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Global Development and Humanitarian Practice

MA or PGDip or PGCert

Find out more by joining a live webinar

Start dates: September 2025 / September 2026

Full time: MA: 12 months, PGDip: 9 months, PGCert: 3 - 9 months (depending on module choice)

Part time: MA: 24 months, PGDip: 21 months, PGCert: 9 months

Location: Headington

Department(s): School of Architecture

Overview
Course details
Careers
Entry requirements
How to apply
Tuition fees

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Overview

Development and humanitarian practice is a complex, rapidly evolving blend of issues and challenges in the 21st century. And we teach it as such. 

Study the political context of an armed conflict or natural hazard and how this can influence humanitarian efforts and human-rights-based responses. You can look at which development approaches have increased the impacts of climate change and disasters – and explore how cultural differences affect outcomes. Or gain a practical understanding of designing aid programmes, factoring in long term development goals, humanitarian imperatives and adaptive working.

You’ll investigate issues such as international human rights practices. Humanitarianism. Refugee experience. You’ll consider gender, diversity and equality; discovering what it takes to create an inclusive civil society. You’ll learn about design in emergency contexts and housing after disasters.

Your studies link to humanitarian work, international development, or NGO operations. You’ll learn critical theory, and what that means for your practices and the people you’re there to support.

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Aerial photo of natural disaster aftermath

Why Oxford Brookes University?

  • Learn from experts

    Run by the Centre for Development and Emergency Practice, the course is delivered by expert researchers and practitioners and features the latest thinking in the field. Our experienced staff don’t just teach the subject, they help you become a reflective practitioner in your field. 

  • Practice focus

    Our practice-based focus in teaching and assessments gives you access to people working in the sector and helps strengthen your employability skills. Extra-curricular opportunities and optional field trips abroad offer you first-hand knowledge of the issues you’re studying.

  • Pick your specialism

    Within the dissertation, you can choose to specialise in specific areas based on the expertise of our teaching team of researchers and practitioners.

  • Delivered by the School of Architecture

    This means we can offer unique perspectives on topics like shelter reconstruction after disasters. Or how design can resolve development and humanitarian problems.

  • Diverse classrooms

    You get to experience genuine diversity - work with students from all over the world coming from different academic disciplines, with diverse work and life experiences. 

Course details

Course structure

We’ve designed the course to cover a wide range of subjects within the fields of development and humanitarian practice. This means you can delve into not just your own area of expertise, but related topics that impact your work.

You can choose to specialise in:

  • forced migration, human rights and protection,
  • disasters, climate risks, shelter and development,
  • conflict transformation and resilience

Optional modules let you tailor the course content to fit your goals. Whatever areas you choose to focus on, you’ll develop a combination of theoretical insight and practical knowledge.

Chitrod Old after Earthquake

Learning and teaching

Your learning will be grounded in theory, case studies and field based experience. You will develop intellectual knowledge and cultivate academic skills including:

  • synthesis
  • analysis
  • interpretation
  • understanding
  • judgement.

You will focus on your approach as a practitioner. Particular reference is made to:

  • the setting in which you work - for example poverty, conflict, power and vulnerability
  • the approaches you adopt - for example community mobilisation, aid and human rights advocacy
  • yourself - the personal motivations that drive and shape your vocation, personality and temperament

You will become a more self-aware, knowledge-based practitioner, able to work flexibly around a variety of problems in different situations. These include poverty, armed conflict and disaster.

Assessment

Your assessments will be diverse, and will support different learning styles - you’ll have a real opportunity to showcase your strengths. Your learning may be assessed by a combination of individual or group coursework, examinations, and presentations. The assessment methods chosen will be based on your learning needs, individual aims and the academic standards expected for the course.

Field Trips

The course offers several field trip options each year. These usually take place in late January before the beginning of Semester 2.

Past field trip locations have included:

  • Asia (India, Thailand, Cambodia, Philippines)
  • Latin America (Peru, Colombia)
  • Middle East (West Bank)
  • Europe (Bosnia, Northern Ireland)
  • Africa (South Africa)
  • The Caribbean (Jamaica).

