Development Studies – A world of realistic possibilities!

 

By Prof Shalabh Mittal

Look around. What do you see? People – starting to think; to care. Pick up a newspaper; what do you read? People – starting to act; to protest. Flick the TV channels. What do you see? Actually, on second thoughts turn the TV off again! All around you, you’d notice a wave of awakening, an upsurge of discontent; of helplessness. Haven’t you sometimes lost hope and felt frustrated at your inability to make things better? You don’t have to anymore. In the age of complaining, you can actually do something.

 

There is a new course in the market, and it makes sure the youth is equipped with instruments to bring about ‘Change’. Of the many fundamentals and theories, the Development Studies course imbibes Mahatma Gandhi’s principle – Be the change you want to see in the world. It’s time for action as passive aggressiveness hasn’t done any good, and will continue to hamper progress in the near future. If you’re one of those people who think one single person can make a huge difference or if you want to be a hero in the true sense, then this course is cut out for you. 

 

Development Studies (DS) may be considered an MBA equivalent course that creates social entrepreneurs. Social entrepreneurship is a gutsy, enterprising and challenging concept. Development Studies not only helps fulfill your creative need and social responsibility, but also fills up your pockets to the extent you desire. Yes, your remuneration depends on you, what type of responsibility you take up in a given interest window decides how much money you get to take home.

 

People making a career choice have often had to choose between helping people out, prestige, money, and education. The DS course blends in all these aspects together, giving you the satisfaction of helping people out while making good money, and enjoying the prestige and knowledge gained in the process.

 

You can choose from the following work options:

• Non-governmental aid organisations: You can work in Third World countries on development projects, or in Western countries running campaigns, lobbying, raising money, and development education. For example: Oxfam and Amnesty International.

 

• The CSR divisions: You can opt to work with the biggest corporate houses, such as ITC, Axis with their corporate social responsibility divisions.

 

• International development institutions: You can work for international organisations such as the United Nations and the World Bank.

 

• Government policy: You can work in the public service dept. at all levels developing policy and programs concerning development and aid. For example: AusAid.

 

• University research: You can continue studying in the university doing postgraduate research, or work as an academic teaching and researching in development studies. For example: Centre for Development Studies and the National Centre for Development Studies.

 

• Consultancy: You can work as a kind of freelance expert for various organisations on various projects. For example: SAGRIC International.  

 

About the author:

Prof Shalabh Mittal is faculty & PG program coordinator for PGDM-DS (Post Graduate Diploma in Management - Development Studies) at Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI) located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He is also Thrust Area Coordinator - Centre for Social Entrepreneurship & CSR at EDI.