Anthropology of International Development and Humanitarian Assistance MSc

at Brunel Business School

Over the last ten years, global aspirations to reduce the suffering of the ‘bottom billion’ have led to unprecedented attention on international development. International agencies, governments and NGOs are working more intensely than ever before to deliver appropriate policies and interventions.
 

Anthropology has played a key role in the emergence of new perspectives on humanitarian assistance and the livelihoods of populations caught up in extreme circumstances such as famines, natural disasters and wars.
 

On the one hand, this has led to a radical re-thinking of what has been happening, but on the other hand, it has led to anthropologists sometimes playing controversial roles in agendas associated with the ‘war on terror’.
 

This course will provide you with insight into contemporary issues and debates and explores their implications. It also sets them in the context of anthropology as a discipline.
 

The course will appeal to graduates from a variety of backgrounds, including anthropology, sociology, economics, politics, geography, law and development studies. It is suited for those interested in critically assessing the policies and practices of international development and humanitarian assistance to war-affected regions from an anthropological perspective.
 

Anthropology at Brunel is well-known for its focus on ethnographic fieldwork. As well as undertaking rigorous intellectual training, you will be expected to get out of the library and undertake your own, original research – whether in the UK or overseas – and to present your findings in a dissertation.