Uganda: Development Studies

"Words could not explain how blessed I feel for the opportunity to study in Uganda, actively immersed in the culture and witnessing the triumphs and challenges of development firsthand. Surrounded by my fellow peers and SIT staff who pushed me academically and socially, my experience was full of unforgettable moments. This experience will remain one of the most enriching ones in my life and I feel so lucky to be a part of it."

-- Barbara Vi Thien Ho, University of Notre Dame

Examine current concepts, challenges, and debates in development studies in the dynamic context of Uganda.

View Complete Photo Gallery

Visit us on Facebook!

Uganda is a nation of diverse landscapes and wildlife, political and economic vitality, intellectual vibrancy, entrepreneurial innovations, and development debates. This program introduces students to the political, economic, and environmental issues surrounding development in Uganda. Students learn the historical context in which current development is taking place and study the theory of development and topics such as Uganda’s method of social service delivery, indigenous knowledge, and resource allocation.

Elective
A custom two-week elective, with a choice of focus on public health, grassroots development, gender and development, entrepreneurship and microfinance, or environment and development, provides opportunities to work with organizations such as the Kasangati Health Center, the Uganda Change Agent Association, the School of Women and Gender Studies at Makerere University, or Makerere University Business School.

Practicum
Based in Kampala, Uganda's thriving capital, the program also offers an in-depth, hands-on practicum with energetic entrepreneurs or with one of the country's many international or grassroots development agencies to provide a deeper understanding of the practice and politics of development work. To contextualize approaches to development in Uganda, the program addresses political and security issues in the Great Lakes region as well as related environmental issues.

Excursions
Students visit national parks in Uganda to focus on issues of conflict, eco-tourism, and conservation. In addition, the program takes students to neighboring Rwanda, in 1994 the location of unprecedented genocide and now a vibrant locus of economic development. Through this comparative excursion to Rwanda and field visits to rural areas of Uganda, students explore what lies beyond the rhetoric of the "development industry" and learn about the diverse strengths and needs of this changing nation and region.

Lecturers are drawn from institutions and agencies such as:

Makerere University
Uganda Change Agent Association
Sustainable Empowerment for Economic Development
Economic Policy Research Centre
Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning

Students and faculty describe their experiences on the program.

SIT Uganda alum obtains job with global nonprofit organization in Malawi. Learn more.

Dara Carroll will return to Uganda to collaborate with mental health patients

Dara Carroll, Northwestern University graduate and fall 2008 student on this SIT Study Abroad program, was awarded the Alice Rowan Swanson Fellowship, an annual award that returns SIT Study Abroad alums to their host countries to conduct development projects that benefit human rights. Dara returned to rural Uganda to advocate on behalf of Ugandans with mental illnesses and to devise a program for their rehabilitation and reintegration into society. “We’ll be collaborating to find a way to promote a model where patients are valued and seen as contributing members of the community, not just dependents,” said Carroll. Read more...

Credits: 16

Duration: 15 weeks

Program Base: Uganda, Kampala

Language Study: Luganda

Prerequisites: Coursework in development studies recommended Read more...