Please note that field trips are an additional cost to the course fee, to reflect the fact that some students prefer not to take up this option.

Study modules

The modules listed below are for the master's award. For the PGDip and PGCert awards your module choices may be different. Please contact us for more details.

Taught modules

Compulsory modules

  • Critical Inquiry in Development and Humanitarianism: theory and practice (30 credits)

    You will begin this module by interrogating the nature of development, poverty and vulnerability today, its meaning as unfolded by dominant paradigms and people’s experiences of the same. You will discuss key concepts in detail, including:

    • multidimensional measures of development and poverty
    • participation
    • vulnerability and disasters
    • human rights
    • capability and human development
    • gender and development 
    • humanitarianism-development-peace nexus, 
    • conflict sensitivity and conflict transformation. 

    You will further examine how these concepts bear upon key development and humanitarian/emergency policies. You will also reflect on the wider context of development/humanitarian governance and how they bear upon the development and humanitarian/emergency policies, practices and social justice outcomes. This analysis of wider context includes the mapping of aid actors, human rights and humanitarian actors, their roles and their effectiveness in developing just systems.

  • Research Methods and Design (10 credits)

    This module aims to advance your understanding of research, including both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Optional modules

Human rights and forced migration: International protection in the 21st century (30 credits)

The entrenchment of human rights in law, norms, and practice has had a profound impact on how we think about the international protection of particular groups of people, including refugees and other displaced populations. Through this module you will be introduced to the international frameworks, laws, norms, and institutions that exist for the protection of human rights and refugees.

You will critically engage with major policy and academic debates in the field, and build your knowledge of the complexities within the issues through innovative practice based approaches, including analysing critical issues of human rights and forced migration, and running your own campaign on a related topic. Consideration will be given to the present ‘crises’, within their global contexts, and we will consider the political, social and legal dimensions of the response in contexts around the world from multiple dimensions including gender and from marginalised groups.

Conflict, human rights and humanitarian response (30 credits)

This module will help equip you with a sound understanding of the complexity of conflict and violence issues, with conceptual frameworks and theoretical debates relating to diagnosis and responses. You will develop your analytical tools to better apprehend violent contexts of intervention and to make adequate assessments on the dilemmas you may face as practitioners. 

You will also strengthen your understanding of humanitarian and human rights responses in conflict contexts and undertake a critical analysis of international systems, standards, processes and actors that exist to protect civilians in situations of conflict. You will be learning from experts from each field, and debate key assets and assess challenges the three fields face in the current global setting. You will discuss your possible interactions and the effectiveness of the proposed solutions to overcome these challenges; and suggest how you would address these challenges in the context of current field operations. 

Homes and Communities after Disaster (30 credits)

Through this module you will analyse the scale and complexity of shelter after disaster  and examine shelter as an emerging discipline. You will look at case studies illustrating different models of shelter programming and identify the principles behind the implementation of a good shelter project. The module emphasises product - the importance of engineering and good building to reduce vulnerability; and process - the necessity for participation and a sense of ownership, always remembering that the affected families are the first responders and the most important partners. You will learn through lectures, seminars, group work, simulations and case studies of practice. You will also learn about the knowledge and practical experience that guest speakers bring to the course. 

The focus is on the importance of safe houses as a step towards immediate recovery and long-term reduction in vulnerability, placing people and the community centre stage.
 

Independent study

Optional modules

Independent Study Module (10 credits)

Candidates with research experience or with substantial practice and field experience may select a predominantly research or practice-oriented route to the MA through the independent study.

You will be required to produce a proposal and agree this with your supervisor prior to commencing work. The independent study route could include literature reviews in preparation for dissertation work, reflecting on the outcomes and successes of already implemented projects, work in progress, unconventional piece of work or research on untaught topics.

