Development studies

Development studies is an interdisciplinary branch of social science. Development studies is offered as a specialized master's degree in a number of reputed universities across the world, such as the University of Cambridge, the London School of Economics and Political Science, King’s College London, the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, Oxford University, Harvard University, Balsillie School of International Affairs, Graduate Institute Geneva, Indian Institute of Technology, SOAS London, and University of Warwick, and less commonly, as an undergraduate degree, such as at the University of Sussex, University of Guelph, University of Toronto and McGill University. It has grown in popularity as a subject of study since the early 1990s, and has been most widely taught and researched in developing countries and countries with a colonial history, such as the UK, where the discipline originated. Students of development studies often choose careers in international organisations such as the United Nations, World Bank, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), media and journalism houses, private sector development consultancy firms, corporate social responsibility (CSR) bodies and research centers.