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Global Development Studies Minor

Structure of the Global Development Studies Minor

  1. 18 credit hours required, including the Global Development Studies Foundations course (ANT 207) and the 3-credit Capstone Seminar (ANT 498). Thus, normally, 4 courses plus the Foundations and Capstone. (Petitions can be made for courses not listed.)
  2. Students must take at least one course in two of the three divisions of the university (social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities) and can count no more than two courses from their major toward the requirements for the minor.
  3. The 3-hour capstone seminar will allow the student to produce a final product for the minor. Capstone experiences can be supervised by any appropriate faculty member or study abroad faculty member and may be carried out in a course or non-course experience, in relation to an Honor's thesis project and research. Registration in the capstone seminar will provide a community of GDS minors and allow final development of a Global Development Studies-related product.
  4. A rotating Steering Committee of faculty members from different disciplines will provide guidance and supervision throughout the student's progress through the Minor and will meet with students twice during the semester of their capstone experience.

Courses

Introductory Foundations Course

ANT 207 Foundations in Development Studies is designed to provide the student with a good overview of the field of development studies and to highlight the particular rights-based approach to development studies that Emory emphasizes. The course will be headed by a faculty member or advanced graduate student from a participating department with a rotating team of faculty who will offer readings, discussions, and lectures around key themes during the semester.

Course Pre-Approval Lists

Approved courses - Fall 2024Approved courses - Spring 2024Approved courses - Fall 2023Approved courses - Spring 2023Approved courses - Fall 2022Approved courses - Spring 2022Approved courses - Fall 2021Approved courses - Spring 2021Approved courses - Fall 2020Archive GDS Pre-approved courses

Research

Capstone Experience

The Minor in Global Development Studies culminates in a capstone experience, which completes the student's work that started with the introductory course and the specialized electives related to development studies. A faculty Capstone Committee comprised of the Capstone instructor (Dr. Peter Little) and 1-2 additional committee members will oversee the capstone experience. An evaluative set of guidelines for assessing the student's knowledge of the field of development studies will orient the capstone experience. The idea is that the student will demonstrate knowledge of:

  • The historical and theoretical bases of development studies.
  • A rights-based approach to development and how to apply it in particular situations.
  • Specific knowledge of at least one domain of practice in development studies: for example, gender, environmental issues, the role of markets, governance, social and cultural analyses, institutions, poverty alleviation, and other development domains.
  • General knowledge of at least region or country of the developing world.
  • The ability to integrate an interdisciplinary perspective in analyzing a development issue or problem.

Many kinds of experiential activities are possible to fulfill the capstone requirement and some may already include course credit that will count towards the Minor. A maximum of six credits can be obtained for the capstone experience, four for an appropriate course, and two for the required capstone seminar. All six credits will go toward the requirement of 18 hours.

  • Honors project within the student's major: A student who is doing an honor's thesis in her/his major can choose a global development-related topic and then use the honor's project as the basis for the capstone experience.  For example, the capstone submitted through ANT 498 may consist of a paper/project highlighting the implications of the honors project for global development.  Four credits of an 8-credit honors sequence can count as elective credit towards the minor.
  • Projects in the Atlanta area, if a sufficient global development component.
  • Internships at corporations or non-profit organizations which work in the field of global development.
  • An independent studies project and paper on a development issue or policy with a faculty member.
  • Study abroad research projects, such as the IDN/CIPA opportunity related to global development or other study abroad activity (see Appendix C).
  • Volunteer work at a global development-related organization (for example, a non-government organization [NGO]) that is expanded into a paper or research project during the Capstone seminar.
Deadline

Senior GDS minors should discuss their capstone project ideas with faculty advisors before Sept. 30 and obtain signatures on the Capstone proposal form by Oct. 15 in order to receive permission to enroll in ANT 498 Capstone Development Studies, which is offered in the spring semester.

Capstone proposal form
Previous Capstone Projects

View summaries of students' final Capstone projects for the Minor in Global Development Studies for previous years.

Previous Capstone Projects