Program in Brief

This Program fosters professionals who will be able to take leadership roles in planning and analyzing policies for state building and economic development based on knowledge and analytical skills of economics and political science.

• Program Director: Professor Kazushi Takahashi
• Degree Offered: PhD in International Development Studies
• Language of Instruction: English
• Program Duration: 3 years
• Enrollment: October
• Graduation: September

General Description

The State Building and Economic Development (SBED) Program is an interdisciplinary program designed for students who have a master’s degree in an area of social science and are interested in interactions between politics and the economy in developing countries and emerging economies. The Program aims to develop talented individuals who are capable of research and policy formulation requiring advanced knowledge of political science and economics and who will play key roles in democratic governance internationally.

GRIPS implemented the Global COE Program entitled “The Transferability of East Asian Development Strategies and State Building” from 2008 to 2012, in which economists and political scientists promoted joint studies and fostered young researchers and technocrats who would design policies based on the knowledge gained from the results of the advanced studies. The PhD program represents one of the achievements of the Global COE Program and is designed to continue and expand upon the human resource development initiated by the Global COE Program.

During the first year of this Program, students take courses in economics, history, and political science intensively to acquire advanced knowledge and analytical skills at the PhD level of proficiency. From the second year, students concentrate on field work, archival research, analysis, and writing to earn a degree in three years. All courses in the Program are offered in English. The dissertation, also to be written in English, must be relevant to state building and economic development, demonstrate a capacity for making original and significant contributions to the existing knowledge base, and deal with a policy issue or have a policy implication. Students who fulfill the requirements will be conferred a PhD in International Development Studies.

In this Program, the advisory committee for each student includes faculty members in economics, history, and political science in order to develop individuals with multiple points of view and analytical skills in these fields. To help students acquire a good sense of what is actually happening on the ground in developing countries and emerging economies, each advisory committee, comprising faculty members with a wealth of relevant experience in the field, will encourage and assist students to conduct field work of their own. The committee not only guides students in the research process of planning, data collection, analysis, and writing but also helps them to publish journal articles and books.

Prospective Applicants

From 2019, prospective applicants should submit their applications to the G-cube Program. Further information and guidelines may be obtained from the GRIPS website or the Admissions Office.

State Building and Economic Development Program Curriculum 2018/2019

Graduates

Over the past decade, 55 students from 19 countries have studied under the Program and its predecessor, the Global Center of Excellence Program (The Transferability of East Asian Development Strategies and State Building). Graduates from the Program are actively involved in policy-making and policy analysis in governmental institutions, universities, private research institutes, and international organizations.

Prominent Alumni

• Dr. Edwin Paul Mhede（Graduated in 2018）

　　 Deputy Permanent Secretary
Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Tanzania

Interview HERE

• Dr. Aiko Kikkawa（Graduated in 2017）

　　 Economist
Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department
Asian Development Bank (ADB)

Interview HERE

Current Students Profile (As of October 2021)

Japan

Myanmar

Philippines

Republic of Korea

USA