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International Development (ID) is a science that embraces the interdisciplinary theories and practices of improving the quality of life of people in the developing world. The ID program emphasizes a comprehensive approach to standard international development analysis by incorporating not just economic, but social, environmental, and cultural dimensions as well. ID, as a field of study, is relatively new. It emerged from critiques of post-World War II programs designed to alleviate poverty and promote economic, democratic and social development in second and third world countries after independence. ID studies, therefore, promote a cross-disciplinary understanding of economics, sociology, political science, anthropology and language, among others.
Courses will be taken in various departments in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) college as well as in at the Payson Center for International Development and Technology Transfer.
The goal of the coordinate major in ID is to provide students with an education firmly rooted in the liberal arts tradition, while also providing them with a focused and international framework for analyzing current international development. A student in the ID program will graduate with a sophisticated understanding of contemporary global issues, especially as they pertain to the developing world.
This coordinate major program in ID is designed to complement other majors while drawing upon international courses in the social sciences, arts and humanities. The program is designed around the convergence of the traditional social sciences and ID thought and practice. The coordinate major program will cater to those students whose general interests are international and interdisciplinary.
The Payson Center was established by the Tulane Board of Administrators as part of the Office of the President in 1997. This center houses a program for teaching, research and service using the latest technology and focuses on important value-added applications of information technology in ID.
The Payson Center carries on the Tulane tradition of offering a wide variety of students access to teaching and research in the field of ID. The Center offers a multidisciplinary M.S. and Ph.D. in International Development in conjunction with the Payson Center, on campuses in both New Orleans and Washington, D.C.
The Payson Center has the primary responsibility for administering this program, under the leadership of a Director and the steering committee.
Dr. Eamon Kelly, former Tulane President for 17 years is the Executive Director of the Payson Center and support is provided from Sheila Favalora, Senior Program Manager.
Please visit the Undergraduate Requirements page here.
First, students must declare a major in another department before declaring INDV as a major. The student advisor and faculty will meet with students in the program at least once a semester to discuss their degree status in order to ensure progress toward the completion of the degree.
Core and affiliated faculty from the Payson Center consortium will teach core courses for the coordinate major and minor. Concentration courses are taught by faculty drawn from other departments and centers throughout the college of LAS.
In addition, multidisciplinary faculty affiliated with the Payson Center who are trained in economics, political science, sociology, public health, education, environmental studies, geography and other ID related fields are teaching many of the courses and are available for student advising. Many of these instructors bring with them abundant and diverse experience in the field of ID and ID studies. For example, some have teaching experience in U.S. universities and universities abroad; some are principal investigators of large grant ID funded research programs with an ID scope; and some have primary financial and administrative officer responsibilities with large development-oriented programs for projects in the U.S. and abroad.
In addition to passing a competency exam, we strongly encourage students to study a foreign language. This can be done abroad in a summer, semester or year long program. Depending on program participation, the number of credits for a foreign language will vary. The goal is a spoken proficiency in a foreign language, preferably one that is spoken in many countries of the developing world (e.g. French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin, etc) - other languages will be considered upon petition. Spoken proficiency is defined according to criteria established by ACTFL and the Payson Center. Students will be tested in the same fashion as they currently are at Tulane for meeting proficiency requirements. Students who do not study abroad must take at least 6 credits of a foreign language at or above the 203 level; however, students who enter into the program already fluent in a foreign language may test out of this requirement although they will be encouraged to gain proficiency in a third language.
Tulane’s Junior year Abroad/Junior Semester Abroad (JYA/JSA) programs are administered through the Center for International Studies. The following programs fit well with our language requirements and development topic needs:
The Payson Center takes great pride in creating a knowledge database that facilitates learning and research that is easily accessible to any student at any time. As a result, the Payson Center has created several resource facilities for students: 1) a series of full-text, searchable, and distributable libraries containing over 5000 volumes on CD-Rom (in collaboration with the Global Help Project); 2) the Payson Center computer laboratory, which is equipped with the most up-to-date hardware and software, including GIS software and Geo-referenced databases, the World Bank databank, Human Development References on CD-Rom, statistical software packages, and more; 3) the Payson Center reading area which has substantial references on the topics of ID, information technology, and knowledge and education for development.
Much of the motivation to create an undergraduate program in ID comes from the success of the Payson Center’s M.S. and Ph.D. graduates. The Payson Center has forged strong relationships with both national and international development institutions which have employed our graduates in ID projects around the world. Undergraduate students who graduate from this program stand to benefit greatly from this reputation. Given the increasing demand for liberally educated, internationally oriented professionals in both the public and private sectors, including non-governmental organizations, graduates with the coordinate major will most likely encounter few obstacles to employment. Most of the students who have completed the graduate level degrees through the Payson Center are already occupying positions in leading development organizations. More information is available upon request.
May-98 Brian Donaldson Medecins Sans Frontieres
May-99 Mark Austin The World Bank
May-99 William Cameron The Payson Center
May-99 Candace Chandra The World Bank
May-99 Francisco Lamus La Fundación FES, Colombia
May-99 Ana Maria Cruz Tulane Graduate School, Ph.D. Program
Aug-99 Gustavo Bahamon Universidad del Valle, Colombia
Aug-99 Aristides Baraya Southeastern University (LA)
Aug-99 Luz Escobar Southeastern University (LA)
Aug-99 Nora Laverde Universidad del Valle, Colombia
Dec-99 Margarita Echeverri Inter-American Development Bank
Dec-99 Tam Nguyen Inter-American Development Bank
Dec-99 Bruce White U.S. Agency for International Development
Dec-99 Ryan Lawton U.S. Marine Corps
May-00 Brenda Barrett The Payson Center
May-00 Kathryn Lasso Plan International
May-00 Anne McEnany Environmental Defense Center
May-00 Jana Wooden U.S. Peace Corps
May-00 Bob Verbruggen German Cooperation, Ghana
August-00 Kevin Kehus Habitat for Humanity
May-01 Phuong Pham, Payson Center
Dec-02 Linh Cu Le, University of Hanoi, School of Public Health
May-03 Eliel Oliveira, Tulane School of Public Health
May-04 Patrick Vinck, Tulane University and Univ. of California, Berkeley
Dec-04 Gloria Toro, University de Valle
Dec.-04 Gloria Lwakabamba, The Clinton Foundation
Aug-05 Scott Friedman, URS
Dec-05 Jon Ferris-Childers, International Rescue Committee
Dec.-05 Heather Buck, Freeport McMoran, Inc.
May-06 Bich Tran, University of Hanoi, School of Public Health
May-06 Cuong Pham, University of Hanoi, School of Public Health
May-06 Elke deBuhr, Payson Center
May-06 Lissie Mo, Eltek Energy
• Doctors Without Borders • United States Agency for International Development
(USAID) • The World Bank • The International Monetary Fund (IMF) • Habitat for Humanity • The Carter Center • United States Peace Corps • Plan International • Conservation International• Environmental Defense Center • International Red Cross • United Nations • Pan-American Health Organization • Counterpart • Chemonics • World Health Organization • Save the Children • Care • World Wildlife Fund • The Nature Conservancy • Citibank • Accion • JHPIEGO • Abt Associates • Academy of Educational Development • US Forest Service • Rand Corporation
Eamon M. Kelly, PhD, Executive Director,
Sheila Favalora, Senior Program Manager
Payson Center for International Development and Technology Transfer
300 Hebert Hall. Tulane University
New Orleans, Louisiana
70118-5687
Phone (504) 865-5240 or (504) 314-2991
Fax (504) 865-5241
