Fast Facts
Commencing
- Online: January, July
- Cairns: January, July
Fees
$13,116.00+
$30,636.00^
+estimated annual Commonwealth Supported Fee for a full-time study load
^estimated annual tuition fee for a full-time study load
Plus Student Services and Amenities fee
Fee deferral and scholarships available if eligible
Currently displaying fees for 2024, which are indicative only of the upcoming year's.
Duration
2 years full-time
Entry Requirements
AQF level 7 bachelor degree; or equivalent
Course Code
118204
Course detail
Consolidate and expand your expertise in Global Development and join a new generation of ethical global citizens and change-makers. You’ll be on the forefront of new ideas, as JCU’s central, tropical location gives Global Development graduates a unique platform for engaging with pressing global development issues.
Develop the knowledge and skills that will allow you to work in priority areas of poverty alleviation, sustainable planning, social justice, climate responsive systems, sustainable resource management and global health — areas identified by the UN as key global challenges for future sustainability.
As you study this Master of Global Development degree, you will gain key conceptual and practical skills to understand and respond to the shifting landscapes of human development. Learn how to critically analyse, evaluate and generate solutions to complex development problems — from infrastructure to systemic issues — for tropical, remote and inter-cultural settings through informed and evidence-based methodologies. Throughout this global development degree, you will learn to integrate and apply advanced theoretical and technical knowledge in global development policy and practice, ensuring your ability to make a difference at both a community and policy level.
In the Master of Global Development, you will study six core subjects and choose additional elective subjects from eight main areas of global development, including: Development and Conservation; Disaster Resilience and Natural Resource Management; Public Health; Sustainable Development Planning and Policy; Indigenous Futures; Governance and Social Change; Development Leadership and Management; and the Development Researcher. Tailor your studies to suit your interests and career goals by specialising or combining knowledge from these eight areas.
Put your knowledge and skills to the test by choosing to undertake either an individual research project or a domestic or international internship that will expand your professional network. If you choose to take on the small-scale research project, you will learn how to plan and conduct reliable, evidence-based field studies and execute substantial research through key methods, techniques and tools. In the industry-based internship, you’ll not only increase your professional development, but you’ll also develop leadership skills by partnering with leading global organisations.
Finish your Master of Global Development faster. With credit for previous study, you can finish your degree in less than two years. Finish 6 months sooner if you have a Bachelor or Graduate Certificate in a related discipline, or 1 year sooner if you have a Bachelor (Honours) or Graduate Diploma in a related discipline.
Create a brighter future for those around you. JCU Master of Global Development graduates have the strong intercultural competencies and self-reflexivity required to work effectively and ethically in developing countries.
View the Handbook for a detailed overview of available subjects.
Inherent requirements
Inherent requirements are the identified abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours that must be demonstrated, during the learning experience, to successfully complete a course. These abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours preserve the academic integrity of the University’s learning, assessment, and accreditation processes, and where applicable, meet the standards of a profession. For more information please review the inherent requirements for the Master of Global Development.
As a graduate of the Master of Global Development, you will have strong skills in project and resource management, leadership, planning, critical evaluation and advanced research as well as extensive practical experience.
The Master of Global Development prepares you for a career with unlimited potential. Your knowledge and skills are highly applicable in many areas of education, welfare and development, allowing you to enter a wide variety of positions. Highly regarded by employers, development graduates are sought after within a range of national and international NGOs, government departments, local councils and private sector operators working in international development.
