What is development studies? Is it worth studying? (1 Viewer)

[Hi5]

I wanna work for NGOs and international org like the un, so im thinking of studying bachelor of international development studies at the ACU i. Strathfield... What do u think? Please help.. I like working for human rights departments doing office works but i dont wanna study HRM. What if i study B of international development studies and then i cant find job to work of any organisations because i dont have experience and the fact that english is my second language.. Thats why im having second thoughts between this and B of arts or liberal arts

 

[wannaspoon]

seriously, your not going to do yourself any favours by doing something you don't want to do... Do something you think you will like...

 

[Hi5]

Yea i know that but in reality its different if i cant find a job.. I havent even worked anywhere in my life before so it will be hard later on after i graduate to get employed.. I like the international develop. Studies. but confused

 

[Michelle Lin]

Ask your school career's counsellor?

 

[AsyLum]

Whatever degree you do may or may not get you a job directly, its really about what you opportunities you take that will be more help.

As for dev studies and ngo stuff, you'll find yourself more disillusioned with NGOs and their lack of impact than anything. Not to say it's not a good thing but dev studies and human geo stuff is moving away from NGOs and doing more local solutions for local problems

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

 

[donnawhite]

Whatever degree you do may or may not get you a job directly, its really about what you opportunities you take that will be more help.

Yes , i really agree with you. Degree is only a prove of your qualification and its actually your skills which give make you perfect for a job.

 

[johnson]

I just started working with AusAID, so I might be able to shed a little light on how to 'get into' the industry. I use the phrase lightly because there really isn't a standard path to get into international development, and it certainly is nothing to do with your qualification. Nearly everyone in the industry has a degree in international relations/development/affairs, so these days you generally need to get a Master degree if you want to specialise. And you really should specialise, if you want to break into the industry. I'm an architect by profession and got into where I am now because of my specialist background.

The UN is extremely hard to get into. Each year they run an international competitive exam for graduates, called the YPP exam. I sat least year's exam (they happened to be looking for architects), 45,000+ people applied, around 5000+ got to sit the exam, around 200 are getting interviewed and less than 100 people will be offered jobs. 100 out of 45,000. If you are one of the lucky few that get a job in the UN, be prepared to move around the posts every 2 years, and to not have much stability in your life.

If you really are interested in getting into the development sector, then a B of international development is fine to start off with, but I would recommend finding a niche specialty, doing volunteer work overseas with NGOs, and applying for AYAD programs (AusAID funded volunteer programs) once you get some experience.