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Bachelor's

International Development Studies BA

University of California, Los Angeles College of Letters and Science 233 courses

About This Program

The curriculum introduces students to key theoretical debates around development and to detailed case studies of successful and failed interventions; and provides methodological training. Core and elective courses illuminate the extent to which realities that affect people often arise owing to economic class, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, migrant status and other identities, and investigate the impact of policy solutions and forms of citizen engagement on communities and the environment. Students are trained to both think critically about these issues and explore ways to engage with development work at home and abroad through experiential learning, internships, immersive study abroad programs, independent faculty-guided research, and collaborative group projects. Study Abroad International Development Studies majors are highly encouraged to study abroad in developing areas of the world. Students can do so through a variety of programs with various lengths (summer or during the academic year). More information about study abroad programs is available through the UCLA International Education Office. Contact the office by e-mail, in person at 1332 Murphy Hall, or by phone at 310-825-4995. The International Development Studies major is a designated capstone major. Seniors must complete an advanced seminar that provides unique opportunity to work closely with a faculty member on a focused topic of research. Students completing the capstone should be able to demonstrate skills and expertise acquired in earlier coursework; identify, analyze, and select relevant data from primary and secondary sources; acquire a working knowledge of broader scholarly discourse; conceive and execute an original research paper; and engage with a community of scholars, presenting their work to peers as well as providing feedback on peers’ work. The seminar culminates in a written paper or project and a formal class report.

Degree Requirements

Preparation for the Major

Complete six courses and demonstrate proficiency in one modern foreign language equivalent to level 6 at UCLA.

Code Course Title Credits
INTL DV 1 Introduction to International Development Studies 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies

Select three social sciences/area studies courses, each from a different category, from:

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Anthropology

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO 3 Culture and Society 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Gender Studies

Code Course Title Credits
GENDER 10 Introduction to Gender Studies 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Geography

Code Course Title Credits
GEOG 3 Cultural Geography 5
GEOG 5 People and Earth's Ecosystems 5
GEOG 6 World Regions: Concepts and Contemporary Issues 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Global Studies and International and Area Studies

Code Course Title Credits
GLBL ST 1 Introduction to Globalization 5
I A STD 1 Introduction to International and Area Studies 5
I A STD 31 Introduction to Southeast Asia 5
I A STD 33 Introduction to East Asia 5
I A STD 50 Introduction to Latin America 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Political Science

Code Course Title Credits
POL SCI 20 World Politics 5
POL SCI 50 Introduction to Comparative Politics 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Sociology

Code Course Title Credits
SOCIOL 1 Introductory Sociology 5

Preparation for the Major: Social Sciences/Area Studies: Comparative Literature and Spanish

Code Course Title Credits
COM LIT 4DW Literature and Writing: Great Books from World at Large 5
SPAN 44 Latin American Cultures 5

Preparation for the Major: Foreign Language

Demonstrate proficiency in one modern foreign language equivalent to level 6 at UCLA.

The Major

Complete 11 courses as follows: three core courses, one capstone seminar, one research methodology course, three social and critical theory courses, two regional courses, and one disciplinary elective.

The Major: Capstone Seminar

Complete the following course:

Code Course Title Credits
INTL DV 191 Variable Topics Research Seminars: International Development Studies—Senior Seminar 4

The Major: Research Methodology

Select one course from:

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO 138P Field Methods in Cultural Anthropology 5
ASIA AM 103 Social Science Research Methods 4
ASIA AM C142A Ethnocommunications I: Introduction to Creating Community Media 4
ASIA AM C142B Ethnocommunications II: Intermediate Creating Community Media 4
CCAS M119 Chicano/Latino Community Formation: Critical Perspectives and Oral Histories 4
CCAS M122 Planning Issues in Latina/Latino Communities: Preserving and Strengthening Community Assets in Mexican and Salvadoran Los Angeles 4
CCAS 123 Applied Research Methods in Latino Communities 4
ECON 103 Introduction to Econometrics 4
POL SCI 170A Studies in Statistical Analysis of Political Data 4
PUB AFF 115 Using Quantitative Methods to Understand Social Problems and their Potential Solutions 5
PUB AFF 116 Using Qualitative Methods to Understand Social Problems and Their Potential Solutions 5
SOCIOL 113 Statistical and Computer Methods for Social Research 4
STATS 112 Statistics: Window to Understanding Diversity 5
URBN PL M122 Policy, Planning, and Community 4

The Major: Social and Critical Theory

Select three courses each from a different department from the following. International Development Studies 110, M120, 130, or 140 may be applied if not taken for the core.