Your future career will have a national and international scope through JCU’s strong ties across the Asia Pacific and Tropics, which you will first experience in your professional placement. The connections you make with the organisation facilitating your placement could lead to employment opportunities post-graduation. These organisations can include local and state government, such as the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs (DFAT) and the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID), international NGOs such as ActionAid and Oxfam, and UN bodies such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
Handbook year | Information valid for students commencing in 2024. |
Course code | 118204 |
Course type | Master (Coursework) (AQF Level 9) |
Owner | Academy |
College | Arts, Society and Education |
Award Requirements
Admission Requirements
Course pre-requisites | Completion of an AQF level 7 bachelor degree; or Other qualifications or practical experience recognised by the Dean, College of Arts, Society and Education as equivalent to the above. |
Minimum English language proficiency requirements | Applicants of non-English speaking backgrounds must meet the English language proficiency requirements of Band 1 – Schedule II of the JCU Admissions Policy |
Post admission | For external delivery option, computer and internet access is required |
Academic Requirements for Course Completion
Credit points | 48 credit points |
Course learning outcomes | On successful completion of the Master of Global Development, graduates will be able to:
|
Inherent Requirements
Inherent Requirements | Inherent requirements are the identified abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours that must be demonstrated, during the learning experience, to successfully complete a course. These abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours preserve the academic integrity of the University's learning, assessment, and accreditation processes, and where applicable, meet the standards of a profession. For more information please visit: Master of Global Development. |
Reasonable adjustments | All JCU students have the opportunity to demonstrate, with reasonable adjustments where applicable, the inherent requirements for their course. For more information please visit: Student Disability Policy and Procedure. |
Course Structure
CORE SUBJECTS
EV5951:03 Development in Practice
EV5952:03 Critical Issues in Global Development
WS5103:03 Community Development or EV5001:03 Environmental and Regional Planning or EC5205:03 Economic Growth and Sustainable Development
EV5957:03 Equitable Development and Social Change
AN5006:03 Asia Pacific Development: Culture and Globalisation
PL5153:03 Politics and Foreign Relations
PLUS
EV5953:03 Research Methods for Global Development [*for students wishing to choose the Research option] or Select 3 credit points from List 1
*NOTE: Students choosing the Research option must select EV5953 to meet the pre-requisite for this option
PLUS
Select 12 credit points of subjects from List 1
PLUS
Select one of the following Options
Option 1 (Research)
Students must achieve a GPA of 5.0 or above in the first year of study to be eligible to undertake this option
BU5950:06 Research Project
BU5951:06 Research Dissertation
or
SS5012:12 Social Science Coursework Masters Thesis
PLUS
Select 3 credit points of subjects from List 1
Option 2 (Placement)
Capstone subject SC5009 Professional Project is only available to students in their last semester of study.
SC5200:03 Career Planning
SC5009:12 Postgraduate Internship
Option 3 (Electives)
Select 15 credit points of subjects from List 1
LIST 1
Disaster Resilience, Conservation and Natural Resource Management
BZ5215:03 Conservation Biology
BZ5220:03 Population and Community Ecology
BZ5225:03 Technological Applications in Ecology
BZ5480:03 Restoration Ecology
BZ5740:03 Wildlife Ecology and Management
MB5004:03 Marine Conservation Biology
EC5218:03 Economics and Sustainable Resource Management
EV5020:03 Human Dimensions of Nature, Environment and Conservation
EV5107:03 International Environmental Policy and Governance
EV5209:03 Principles and Practices of Protected Area Management
EV5606:03 Disasters, Communities and Planning
EV5614:03 Leadership in Disaster Management
EV5200:03 Natural Resource Management
Public Health
TM5502:03 Tropical Public Health
TM5514:03 Environmental Health
TM5536:03 Public Health in Humanitarian Emergencies
TM5552:03 Global Health and Development
TM5562:03 Reproductive Health in Developing Countries
TM5513:03 Public Health Management, Leadership, Planning and Policy
TM5510:03 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health
TM5557:03 Disaster Health Management
TM5526:03 Public Health Economics
Sustainable Development Planning and Policy
BZ5755:03 Climate Change and Biodiversity
EV5001:03 Environmental and Regional Planning
EV5003:03 Environmental Economics
EV5015:03 Sustainability in Practice
EV5110:03 Environmental and Social Impact Assessment
EV5301:03 Urban Geography and Design
EV5953:03 Research Methods for Global Development
LB5229:03 Economics for a Sustainable World
PL5002:03 Policy Analysis and Management
TO5004:03 Sustainable Tourism Management
WS5005:03 Social Policy Analysis
Indigenous Futures
IA5013:03 Indigenous Australians
IA5022:03 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People as Colonial Subjects
IA5029:03 Comparative Indigenous Studies
