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Seminar/Tutorial:
This hybrid
course will
be offered
by EPRI The
format will
be part
seminar/part
tutorial
with half
the course
sessions
conducted
seminar
style
focused on
issues in
public
economics
with common
readings,
discussion
and problem
sets. The
second half
of course
sessions
will be
tutorial
pairings
with each
Williams
student
paired with
a member of
parliament.
Each week
pairs will
alternate
writing 2-3
page essays
on
particular
problems.
For more
information
about this
course,
contact the
instructor,
Williams
Professor
Michael
Samson at Michael.Samson@williams.edu
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Fieldwork
Independent
Study:
Students
will work
20 hours per
week with
either
Economic Policy Research
Institute (EPRI)
or the
Treatment
Action
Campaign.
Supervision
at EPRI will
include
oversight
by Michael
Samson,
Director of
Research.
This
experiential
course will
consist of
daily
meetings,
assigned
projects and
independent
research
outcomes.
TAC
placements
will be
organized
similarly
with both
direct
program work
and analysis
overseen by
a TAC
supervisor
according to
a mutually
agreed upon
work and
learning
plan.
Michael
Samson, both
EPRI
co-director
and
Professor at
Williams, is
the
instructor
for this
course.
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Pilot Course of Study
The Study Group recommends beginning with a small-scale pilot collaboration
with
Interstudy, a study away program provider, in Fall 2009 or 2010. Interstudy Director Irene Gawel has expressed great interest in working with
Williams to develop a custom program in Cape Town. In this program, student
life services (orientation, room/board, extracurricular activities,
transportation, etc.) and registration for regular UCT courses would be
provided by Interstudy. EPRI would provide additional orientation for the
EPRI courses and fieldwork.
Students enrolling in the Williams pilot “Policy in Action” variant of
Interstudy’s Cape Town Program would take a total of four courses from among
the following:
Economic Development/Economic Strategy:
This course provides skills for
evaluating economic frameworks in an integrated manner, blending theory with
real world investigations. The policy principles are grounded in rigorous
economic analysis, and illustrated with case studies, modeling exercises and
lessons of international experience.
Intensive Course:
Students will take one of EPRI’s two-week master’s
level intensive courses. These courses consist of a dozen 12 hour days of
lectures, discussions, and workshops. The scheduling is coordinated with
UCT’s semester calendar. See http://www.epri.org.za/strategy2004.htm for
detailed description of a prior course.
Independent Study/Fieldwork:
Initially, students will work 20 hours per
week with either EPRI or the Treatment Action Campaign . Supervision at EPRI
will include oversight by Michael Samson, Director of Research and consist
of daily meetings, assigned projects and independent research outcomes. TAC
placements will be organized similarly with both direct program work and
analysis overseen by a TAC supervisor according to a mutually agreed upon
work and learning plan.
University of Cape Town regular semester course:
Students will choose
from a short list of UCT courses the subject matter of which will relate to
the other academic and field work in the program.
Key issues
With the program’s strong focus on politics, society, economics and
development, student demand will likely concentrate itself amongst those
interested in social sciences. There is strong evidence of interest in
Africa among Economics majors: several work at EPRI and other anti-poverty
NGOs in South Africa each summer. A broader social sciences orientation will
likely attract other majors, potentially those in other divisions. Pre-med
students, for example, have historically had a strong interest in EPRI
internships and other opportunities in South Africa.
While no critical mass is required to sustain the program, the optimal
educational experience requires a community of students to maximize peer
learning and positive cohort effects. The minimum desirable cohort size is
likely to be around four, and a practical maximum for the program as
designed is likely to be around twelve. If expected enrollments were to
exceed twelve per semester, reconsideration would be required in terms of
the number of seminar/tutorials offered and the administrative staffing of
the program. However, at this point, demand is not expected to exceed twelve
students per semester, and effective demand can be managed through program
admissions instruments.
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