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO 130 Study of Culture 4
ANTHRO 140 Study of Social Systems 4
ANTHRO 143 Economic Anthropology 4
ANTHRO 146 Urban Anthropology 4
ANTHRO 147 Development Anthropology 4
ECON 111 Theories of Development 4
ECON 112 Policies for Economic Development 4
ECON 134 Environmental Economics 4
ENVIRON M125 Environmentalism: Past, Present, and Future 4
ENVIRON M133 Environmental Sociology 4
ENVIRON M161 Global Environment and World Politics 4
GENDER 102 Power 4
GENDER 103 Knowledge 4
GEOG M125 Environmentalism: Past, Present, and Future 4
GEOG M127 Global Environment and Development: Problems and Issues 4
GEOG 130 Food and Environment 4
GEOG 140 Social Geography 4
GEOG 141 Cultural Geography of Modern World 4
GEOG 148 Political Geography 4
GEOG 150 Economic Geography 4
GEOG 151 Uneven Development Geographies: Prosperity and Impoverishment in Third World 4
GEOG 158 Population Geography 4
INTL DV 110 Culture, Power, and Development 4
INTL DV M120 Political Economy of Development 4
INTL DV 130 Theory and History in International Development 4
INTL DV 140 Decolonizing Political Economy: Colonialism and Development 4
INTL DV M150 Political Economy of Climate Change 4
POL SCI M122B Global Environment and World Politics 4
POL SCI 124A International Political Economy 4
POL SCI 167D Political Institutions and Economic Development 4
POL SCI 168 Comparative Political Analysis 4
PUB AFF 110 Urban Revolution: Space and Society in Global Context 4
SOCIOL 101 Development of Sociological Theory 5
SOCIOL 102 Contemporary Sociological Theory 5
SOCIOL M115 Environmental Sociology 4
SOCIOL 122 Sociology of Violence 4
SOCIOL 123 Social Change 4
SOCIOL 182 Political Sociology 4
SOCIOL 183 Comparative and Historical Sociology 4
SOCIOL 191D Undergraduate Seminar: Sociology of Development 5
URBN PL M110 Inequality and Democracy: Analysis and Praxis of Public Problems 4
URBN PL 121 Urban Policy and Planning 4
URBN PL M160 Environmental Politics and Governance 4
URBN PL CM166 Global Environment and Development: Problems and Issues 4

The Major: Regional

Select two regional courses, either from the same or separate developing regions of the world (East Asia and East Central Asia, Eastern Europe and West Central Asia, Latin America and Caribbean Basin, Middle East and North Africa, South and Southeast Asia and Pacific Islands, Sub-Saharan Africa) and one disciplinary elective listed below:

The Major: Regional: Eastern Europe and West Central Asia

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO 163Q Societies of Central Asia 4
C&EE ST M125 Interwar Central European Prose
C&EE ST CM126 Cold-War Central European Culture 4
GENDER M127 Women in Russian Literature 4
HIST 107C Armenian History: Armenia in Modern and Contemporary Times, 19th and 20th Centuries 4
HIST 120B East-Central Europe: Short 20th Century, 1918 to 1990 4
HIST 120D Film and History: Topics in Central and Eastern European History on Film, 1914 to 1989 4
HIST 127B History of Russia: Imperial Russia from Peter the Great to Nicholas II 4
HIST 127C History of Russia: Revolutionary Russia and Soviet Union 4
POL SCI 156A Government and Politics of Post-Communist States: Russia 4
RUSSN 120 Literature and Revolution 4
RUSSN 121 Russian Pop Culture 5
RUSSN 122 Siberia 5
RUSSN M127 Women in Russian Literature 4
RUSSN C131 History of Russian Cinema 4