IA5030:03 Navigating the Cultural Interface
Economics, Governance and Social Change
EC5202:03 Cost Benefit Analysis
EC5216:03 Econometrics and Big Data Analysis
EC5205:03 Economic Growth and Sustainable Development
EC5206:03 Macroeconomic Policy
EC5207:03 Economics of Social Policy
EC5218:03 Economics and Sustainable Resource Management
HI5005:03 Regional Environmental History
LB5231:03 Corporate Responsibility and Governance
LB5236:03 International Political Economy
PL5110:03 Shifting Geopolitical Environments in Emerging States
PL5006:03 Political Communication; Ecology and Environmentalism
Development Leadership and Management
CP5641:03 Design Thinking Principles
SC5200:03 Career Planning
LB5241:03 Leadership Futures
LB5243:03 State Society and Governance
LB5514:03 Cross-Cultural Conflict Resolution
LB5525:03 Conflict Analysis
LB5530:03 Conflict Resolution Processes
LB5536:03 Ethical Decision Making and Reflective Practice
LB5205:03 People in Organisations
LB5240:03 Cross-Cultural Leadership
LB5500:03 Negotiation
LB5501:03 Facilitative Mediation Practice
LB5526:03 Sustainable Conflict Management
LB5714:03 Leadership and Management Skills
SC5008:03 Professional Placement
Location
COURSE AVAILABLE AT | NOTES |
JCU Cairns | |
External |
Candidature
Expected time to complete | 2 years full-time or part-time equivalent |
Maximum time to complete | 6 years |
Maximum leave of absence | 2 years |
Progression
Course progression | Nil |
Course includes mandatory professional placement(s) | No |
Course includes mandatory Fieldwork | No |
Special assessment | Must achieve a GPA of 5 or above in the first year of study to be eligible to undertake the 12 point research thesis |
Professional accreditation | Nil |
Supplementary exam for | Not applicable |
Credit
Eligibility | Students may apply for a credit transfer for previous tertiary study or informal and non-formal learning in accordance with the Credit Transfer Procedure. Credit may also be granted for the following:
* Cognate disciplines include: anthropology, geography, political science, international relations, area studies and social work ** Professional experience: Applicants must have a minimum two (2) years full-time employment in the field of Global Development, examples include: employees of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (or international equivalent), international nongovernment organisations (NGOs), indigenous organisations, local councils, social enterprises. |
Maximum allowed | 12 credit points, except where a student transfers from one JCU award to another, then credit may be granted for any subject where there is subject equivalence between the awards. |
Currency | Credit will be granted only for studies completed in the 10 years prior to the commencement of this course. |
Expiry | Credit gained for any subject shall be cancelled 16 years after the date of the examination upon which the credit is based if, by then, the student has not completed this course. |
Other restrictions | Not applicable |
Award Details
Award title | MASTER OF GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT |
Approved abbreviation | MGlobDev |
Exit with lesser award | Students who exit the course prior to completion, and have completed the relevant number of credit points and appropriate subjects, may be eligible to receive one of the following awards:
|
| Special Awards | Students may receive an Award of Recognition in accordance with the Recognition of Academic Excellence Procedure |
Estimated annual Commonwealth Supported fee: $AUD13,116.00
Estimated annual tuition fee: $AUD30,636.00
A Student Services and Amenities fee is payable per subject up to a maximum amount per year.
A variety of Scholarships are available to suit different student types.
Complete an online application through our Online Application Portal.
Real stories
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Student
Joyce Gehr
Master of Global Development
The Global Development program offered me a great blend of theoretical knowledge and opportunities for professional development through hands-on learning and work-placement opportunities. It truly made my postgraduate experience memorable, enriching, challenging and a worthwhile investment.
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Student
Markus Kaufmann
Master of Global Development
Seeking a change of career, I have decided to enrol for the Master’s program as I liked how the course was organised and the option to include a professional placement. It has been a very interesting two semesters with eye-opening and thought-provoking contributions from very engaged lecturers and guests speakers.
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Alumni
Rachel Young
Master of Global Development
Wanting a career change, I chose to study the Global Development program. The course has increased my perspective and critical understanding of what ‘development’ means and the realisation that social, political, economic and cultural inequalities are faced everywhere, not just in so-called ‘developing countries'.
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Lecturer
Dr Zoe Wang
Master of Global Development
Study on-campus or online, and embark on a transformative journey to become a catalyst for positive change in our interconnected world. Gain the in-depth knowledge and practical skills to tackle pressing global challenges, from sustainable development to social equity, and from public health to climate change.