BerkeleyU n i v e r s i t y o f C a l i f o r n i a

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begins here: master’s of development practice

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building a sustainable future

As we enter the 21st century, humanity will need to achieve sustainability in the face of pressing obstacles such as global poverty, political unrest and conflict, climate change and economic uncertainty. This will require us to utilize the best resources we have in order to harness the power of innovation, technology and collaboration.

The Berkeley MDP is designed to meet these challenges by combining hands-on learning and field experience with rigorous training in a broad range of academic disciplines. It aims to train the future leaders who will implement these new ideas to meet the challenge of sustainable development. Based on a solid foundation of health, natural, social and management sciences, graduates will be well equipped to take on roles in global nonprofits, private enterprises, innovative startups, governments, economic and public policy thinktanks and international firms.

The Berkeley MDP will prepare a new generation of generalist practitioners with the skills, perspectives, decision-making tools, and foundations of scientific knowledge needed to forge new and more effective paths toward sustainable development.

the Berkeley MDPintegrating health, natural, social and management sciences for sustainable development practice

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health sciences

management

naturalsciences

SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT

PRACTICE

Built upon a strong foundation of

development expertise and ongoing

collaborations across the globe,

the Berkeley MDP program will grow

within a rich academic context — one

that has yielded groundbreaking work in

the hard sciences, social sciences, health,

business, law, politics, information

studies and other fields.

[the Berkeley MDP

integrating health, natural, social and management sciences for sustainable development practice

The creation of the Berkeley MDP is part of the response to one of the core recommendations of the International Commission on Education for Sustainable Development Practice, generously supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The commission concluded that there is significant and growing demand for generalist development professionals — individuals highly trained in a set of cross-disciplinary competencies that prepare them to address the complexities of sustainable development. Students in the program will be immediately plugged into the Global MDP network of 20 universities and partner organizations.

social sciences

bootcampfall

semesterspring

semestersummer

internshipwinter

internship

Master’s in Development Practice Timeline

Pre-enrollmentbootcamp:3 week review of math, statistics,economics & other fundamentals

fall semester

springsemester

Core courses

environmental policy, quantitative tools, resource & project management, interactive seminar

Core courses

economic policy, leadership & conflict studies, public health, law & politics, interactive seminar

Field trainingpart Imandatory field internship under the direction of faculty advisor

Field trainingpart IIsecond stage of mandatory field internship under the direction of faculty advisor

Year One Year Two

Core courses + electivesclimate change & energy, marketing & innovation

Core courses + electiveselectives and final project seminars

The Berkeley MDP program will be a hub of development practice,

providing ongoing support and leadership to partner organizations and alumni

around the world. Our MDP students will be embedded in a vast, influential

global network of seasoned development practitioners — an experience that

does not end with a two-year master’s degree, but rather endures for a lifetime

of effective service.

Graduates will be able to meet and manage current and future economic, social,

health and environmental challenges, combining solid scientific training with

practical skills. The program will emphasize mentorship, field study,

leadership skills with decision-making, project management and policy

formation integrated within the interdisciplinary core curriculum.

The Berkeley MDP: Field TrainingAs part of the master’s program, students will be required to complete two 10-week hands-on internships, one during the summer break after their first year, and the other dur-ing winter break of their second year. The intention of these internships is both to give students access to real-world development issues, strategies, and challenges, as well as to contribute skilled talent to our partners around the globe. To achieve these objectives, the internships will be designed to place students in meaningful positions that are integral to their projects. Prior to their assignments, stu-dents will participate in a workshop to prepare them to fully contribute to the work of their host organization as well as to develop specific skills as development practitioners. To match students with appropriate internships, we will draw upon the networks established by the Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program (EL P) and the international collaborators of the UC Berkeley faculty.

List of potential organizations for student placements:

Foundation for Sustainable DevelopmentAsia Foundation

USDAThe SOUL FoundationEnvironmental Defense

College of Public Affairs University of the Philippines- Los Banos

Uvumbuzi Organization

Marine and Coastal Environmental Convention of the United Nations Environment Program

The Bay InstituteCATIE

Grupo FARONatural Heritage Institute

International RiversWET Africa

diverse surroundings [

The Berkeley MDP: Curriculum

The Berkeley MDP will begin with an introductory “boot camp” held during the summer prior to the academic year. It is designed to familiarize the students with each other, the Berkeley campus, and the program itself. This introductory period will also provide for an initial assessment of students’ personal and professional needs as knowledge-based lead-ers in international development practice and offer some basic skills training to support work throughout the pro-gram. Students will also participate in a three-day Berkeley conference (sponsored by the Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program) focusing on a major environmental issue, such as climate change, water resources and the transition to the bioeconomy. Students will have the opportunity to participate in on-the-ground environmental case studies.

Year One Curriculum:Economics: Environmental Economics and Policy

Decision-making and leadership: Quantitative Tools and Impact Assessment Science, technology, and public health: Principles of Natural Resource Management

Management and policy: Strategic Planning and Project Management ; Law, Politics, and Policymaking; Interactive Multidisciplinary Seminars: various speakers and topics

Year Two Curriculum: Required course in Year Two includes: Climate Change and Energy; Marketing and InnovationStudents will be allowed to take elective courses from a vast array of relevant curriculum at UC Berkeley addressing sec-toral, area-specific or context-specific issues — such as urban studies vs. rural development. Much of the second year will be devoted to supervised work on a project paper. The project papers will aim to address real-world issues, preferably ones identified by the students, and will be derived from collaborativ efforts to identify creative methods and approaches to problem-solving.

boundless opportunity[

Based in one of the most dyanmic geographic regions in the world, students of

the Berkeley MDP will draw upon these uniquely diverse

surroundings to enrich their academic, professional and life experiences.

Admissions profileUC Berkeley offers admission to applicants who appear to have the highest potential for graduate study and who, with the benefit of a graduate education, are the most likely to contribute substantially to their academic or profession-al fields through teaching, research or professional practice.

The minimum graduate admission requirements are: (1) a bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution; (2) a satisfactory scholastic average, usually a minimum grade-point aver-age (GPA) of 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale; and (3) enough undergraduate train-ing to do graduate work in your chosen field. Satisfying minimal stan-dards, however, does not guarantee your admission, since the number of qualified applicants far exceeds the number of places available.

International Applicants

In addition to satisfying the mini-mum admission requirements, inter-national applicants must demonstrate English proficiency by taking one of the following exams:

1. Test of English as a Foreign Lan-guage (TOEFL)

OR

2. International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

BerkeleyU n i v e r s i t y o f C a l i f o r n i a

VISIT US ON THE WEB: MDP.BERKELEY.EDU

Selection criteria for master’s program will include the applicant’s talent, academic back-ground, work experience, leadership experience, vision, involvement in critical issues or new areas of research (such as poverty or climate change) and/or proven entrepre-neurship. Applicants oriented towards developing managerial skills, improving public policy, and increasing interdisciplinary capacities as development practitioners will receive priority.

We expect a highly competitive selection process leading to a mix of qualified international and domestic students. UC Berkeley requires a minimal level of mathematical and statistical skills that will be augmented by the bootcamp, which will aim to ensure that students have the neces-sary computer skills and a basic understanding of economics, sociology and business concepts.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION