 2024

Course description

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BSc Global Development Animation 2023

The Global Development Institute addresses global inequalities through world-class, interdisciplinary research, and teaching, in order to promote a socially-just world in which all people, including future generations, can enjoy a decent life. Made up of over 70 academics and around 700 students from around 40 countries, the Global Development Institute is one of the largest and most diverse providers of development studies in Europe, making it the perfect home for this brand-new undergraduate course for entry 2023.

BSc Global Development focuses on the social, economic and environmental challenges faced by the Global South, i.e. the ‘developing world’ in Asia, Africa and Latin America. However, the challenges facing peoples, businesses and governments in the Global South cannot be understood without exploring connections with the developed world in the Global North. Today’s challenges – such as climate change, inequality, and social justice – cut across global boundaries and require a global perspective. You will learn how to analyse these issues using different approaches, as the course emphasises insights from a range of interconnected disciplines, particularly geography, politics and economics. 

Special features

Longstanding history

From being a small training unit on the edge of the University, the Global Development Institute now leads one of its major research beacons on global inequalities. With a culmination of impressive history of development studies at Manchester which has spanned over more than 60 years, we have educated more than 10,000 students from across the world who now help drive forward sustainable development and social justice for all.

Watch this video to learn more about our history.

Multiculturalism

The Global Development Institute is one of the largest and most diverse providers of development studies in Europe with around 700 students and over 70 academics from around 40 countries, making it the perfect home for this brand-new undergraduate course for entry 2023.

Global reputation

Ranked 7th in the world for development studies (QS 2022), the Global Development Institute has an outstanding reputation across the globe, meaning that a degree from Manchester will set you up for a bright future within the field of development studies.

Research-informed teaching

The Global Development Institute has recently been awarded for its research impact and quality, with 85% of our research outputs judged as either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’ (Research Excellence Framework 2021), meaning that you will be taught by world-leading experts in their fields.

Teaching and learning

You will learn through traditional and participatory methods including: 

  • lectures and seminars; 
  • small-group learning; 
  • individual tutorials; 
  • self-study materials; 
  • group collaboration and team work.

Coursework and assessment

You will be assessed through methods including:

  • essays;
  • team projects;
  • coursework;
  • presentations;
  • dissertation.

Course content for year 1

In your first year, you will learn how insights from different disciplines can be combined to help us understand global development challenges, and how understandings of development have evolved over time. While the course units draw on Western thought, there is also time to study contributions from non-Western writers and cultures. 

Course units for year 1

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Skills for Global Development Studies 1 (Qualitative Methods) MGDI10001 20 Mandatory
Current Issues in Global Development 1 MGDI10011 20 Mandatory
Skills for Global Development Studies 2 (Quantitative Methods) MGDI10032 20 Mandatory
Current Issues in Global Development 2 MGDI10042 20 Mandatory
Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Global Development MGDI10052 20 Mandatory

Course content for year 2

In the second year, you will have the opportunity to specialise based on your interests, for example focusing on environmental, political or economic challenges. There will also be the opportunity to take courses from the University’s Humanitarian and Conflict Research Institute, learning more about how communities and organisations respond to natural disasters and violent conflicts. If you prefer, you can keep your options open and continue without choosing a specialism.

Course units for year 2

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Sustainable Global Development MGDI20061 20 Mandatory
Political Economy of Globalisation MGDI20072 20 Mandatory
Climate Change: Science and Society GEOG20091 20 Optional
Everyday Peace Building and Security HCRI20001 20 Optional
Disasters and Development HCRI20011 20 Optional
Rethinking Crisis HCRI20022 20 Optional
Introduction to Global Health HCRI20321 20 Optional
Urban Development in the Global South MGDI20232 20 Optional
Public Economics for the Global South MGDI20242 20 Optional
Intermediate Statistical Methods MGDI20251 20 Optional
Development Microeconomics MGDI20262 20 Optional
Development Macroeconomics MGDI20271 20 Optional
The State and the Political Economy of Development MGDI20281 20 Optional
Climate Change and Biodiversity in a Developing World MGDI20292 20 Optional
Displaying 10 of 14 course units for year 2

Course content for year 3

In your third year, you will have the opportunity to study abroad. You will be able to adapt practical skills to a new academic environment and enhance your knowledge of diverse world views and global development issues.

Through an international study year you'll be able to enhance your employability by developing an international network of contacts, demonstrate cross-cultural communication skills, cultural awareness, and, depending on the destination, enhanced linguistic abilities.

Course units for year 3

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Global Development Dissertation MGDI30000 40 Mandatory
Systemic Approaches to Disaster Management HCRI30222 20 Optional
A Different Sort of Humanitarianism HCRI30612 20 Optional
Building Nations: nations, nationalism and post-conflict reconstruction HCRI30622 20 Optional
Disaster Mobilities of Climate Change HCRI30632 20 Optional
Young people in conflicts and displacement (20th-21st centuries) HCRI30641 20 Optional
Conceptualising the Camp HCRI30652 20 Optional
Sustainability in Action MGDI30301 20 Optional
Global Value Chains and Development MGDI30401 20 Optional
Health Economics in the Global South MGDI30501 20 Optional
Analysing Poverty & Inequality MGDI30601 20 Optional
Making 'Development' Happen: North-South Perspectives on Development Cooperation MGDI30702 20 Optional
Further Statistical Methods for Global Development MGDI30802 20 Optional
Climate Change and Society UCIL33501 20 Optional
Displaying 10 of 14 course units for year 3

Course content for year 4

In your final year, you will build on the interests that you have developed in year two, choosing from a wide range of optional course units. You will also write a dissertation on a topic in global development, supervised by an individual lecturer who will meet with you one-on-one over the course of the final semester.

What our students say

“I chose to study at The University of Manchester because of its position at the forefront of global development studies. I was attracted by the GDI’s famously influential research across the globe and by the opportunity to experience a research-informed approach to learning about international development under the influence of its renowned multi-disciplined body of academic staff. 

I was also drawn to Manchester by its reputation as an exciting, affordable city with a rich cultural heritage and by its position as a great base from which to explore the rest of the UK and Europe.”

Madeleine Cretney, GDI student

Facilities

From being a small training unit on the edge of the University, the Global Development Institute now leads one of its major research beacons on global inequalities. With a culmination of impressive history of development studies at Manchester which has spanned over more than 60 years, we have educated more than 10,000 students from across the world who now help drive forward sustainable development and social justice for all.

What’s more, the Global Development Institute is located in the Arthur Lewis Building, named after the first black Nobel Prize winner and first black professor in the UK, and previous professor of economics at Manchester.

Find out more about our facilities on our website.

Disability support

Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service. Email: dass@manchester.ac.uk