International Development MSc

This module introduces you to key theoretical debates in international development. It takes an interdisciplinary approach to exploring how thinking about development has changed over time, and why it has changed. The module also encourages you to think about the relationship between development theory and development practice, connecting it to other modules in the programme.  

The focus of the module is overarching questions of how development has been understood and conceptualised from the colonial period to the present, to better understand how we can plan for the future. Changing development paradigms are presented through weekly lectures and explored in depth through seminars, each of which focusing on a set of key questions about changing theoretical perspectives and their implications for policy.

The overall aim of the module is to build your understanding of the origins of the idea of development, changing debates about its meaning and purpose, and the implications of these for the present and future of policy and practice.

This module introduces you to critical issues for policy and practice within international development. You will be able to learn about debates covering key topics, such as the importance of the role of race, class, age, and gender, among other social categories, which impact individual and social structures. These markers of difference will be explored through an intersectional and historical approach, comparing academic research with grey literature and media narratives. 

The first half of the module focuses on understanding markers of difference from a theoretical and practical perspective. The second half of the module explores difference through the analysis of specific examples of development practice, such as food issues, technology and development, energy justice, and others. During seminars, you will be able to engage critically with non-academic sources (e.g. news articles, social media, blogs, videos) to analyse how markers of differences are portrayed and the impact of such representations.

The overall aim of the module is to equip you with theoretical and practical tools to critically engage with a rapidly changing and deeply interconnected world, which makes understanding difference essential for promoting inclusive and just development futures.

This module engages critically with the key theoretical debates that shape the relationships between the environment, society and international development. By looking at current questions in development theory and their relationship to development practice in the context of the Anthropocene and environmental change, you will be encouraged to think critically about the ways in which interdisciplinary approaches define issues and problems, and the theoretical viewpoints that inform actions. The module is taught primarily through seminars: these provide both a structure for your learning, and also provide you with an environment in which you can develop your skills in researching, presenting and debating arguments drawn from the academic literature on international development.

This module explores the challenges of urban planning and development in the global South: how are conflicting imperatives of ecological sustainability, social inclusion and economic competitiveness being balanced by practitioners, and what implications does this have for those living there? The module will help develop your understanding of the ways urban development challenges are managed and mediated by different actors. It will be based on a series of scenarios representing some of the diversity of conditions that exist in the global South, to explore how urban change shapes and is shaped by the state and other development practices.

In this module you will be able to gain a critically engaged understanding of professional practice in sustainable development. Through the module you will be guided to learn to apply academic training to real-world situations, with a strong focus on employability related skills. You will develop a range of professional skills for future career paths, whether in research, policy, consultancy or the third sector.



You will be taught about a set of key transferable and employability skills in keeping with the Sheffield Graduate Attributes, before embarking on a project design and role-play exercise based on hands-on group work. The key transferable skills covered will include communications, team work, project design and fundraising, policy analysis and consultancy work, ethics and cultural sensitivity. Within teams you will work to fulfil a variety of tasks. This will form the basis of a portfolio of work, alongside a critical personal reflection on your development.

The overall aim of this module is to critically examine urban informality, with a particular but not exclusive focus on cities of the Global South. It explores theoretical understandings of urban informality, and looks at how it affects ways of living, such as land use, housing and basic services, working lives and politics. Using a broad range of material to bring the topic to life, including non-conventional sources - such as fiction, poetry, photography, and other media - the module helps students develop learning and research on this topic.

The module relies on a mixture of lectures, seminars and student-led group work, with the latter focusing on an in-depth case study of a selected city. It explores patterns and causes of informality and discusses the strengths and limitations of a range of theoretical approaches. It also analyses the success of different real-world urban planning responses (understood in broad terms), including government-led, donor-led and community-focused ones, in addressing key urban issues in the context of informality.

In this module, you will learn how to describe the key characteristics of living, working, and governing informally, and related spatial, economic, cultural, environmental, political, social and historical and temporal factors, with focus on cities of the Global South and North. You will also learn how to analyse and explain these characteristics, with reference to a range of academic and non-academic sources. You will recognise and evaluate different real-world urban planning responses; demonstrate theoretical and practical knowledge on informality in relation to a selected city; develop group work and presentation skills and express complex issues orally and in writing.

Climate change is one of the most significant and urgent challenges of the 21st century. Cities generate over 70% of the world's CO2 and consume 60% of global energy, they therefore play an important part in mitigating the extent of climate change and in adapting to the effects of the climate crisis and its impacts on societies and the global environment. In this module you  will get to explore the drivers of climate change and their implications for urban systems, critically considering how urban professionals can respond to these challenges in ways that promote just and sustainable transitions.

