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Environment, Politics and Development MSc

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Our Environment, Politics and Development MSc programme provides an advanced theoretical understanding of the relationship between development problems and environmental issues. You will explore these relationships from the perspectives of political ecology, development geography and environmental governance. To illustrate these relationships, we use relevant case studies drawn from across the globe.

Key benefits

  • Learn and interact with academic staff that have first-hand experience of development problems and environmental issues in contexts from around the globe.
  • Appreciate critically the distinct disciplinary approaches to a dynamic and contested body of knowledge on development, politics and the environment
  • Develop awareness of contemporary development issues, problems and policies through engagement with development theory
  • Enhance understanding of framing and problem-solving challenges at the interface of environment and development with learning of political theory, political science and political ecology theories and environmental justice lenses
  • Gain critical analytical skills to uncover reciprocal relationships between changing natural environments and dynamic livelihood strategies, or the nature of power, difference and inequality within economic, social, physical and cultural environments
  • Develop interdisciplinary understanding of the ways in which the human and physical world is revealed through representations of space, place and landscape
  • Access opportunities to carry out original fieldwork either in the UK or overseas for your dissertation
  • An optional internship module helps students take their first steps towards employment in a relevant vocational field.

I find many attractive things about King’s particularly the huge community of talented global students from whom I have gained invaluable insight into their rich cultural and built lifelong relationships. Kings facilities such as the academic libraries IT services and extensive dedicated student support services are world class!

George, Environment, Politics and Development MSc

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Employability

On completion of the Environment, Politics and Development MSc programme you will have attained a range of knowledge and skills appropriate to careers in research, management and consultancy in organisations engaged in the environment and development field in developing countries, as well as generic skills opening the way to more general employment opportunities for M-level graduates.

Many of our graduates have gone on to undertake further graduate study and work as research assistants for international development agencies. There are also good career opportunities with government agencies, international and national non-governmental organisations and academic research institutes.

Our ever-popular Internship module, which has been running for over 20 years, helps master’s students take their first steps towards employment, offering opportunities to undertake a period of work with an organisation broadly related to their programme of study. The internship not only provides valuable career enhancing opportunities but also counts towards their degrees. In 2021-22, over 150 students worked with 60 different organisations across a range of sectors including: international agencies; local councils and national government departments; companies in the for-profit and not-for-profit sector, research institutes and charities. As well as UK organisations, partners also included Belgium, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany and the United States.

Curious to find out more? Access on-demand content including taster lectures and talks, and meet our current staff and students on our subject hub page.

Our professional network

Where can a degree like this take you? Hear from 2022 graduate Nikhil Kapila:

Role: Policy Officer at Defra

I work in the International Biodiversity and Climate directorate, on international sustainable agriculture and land use. I mainly manage a project which supports small and medium sized farmers in their transition to lower carbon agriculture methods in Brazil. I wouldn’t be in this role without Kings. The content in the modules I studied provided the most incredible foundational understanding for my role. 

Nikhil's top career tip:

Don’t ever give up, there is always something better just around the corner. 

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Employability

On completion of the Environment, Politics and Development MSc programme you will have attained a range of knowledge and skills appropriate to careers in research, management and consultancy in organisations engaged in the environment and development field in developing countries, as well as generic skills opening the way to more general employment opportunities for M-level graduates.

Many of our graduates have gone on to undertake further graduate study and work as research assistants for international development agencies. There are also good career opportunities with government agencies, international and national non-governmental organisations and academic research institutes.

Our ever-popular Internship module, which has been running for over 20 years, helps master’s students take their first steps towards employment, offering opportunities to undertake a period of work with an organisation broadly related to their programme of study. The internship not only provides valuable career enhancing opportunities but also counts towards their degrees. In 2021-22, over 150 students worked with 60 different organisations across a range of sectors including: international agencies; local councils and national government departments; companies in the for-profit and not-for-profit sector, research institutes and charities. As well as UK organisations, partners also included Belgium, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany and the United States.

Curious to find out more? Access on-demand content including taster lectures and talks, and meet our current staff and students on our subject hub page.

Our professional network

Where can a degree like this take you? Hear from 2022 graduate Nikhil Kapila:

Role: Policy Officer at Defra

I work in the International Biodiversity and Climate directorate, on international sustainable agriculture and land use. I mainly manage a project which supports small and medium sized farmers in their transition to lower carbon agriculture methods in Brazil. I wouldn’t be in this role without Kings. The content in the modules I studied provided the most incredible foundational understanding for my role. 

Nikhil's top career tip:

Don’t ever give up, there is always something better just around the corner. 

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