Tata Institute of Social Sciences M.A Development Studies 2016 - 18
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Tata Institute of Social Sciences M.A Development Studies 2016 - 18 “ Together we change ” Tata Institute of Social Sciences, V.N. Purav Marg, Deonar, Mumbai - 400088. INDEX Director’s Message 02 Dean’s Message 03 Placement Coordinator’s Message 04 Course Coordinator Message 05 Message From Prof. Mohan Rao 06 School of Development Studies 07 Centres 08 Course Description 09 Faculty List 10 IBTEDA - Annual SDS Conclave 11 MS Gore Policy Research Group 12 Events 13 Alumni Messages 15 Why Recruit us? 16 Student Prole 17 Past Recruiters 35 Internship 36 Placement Process 37 Tata Institute of Social Sciences The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) was established in 1936 as the Sir Dorabji Tata Graduate School of Social Work. In 1944, it was renamed as the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. The year 1964 was an important landmark in the history of the Institute, as it was declared as a deemed university under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act (UGC), 1956. Since its inception, the Vision of the TISS has been to be an institution of excellence in higher education that continually responds to changing social realities through the development and application of knowledge, towards creating a people-centred, ecologically sustainable and just society that promotes and protects dignity, equality, social justice and human rights for all. TISS is a unique institution that brings together high quality scholars and practitioners from Social, Economic, Political, Physical, Habitat, Engineering, Health, Environmental Sciences to create teaching and research programmes to address the most critical current and emerging issues of the nation. It is one of the key universities supported by the UGC/ Ministry of Human Resource Development in the disciplinary and inter-disciplinary areas of Social Sciences that provides teaching and research to build human service professionals for the social sector. The country requires a few million trained quality professionals to work in Education, Health, Water and Sanitation, Livelihoods, Entrepreneurship, Rural and Urban Development, Disasters Management, Mental Health, Climate Change, and other critical issues. Over the years, the Institute has made consistent contributions to civil society and the development sector through its education, research, field action and extension. Today, TISS has earned recognition as an institution of repute from different Ministries of GoI; various State Governments; international agencies such as the United Nations; and the non-government sector, both national and international. A high degree of freedom and autonomy shape the positive work ethos and creativity in the Institute facilitating strong linkages between education, research, field action and dissemination. 01 MA Development Studies 2016-18 From The Director’s Desk At TISS, the multidisciplinary Development Studies program engages with a multitude of approaches and contemporary theories in the social sciences that deal with development perspectives, policies and practice. The sphere of development professionals has been a vastly expanding and diversifying sphere. These professionals are being increasingly called upon to undertake policy related analyses and work on a wide range of issues that affect the livelihoods of people. They have to continuously engage with policy makers, economic planners and various actors in national/international negotiations, such as those related to trade. The coursework at TISS is capable of equipping students to participate in these new opportunities. In the Development Studies program, TISS admits students with excellent academic and extra-curricular credentials from varying disciplinary backgrounds. These students graduate with social awareness, strong theoretical and analytical skills to make meaningful contributions as employees of local, national and international organisations and business involved in development, as researchers, and analysts and pursue academic careers. Prof. S. Parasuraman Director TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES 02 MA Development Studies 2016-18 From The Dean’s Desk Greetings from the School of Development Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. I am very happy to introduce you to the Master's programme in Development Studies at TISS, Mumbai. Today's social scientists, across the world, are increasingly looking at convergences across disciplines. Inter-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary approaches are the new frontiers in development research. Development Studies stands apart as an extremely important field of study in this contemporary cross-disciplinary canvas. The Master's programme in Development Studies in TISS, which was initiated in 2006-07, was arguably the first of its kind in India. It is a theoretically sophisticated, empirically grounded and cross-disciplinary programme that aims to address the ever growing needs of applied research. During the two years of their study, the students of Development Studies engage with theories and concepts in their classrooms, relate them to concrete situations in the field through internships and undertake rigorous research through their dissertations. An important feature of our programme is that it attempts to equip the students with training in skills that they can put to use in any challenging situation either in the field or in the policy sphere. Our students, thus, make smooth transitions from the world of studentship to the world of professional work. Our alumni have been acclaimed in their work with policy bodies, advocacy groups, field-level organisations, governments and the private sector. Many have also moved further up in the field of higher education, pursuing their advanced degrees in some of the best universities of the world. Elders among them have started exciting academic careers as faculty members in social science departments. I keep receiving copies of meticulously prepared national reports on multiple socioeconomic issues in India; I am no longer surprised at often finding a former student of Development Studies among its distinguished contributors. If you are in search of talent that is broad, diverse and inclusive with respect to world view, advanced with respect to skills, analytically rigorous with respect to research and consistently evidence-based with respect to advocacy and policy analysis, I am sure that the Development Studies programme in TISS, Mumbai is where you should look. I welcome you to visit us, meet our students and explore how we can work together to make this world a better place to live in. Prof. R. Ramkumar NABARD Chair Professor Dean, School Of Development Studies TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES 03 MA Development Studies 2016-18 From The Placement Coordinator Welcome to the School of Development Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai-Campus. It gives me great pleasure in inviting you to our school’s Placement process for the Masters in Development Studies programme. Initiated in 2006-07, this programme was the first of its kind in India. It has expanded the frontiers of social sciences with an interdisciplinary orientation, where influences of economics, political sciences, sociology, law and humanities converge to explain developmental issues. Over the past 12 years, over 450 students have graduated from the school and have attained acclaimed positions in research, academia and policy making. The M.A Development Studies progamme is a unique mix of theory and practice. Over four semesters, students are taught various philosophies and theories of development and are oriented extensively on rural development and agrarian economy, industrial and labour economy, social exclusion, poverty, inequality and human development, social sectors (including nutrition and education), public finance, urban development, climate change and sustainability. Several intermediate and advanced-level methodological courses train students in quantitative and qualitative techniques. A unique feature of the course is the dissertation, mandatory for all students to complete in the two-year period. Through this, students identify a key issue of development, problematise it, define a research design, collect/analyse data and use various tools to analyse and develop their thesis on them. Our students are trained to be highly proficient in research and analytical thinking. Though not compulsory, we encourage our students to pursue internship. Thus, they gain work experience in the development sector. This year’s M.A Development Studies Batch (2016-18) is a young and promising batch of 38 students, extremely diverse and committed to the development sector. They have thematic expertise in a range of areas. Over the years, our students have been preferred over students from other institutions and establishments for research positions at various organisations, as they demonstrate clarity of concept and rigorous analytical skills. I welcome you to visit us, meet and interact with our students and explore ways in which we can collectively make the world a better place to live in. Yours Sincerely Dr. Sandhya S. Iyer Associate Professor & Placement Coordinator Sharp focus on concepts, application and methods; our M.A. Development Studies students are equipped to be part of development careers across government, non-government, private organisations 04 MA Development Studies 2016-18 From The Course Coordinator’s Desk The MA in Development Studies program offered at TISS is unique. The course was designed using an interdisciplinary approach