Curriculum
DelVal offers a general master's of art degree in policy studies with three specializations.
Food and Agricultural
Students specializing in Food and Agricultural Policy will engage questions relating to the production and distribution of food and other agricultural products. Using the tools of policy analysis, they will examine issues such as land use, food security and scarcity, current agricultural practices, and their alternatives. Both domestic and international concerns are addressed in courses aimed at providing students with the tools to become leaders in developing policies to confront the agricultural issues of the day and make a difference in the lives of others.
Sustainability and Environment
Students specializing in Sustainability and Environmental Policy will examine the impact of policy upon the environment and questions relating to the sustainability of current and proposed practices. From a social, economic, and political perspective, they will study the impact of humans upon their environment and the potential for mitigation and remediation. Maintaining equilibrium between social, economic, and environmental concerns is integral. Graduates of the program will possess the intellectual means to help develop policies that balance competing interests that are often mutually exclusive.
Community and International Development
Students specializing in Development Policy will study the broad outcomes of societal development in terms of social, economic and environmental indicators of well-being. Using an ecological framework that recognizes the material foundations of societal change, they consider the history of and latest thinking and research on poverty-reduction strategies, indicators of inequality and social exclusion, property rights, effects of globalization in trade and finance, and global governance. Students will learn to critically evaluate, design and assess policies that address concerns of economic equity and social and environmental justice.
Students in the master's program are required to complete 36 credit hours including 30 credits of coursework ( 18 credits from the core course requirements and 12 elective credits in their specializations). In addition, students have the option to complete a thesis or an internship (both are 6 credits).
Policy Studies Credit Requirements (36 credits)
Core Courses (18 credits)
- Introduction to Policy Studies
- Political Economy
- Policy Analysis
- American Politics
- Quantitative Methods
- Qualitative Methods
Elective Courses (12 credits)
- Agricultural Prices
- Agriculture and Applied Economics
- Agriculture, Food and Trade Policy
- Community Development and Planning
- Contemporary Urban and Regional Planning
- Contesting Development
- Ecofeminism
- Energy Policy
- Environmental History
- Environmental Impacts
- Environmental Justice
- Environmental Law and Policy
- Extractive Economies
- Food Security and Food Policy
- Geographic Information Systems
- Global Agricultural Ecology
- Globalization and International Development
- Science and Technology Policy
- Social Policy and Social Justice
- The Bioethics of Genomics
- The Bioethics of Pharmaceuticals
- The State
- Thinking Green: Western Ideas of Man-Nature Relationship from the Modern Age to the Age of Ecology
- Wildlife Law and Policy
- Special Topics in Policy Studies
Thesis/Internship (6 credits)
Students enrolled in the program will complete a thesis or internship. A student who chooses to write a thesis will be expected to engage in more traditional research and utilize the research methods he will have learned during his coursework. Students choosing to work as interns for a policy-making institution will be encouraged to research the particular set of policy issues in depth while also keeping abreast of the day to day concerns of the particular institution. During the course of the internship students will maintain regular contact with an advisor. At the end of the internship, the student will be expected to submit a detailed report that reflects on the particular policy issues, but also on the overall experience.
