The department is a lively community that is recognised internationally as one of the top centres for research and teaching in development studies.

Our courses offer excellent training for a career in international development or for advanced study, and attract students of the highest calibre from across the world.
“I had waited for 10 years before my dream to study in Oxford became a reality and the experience was truly beyond expectation”
Our students are taught to develop as critical and independent thinkers and when they leave us they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to bring about real change.
“My time at Oxford strengthened my critical analysis and provided me with a unique interdisciplinary grounding in history, politics and economics that has equipped me well in dealing with public policy issues and program development strategy.”
Our courses offer excellent training for a career in international development or for advanced study, and attract students of the highest calibre from across the world.
“I had waited for 10 years before my dream to study in Oxford became a reality and the experience was truly beyond expectation”
Our courses offer excellent training for a career in international development or for advanced study, and attract students of the highest calibre from across the world.
“I had waited for 10 years before my dream to study in Oxford became a reality and the experience was truly beyond expectation”
Our students are taught to develop as critical and independent thinkers and when they leave us they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to bring about real change.
“My time at Oxford strengthened my critical analysis and provided me with a unique interdisciplinary grounding in history, politics and economics that has equipped me well in dealing with public policy issues and program development strategy.”
Our students are taught to develop as critical and independent thinkers and when they leave us they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to bring about real change.
“My time at Oxford strengthened my critical analysis and provided me with a unique interdisciplinary grounding in history, politics and economics that has equipped me well in dealing with public policy issues and program development strategy.”
Congratulations to Professor Alexander Betts who completed the Boston Marathon last week and in the process set a world record for running all six of the world’s major marathons within a single 'series' with the fastest combined time.
The series is known as the Abbott World Marathon Majors and comprises the London, Berlin, Chicago, New York, Tokyo and Boston marathons. Series XI ran between April 2017 and April 2018. Professor Betts’ average time across the series was 2 hours and 41 minutes. It also made him the 8th fastest overall finisher of all six marathons.
Professor Betts was running the marathons to raise money for Asylum Welcome, an Oxford-based refugee charity, and has now raised over £2,000. He wrote about the series, his motivation for running, and the links to his day job in a piece about the London Marathon published in Sunday's Observer.
Alexander Betts is Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs at ODID.