The objective of this course is to equip students aiming to work in development in Latin America with theoretical, practical, and language abilities to succeed.

The course will provide an introduction to the most pertinent theoretical topics relevant for development policies and the policy-making process while framing the theory in the particular context of Latin America. Students will apply these theories to real-world policy situations through weekly discussion and exercises. Another key objective of the course is to provide the students with the opportunity to practice Spanish in a development work context and the course is structured to achieve this goal.

 

This course is divided into two sections. During the first half of the semester we will study topics related to the policy-making process. The topics will focus on the actors involved in the policy making process, agenda framing and setting, the political economy of the policy process, and the policy diffusion process in Latin America. The second section of the course focuses on specific topics relevant to the development processes in Latin America. During this second section we will focus on evaluation methods –since sound policies require understanding of what works and what does not– and then specific topics like Education, Health and Welfare, Agriculture, Public Goods Provision, Institutions and Conflict, and International Aid.