Masterstudium i internasjonal utvikling, utdanning og bærekraft Programplan

The Master’s Programme in International Development, Education, and Sustainabilities is a study programme that provides qualifications needed for work in the broad field of international development, including work on development programs and projects focused on economic and social development and/or on education and/or on ecological sustainability, at multiple levels of scale (local, national, regional, international). Such work extends to educators, to policy analysts / policy makers and practitioners, working within the INGO sector or other agencies, with a particular focus on the Global South and / or on Global North-South dynamics. The programme also qualifies students for admission to relevant PhD programmes, for example the PhD Programme in Educational Sciences at OsloMet.

Students who complete the programme will be awarded the degree Master in International Development, Education, and Sustainabilities.

The target group for the programme is broad, including those with a background in development studies, in teaching / education, and in ecological sustainability; with an interest in the intersections between these fields.

Reference is made to the Regulations relating to Admission to Studies at OsloMet.

To apply for the Master’s Programme in International Development, Education, and Sustainabilities program, you need either:

• a bachelor’s degree in education: either in early childhood education, preschool, primary / elementary school, secondary school, higher education, pedagogy, or equivalent; or

• a bachelor’s degree in development studies or other relevant social science disciplines (other relevant social science disciplines include human geography, sociology, social anthropology, political science, social economics, history and area studies that cover developing regions or other development-related areas).

In addition, you need:

• an average grade of at least C (according to the ECTS grading scale) on your bachelor's degree; and
• proof of your English proficiency

Applicants pre-selected through the NORHED funded CENSU programme (or equivalent) may also qualify with a bachelor’s degree in disciplines other than the above, subject to special review by OsloMet and partnering universities (for example a bachelor’s degree in the sciences more broadly, relevant to program themes of environmentally sustainable development). These candidates will compete in an additional quota and be selected as a result of a spesific selection process at partnering universities.

After completing the programme, the candidate is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The candidate

• has broad knowledge of and insight into various educational, social, economic, political, and ecological dynamics, in relation to questions of international development in the Global South.
• has in-depth knowledge of and is capable of applying social science research methodology.
• has knowledge of how issues in the broad field of international education and development can be analysed, and is capable of critically assessing the history, traditions, and practices of disciplinary perspectives within the interdisciplinary field.

Skills

The candidate

• is capable of applying and analysing multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to studies of international development, education, and sustainabilities.
• is capable of critically analysing and assessing various issues linked to the relationship between education, development, and sustainabilities, and of conducting research studies of relevant connections across these fields.
• is capable of contributing to the research knowledge base within these fields.
• is capable of developing and articulating informed, and critically reflective, statements about relevant issues and topics addressed in the program.

General competence

The candidate

• is capable of analysing relevant academic issues and undertaking advanced work tasks and projects related to the interdisciplinary field of study.
• is capable of disseminating their own research in written and oral form, in accordance with relevant academic forms and standards.
• is capable of contributing to innovation and development in their particular area of study.

The programme is organised as a two-year, full-time, programme of study. The master’s degree programme emphasises independence, process and progress. Therefore, teaching varies between lectures, seminars, presentations and supervision. Student active learning and discussions in large or small groups are central, as well as writing essays/scholarly papers. Project descriptions of the master’s thesis are prepared and presented at thesis seminars in the second semester. The independent research project is carried out in the second year under academic supervision.

Students are encouraged to be open and humble in relation to new fields of knowledge. By challenging students to use their own experience, different theoretical frames of reference, and place perspectives in new contexts, the programme will help to enhance the visibility and value of focusing on the relationship between education, international development, and sustainabilities. The programme’s interdisciplinary approach will make the students proficient at understanding and analysing specific topics in a broader and interdisciplinary context.

The study programme focuses on international phenomena, systems, and relationships, and the study environment is international with students recruited from all over the world. The composition of the student group and the fact that classes are taught in English help the students to gain international experience and international perspectives.

In addition to the international academic environment throughout the programme, the students are encouraged to conduct fieldwork in the Global South, if feasible and appropriate, and to include an explicit Global South (North-South dynamic) dimension in their research project. International fieldwork may also be combined with a study exchange stay at a university abroad, where appropriate.

There is a requirement of at least 80% attendance in all first year courses. The programme emphasises student participation, dialogue, and cooperative learning, which depends upon attendance and active participation in class. The composition of the student group, with both international students and students from Norway, as well as various academic and professional backgrounds, is an excellent resource for our international and intercultural learning, which are core values in the programme. The rich and important opportunities that this offers is lost if students do not attend classes.

The coursework requirements are described in the individual course descriptions. All absence, irrespective of reason, is included when compulsory attendance is approved. In special cases where this requirement is unreasonable in relation to the student, documented sickness absence, for example, can be assessed and, if applicable, compensatory measures can be agreed. Absence in excess of the limit may be made up for by a written assignment by agreement with the person responsible for the course.

The required coursework must be submitted/completed by the stipulated deadlines. Absence for a valid reason (documented for example with a medical certificate) does not exempt students from meeting the coursework requirements. Students who fail to submit/meet the coursework requirements by the deadline, and have approved grounds for this failure, can be given an extended deadline. A new deadline for submitting/completing required coursework must be agreed with the lecturer in question in each individual case.

The required coursework is assessed as approved/not approved. Students who submit required coursework/meet the coursework requirements by the deadline, but whose work is assessed as not approved, will be given up to two opportunities to resubmit/redo the work. In such cases, the students themselves must agree with the lecturer on a re-assessment of the coursework in question.

The master's degree programme is aimed at candidates with at least a three-year bachelor's degree in civil engineering, who want a solid professional and academic extension to their education in the fields of structural engineering, building technology, transport infrastructure engineering, geotechnical engineering or smart water process and infrastructure engineering.

The programme is also suitable for candidates holding a degree in mechanical engineering, marine engineering, chemical engineering or other engineering fields.

Reference is made to the Regulations relating to Admission to Studies at OsloMet. https://lovdata.no/dokument/SF/forskrift/2015-12-15-1681

1) Admission to all study directions in the master's degree programme requires:

Bachelor's degree in engineering

25 ECTS in mathematics

7.5 ECTS in physics, solid mechanics, building physics and/or thermodynamics

5 ECTS in statistics

An average grade of at least C (according to the ECTS grading scale) on your bachelor´s degree

Proof of your English proficiency: one of the following:

• English from a Norwegian or Nordic upper secondary school and a bachelor's degree from Norway or the Nordic countries
• at least 4 in English from Norwegian upper secondary school

2) Special requirements for the study directions:

Structural Engineering

Bachelor´s degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering or marine engineering

20 credits in mechanics, statics or other courses in the field of structural engineering

Building Technology

Bachelor´s degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering or energy & environment in buildings

Transport Infrastructure Engineering

Bachelor´s degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering or marine engineering

Geotechnical Engineering

Bachelor´s degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering, marine engineering or equivalent engineering discipline.

Smart Water Engineering

Bachelor´s degree in civil engineering, environmental engineering, electronic engineering, mechanical engineering, electronic engineering, chemical engineering or marine engineering