The Major: Regional: Latin America and Caribbean Basin

Code Course Title Credits
AF AMER M154C Black Experience in Latin America and Caribbean I 4
AF AMER M178 Sociology of Caribbean 4
ANTHRO 161 Latin American Communities 4
ANTHRO 162 Ethnography of South America 4
ART HIS C142B Latin American Art of 20th Century 4
CCAS M125 U.S./Mexico Relations 4
CCAS M126 Politics of Crisis: Migration, Identity, and Religion 4
CCAS M144 Women's Movement in Latin America 4
CCAS CM147 Transnational Women's Organizing in Americas 4
CCAS 169 Representations of Indigenous Peoples in Americas 4
COM HLT 132 Health, Disease, and Health Services in Latin America 4
GENDER 123 Gender, Race, and Class in Latin American Literature and Film, 1850 to 1950 4
GENDER M144 Women's Movement in Latin America 4
GENDER M147C Transnational Women's Organizing in Americas 4
GEOG 172A Spanish South America 4
GEOG 172C Brazil 4
HIST 157B Indians of Colonial Mexico 4
HIST 162A Modern Brazil 4
HNRS M145 Politics of Crisis: Migration, Identity, and Religion 4
POL SCI 154A Government and Politics in Latin America: States of Middle America 4
POL SCI 154B Government and Politics in Latin America: States of South America 4
POL SCI M184A Black Experience in Latin America and Caribbean I 4
PORTGSE 142A Brazil and Its Culture 4
PORTGSE 143A Colony, Intellectuals, and History 4
SOCIOL M178 Sociology of Caribbean 4
SOCIOL 186 Latin American Societies 4

The Major: Regional: South and Southeast Asia and Pacific Islands

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO 168P Cultures of Pacific 4
ASIA AM 122A Indigeneity, Empire, and Resistance in Pacific Islands 4
ASIA AM 122B Gender and Film in Pacific 4
ASIA AM M171D Critical Issues in U.S.-Philippine Relations 4
ASIA AM 171E Critical Issues in U.S.-Vietnam Relations 4
ASIA AM 172C Transnational Bollywood 4
ASIA AM M173 Topics in Vietnamese Cinema and/or Literature 4
GENDER M164A Women, Violence, Globalization: India, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam 4
GEOG 176A Southeast Asia 4
HIST M144C Critical Issues in U.S.-Philippine Relations 4
HIST 174B History of British India I 4
HIST 175A Cultural and Political History of Contemporary South Asia 4
HIST 175C Special Topics in Contemporary Indian History 4
HIST 176B History of Southeast Asia: Southeast Asia since 1815 4
HNRS 184 India and Pakistan: Historic Roots of Conflict and Prospects for Cooperation 5
POL SCI 158 Southeast Asian Politics 4
SEASIAN 135 Religion and Society in Southeast Asia 4
SEASIAN 157 Gender Issues in Southeast Asia 4
VIETMSE CM155 Topics in Vietnamese Cinema and/or Literature 4
VIETMSE 180B Vietnam: History and Civilization, 1858 to Present 4

The Major: Regional: Disciplinary Electives

Code Course Title Credits
ANTHRO M145R Women and Social Movements 4
ANTHRO M148 (When) Do Leaders Make Differences? 5
COM HLT 100 Introduction to Community Health Sciences 4
ECON 121 International Trade Theory 4
ECON 122 International Finance 4
ECON 137 Introduction to Urban and Regional Economics 4
ECON 150 Labor Economics 4
ECON 151 Topics in Labor Economics 4
EDUC 109A Globalization and Learning 4
ENGL 130 Introduction to Postcolonial Literatures 5
ENGL 131 Studies in Postcolonial Literatures 5
ENVIRON 186 Comparative Sustainability Practices in Local/Global Settings 4
FILM TV 106C Third Cinema and Its Legacies 6
FILM TV 112 Film and Social Change 6
FILM TV M124 Sex, Race, and Difference in Transnational Film 6
GENDER M154Q Selected Topics in Gender Systems 4
GENDER M154R Women and Social Movements 4
GEOG M131 Human Impact on Biophysical Environment 4
GEOG 139C Problems in Geography: Culture and Environment in Modern World 4
GEOG M142 (When) Do Leaders Make Differences? 5
GLBL ST 102 Globalization: Markets and Resources 5
GLBL ST 103 Globalization: Governance and Conflict 5
GLBL ST 104 Globalization: Culture and Society 5
HNRS M152 (When) Do Leaders Make Differences? 5
POL SCI 116A Marxism 4
POL SCI 123A International Law 4
POL SCI 126 Peace and War 4
POL SCI 137A International Relations Theory 4
POL SCI 150 Political Violence 4
SOCIOL 154 Race and Ethnicity in Latin America 4
SOCIOL 191F Undergraduate Seminar: Sociology of Globalization 5

Honors Program

In addition to completing all courses required for the major, students must take courses 198A, 198B, and 198C, in which they research, write, and present an honors thesis.

Code Course Title Credits
INTL DV 198A Honors Research in International Development Studies 4
INTL DV 198B Honors Research in International Development Studies 4
INTL DV 198C Honors Research in International Development Studies 4

Click a course code or title to read the full course description.

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