Document Type

Undergraduate Syllabus

Date

Fall 2026

School

Diplomacy

Course Number

DIPL 4170 AA/NA

Course Description

This course provides students with an in-depth analysis of five major areas of economic development: poverty, inequality, and social protection; gender and economic opportunity; education and human capital; institutions, governance, and corruption; and food security, agriculture, and development. For each topic, students will engage with scholarly research, learn how key development concepts are defined and measured, and examine what major development indicators capture—and what they may miss. Particular attention will be given to country specificity and initial conditions, recognizing that development problems and the effectiveness of policy interventions depend on a country’s economic, social, and institutional circumstances. Students will then apply these concepts to real-world World Bank projects, examining how development problems are diagnosed, how interventions are designed and implemented, and what can be learned from their results. Through readings, class discussion, project analysis, and written assignments, students will develop the analytical skills needed to connect development theory and evidence to practical policy challenges.

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