Dissertation

Compulsory modules

  • MA Dissertation (50 credits)

    This is your opportunity to undertake a self-directed piece of work and explore an issue or theme in depth. You will develop your research ideas during semester two. Your academic advisor will play the role of advisor, supporter and questioner. Your submission can be written, or you can submit an ‘unconventional dissertation’. This can include a submission that uses media that is not based on a written narrative, such as animation, performance art, etc. Recent submissions have included a manuscript for a play, a website, theatre performance and short films.

    The purpose of this dissertation is to:

    • develop research and analytical competencies 
    • promote independent thinking and working
    • look at both sides of an argument
    • follow through a topic/area of personal interest to some depth 
    • begin to define an area of focus that may assist you in your career
    • relate research and analysis to practical development/humanitarian issues 
    • explore new tools and approaches.

Please note: As our courses are reviewed regularly as part of our quality assurance framework, the modules you can choose from may vary from those shown here. The structure of the course may also mean some modules are not available to you.

Research

Research specialisations linked to the five research clusters within the School of Architecture offer cutting edge teaching from subject area experts.

The specialisations are:

  • environmental design
  • technology
  • development
  • emergency practice
  • humanities
  • architectural design.

Careers

Past students are working at international development organisations like Save the Children or the United Nations. Some have started their own agencies or aid groups. Others are continuing their academic work, with PhDs in subjects like communication during Covid, food security, climate disasters or refugee wellbeing.

The broad scope and practical nature of the course will help you thrive in any development or emergency practice role. You could enhance your current career or look for work in:

  • NGOs - international and national,
  • human rights, forced migration and development,
  • United Nations agencies and organisations,
  • governmental and commercial organisations working in development.

Of course, your critical thinking, analysis and design skills will apply to work beyond these areas too.

Related courses

Related course
Humanitarian Action and Peacebuilding
Related course
Applied Design in Architecture (ARB and RIBA part 2)
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Entry requirements

International qualifications and equivalences

How to apply

Application process


Apply now

Tuition fees

Please see the fees note
Home (UK) full time
£10,700 (Masters); £9,700 (Diploma); £5,350 (Certificate)
Home (UK) part time
£5,350
International full time
£17,350
Home (UK) full time
£11,250 (Masters); £10,250 (Diploma); £5,625 (Certificate)
Home (UK) part time
£5,625
International full time
£17,950

Questions about fees?

Contact Student Finance on:

financefees@brookes.ac.uk

Tuition fees

2024 / 25
Home (UK) full time
£10,700 (Masters); £9,700 (Diploma); £5,350 (Certificate)
Home (UK) part time
£5,350
International full time
£17,350
2025 / 26
Home (UK) full time
£11,250 (Masters); £10,250 (Diploma); £5,625 (Certificate)
Home (UK) part time
£5,625
International full time
£17,950

Questions about fees?

Contact Student Finance on:

+44 (0)1865 534400

financefees@brookes.ac.uk

Fees quoted are for the first year only. If you are studying a course that lasts longer than one year, your fees will increase each year.

The following factors will be taken into account by the University when it is setting the annual fees: inflationary measures such as the retail price indices, projected increases in University costs, changes in the level of funding received from Government sources, admissions statistics and access considerations including the availability of student support.

How and when to pay

Tuition fee instalments for the semester are due by the Monday of week 1 of each semester. Students are not liable for full fees for that semester if they leave before week 4. If the leaving date is after week 4, full fees for the semester are payable.

  • For information on payment methods please see our Make a Payment page.
  • For information about refunds please visit our Refund policy page

Additional costs

Please be aware that some courses will involve some additional costs that are not covered by your fees. Specific additional costs for this course are detailed below.

Funding your studies

Financial support and scholarships

Featured funding opportunities available for this course.

£1,000 Global Development and Humanitarian Practice Scholarship £5,000 Global Development and Humanitarian Practice Scholarship Part-Time UK Faculty Scholarship Postgraduate Master's Loan - England

All financial support and scholarships

View all funding opportunities for this course

Programme changes:
On rare occasions we may need to make changes to our course programmes after they have been published on the website. For more information, please visit our changes to programmes page.