Income inequality, poverty, quality education and healthcare are some of the most commonly cited global challenges. Addressing these problems falls within the scope of economic development. The B.Econ. Honours Concentration in Development provides a rigorous and intensive grounding in development economics and comparative politics in respect of development and underdevelopment. Students will develop detailed knowledge of problems and issues in development economics as well as various policy solutions to these problems. Students also acquire advanced quantitative skills and the ability to carry out independent research projects.
The B.Econ. Honours Concentration in Development is normally completed during the last three of four years of full-time study. The concentration combines selected specialized courses from departments of Economics and Political Science. This concentration is recommended to individuals who have a strong interest in development and plan to pursue a career in the foreign service or in an international governmental or non-governmental organization.
Students seeking to gain additional training in quantitative methods may benefit from combining B.Econ. Honours Concentration in Development with B.Econ. Honours Concentration in Economic Data Science. Combining the Development concentration with either the B.Econ. Honours Concentration in International Political Economy or B.Econ. Honours Concentration in Natural Resources, Environment, and Economy will enable students to gain a broad knowledge of issues and solutions in the domain of economic development across several fields of social science. Furthermore, any one of these combinations will provide students with a strong and broad set of skills generally sought by the employers.