The Climate Change: Science and Impacts module offers you an in-depth understanding of the scientific foundations of climate change and its far-reaching impacts on the environment and society. This module explores the causes, processes, and consequences of climate change from a scientific perspective, while emphasizing the real-world implications for ecosystems, human societies, and global policy.



You will get to examine the key scientific principles underlying climate change, including the greenhouse effect, climate modelling, and changing global circulations with far-reaching impacts. You will be able to explore the latest research on the impacts of climate change, focusing on areas such as extreme weather events, sea level rise, changes to ecosystems, and climate-sensitive diseases. Special attention will be given to understanding the social, economic, and political dimensions of climate change, including adaptation strategies and global mitigation efforts.



The module combines lectures, seminars, and case studies to provide both theoretical and practical insights into the science of climate change. You will be supported to gain the skills to critically evaluate scientific data and reports, engage with current climate research, and understand how climate change affects different regions and communities around the world.

By the end of the module, you will have been able to develop a solid grounding in climate science and an understanding of the multidisciplinary approaches required to address climate-related challenges. This module prepares you to contribute meaningfully to discussions and actions aimed at mitigating and adapting to climate change on a global scale.

This module aims to provide you with a strong understanding of the social and physical science of climate change with relevance to international development. This understanding is then applied to consider the challenge of living with climate change in the Global South. The module is taught through seminars and lectures. Lectures introduce and impart factual knowledge while seminars allow discussion and an emphasis on applying key concepts to practical situations. Together these structure your learning, and provide an environment in which you can develop your skills in researching, presenting and debating arguments drawn from the wide ranging literature on climate change.

Food Security and Food Justice are areas of increasing importance at local, national, transnational and global scales. Political and non-political agents at multiple scales have recognised that Global Hunger and Food Security (of which Food Justice is a primary component) is a key challenge requiring urgent interdisciplinary investigation and problem solving. There remains limited agreement as to how best to approach these issues. This module provides you with a background to the problems encompassed within the food security/food justice nexus by drawing on academic and policy debates that focus on both the macro as well as the micro impacts. By looking across food systems, the module also critically evaluates different strategies for mitigating the impacts of food insecurity and injustice. In addition to academic, knowledge and critical thinking skills, the module will help you to develop the following attributes: Communication, Networking, Collaboration, Influencing, Inclusivity, Defining Purpose, and a Growth Mindset.

This field class module provides you with the opportunity to explore and engage with development issues through practical fieldwork experiences, and to enhance your understanding of grass-roots development organisations. Central to the module is a focus on developing critical reflectivity on the nature of development in a particular globalised and historicised context. You will have the opportunity to practise and build on research skills learnt in Semester 1 as well as dealing with issues of ethics, power and co-produced development research and practice.



You will work with an International partner, and you will develop transferable skills through teamwork and engagement with a variety of stakeholders.



For field trips to run we require a minimum number of students to sign up for these modules. This varies depending on the specifics of individual field trips. If this number is not reached, the field trip will be cancelled. To assist with planning, this module must be selected by the end of the Semester One Add/Drop period.

This module provides you with the opportunity to undertake experience of working (in-person or virtually) with a development-related organisation, and to combine this with the development of an independent research project on a related issue of your choice. To do this, you will make a detailed analysis of an issue, topic or problem agreed with the organisation, develop a research proposal, carry out research while on placement, and produce both a dissertation and a shorter consultancy-style report based on your dissertation findings.



This module allows you to design and manage an individual, interdisciplinary research project.  The module aims to help you to develop and apply research skills. You will build your understanding of the role of research in relation to the theoretical and practical dimensions of your discipline; and further and deepen your knowledge of your chosen area of international development.



The module is supported by lectures, seminars and one-to-one supervision.  It includes core research methods required to undertake a dissertation at Master's level in the field of International Development.

This module provides you with the opportunity to undertake a supervised research project. You will make a detailed analysis of an issue, topic or problem agreed with your dissertation supervisor, develop a research proposal, carry out research, and produce a dissertation.



This module allows you to design and manage an individual, interdisciplinary research project.  The module aims to help you to develop and apply research skills. You will build your understanding of the role of research in relation to the theoretical and practical dimensions of your chosen discipline; and further deepen knowledge in your  chosen area of international development.



The module is supported by lectures, seminars, and one-to-one supervision.  It includes core research methods required to undertake a dissertation at Masters level in the field of International Development.