GVPT majors, including those in the IR concentration, are encouraged to pursue a combination with MIDCM. These two undergraduate programs are a great fit together for multiple reasons:

  • The subject matter of the programs is highly compatible. MIDCM focuses on the major challenges of human (under)development and instability observed around the world – and their intersections and interactions. These challenges are often central to the politics, governance, and policymaking that occurs at a domestic level in individual countries and throughout the international community.
  • The content and style of education in MIDCM gives students rich experience and builds capabilities that complement the traditional academic training of the GVPT major and the IR concentration. MIDCM is more problem-oriented, practical, and pre-professional in orientation. The program is geared around understanding global challenges and means of tackling them effectively and responsibly. MIDCM coursework emphasizes real-world applications linked to foundations of knowledge and theory. Learning is accomplished by progressing incrementally through assignments that are cumulative, incorporating feedback. Students often collaborate in teams on projects, consulting with external clients, mentors, and stakeholders. Course activities are tailored with workplaces and jobs in mind, cultivating marketable, versatile skills. MIDCM thereby provides a distinctive specialization that blends well with the broad-based disciplinary expertise from GVPT.

 

Please feel free to contact the GVPT Advising Office (gvptadvising [at] umd.edu) and the MIDCM advisors (midcminfo [at] umd.edu) with any questions about combining a GVPT or GVPT/IR major with MIDCM.