Learning how the world works
Bobbie Macdonald (MSC '12, IDS Honours) is appreciative of the teaching he received while pursuing his honours degree in International Development Studies at MSC.
He credits the interdisciplinary nature of the International Development Studies (IDS) program at MSC with equipping him with a broad understanding of development and encouraging his interest in learning about how the world works.
Since graduating from MSC in 2012, Macdonald completed an MSc in International Development at the London School of Economics.
“The heavier emphasis on critical thought and post-development thinking [at MSC] encouraged broader thinking and reading than in the discipline of political science alone,” he says.
Last fall he began a PhD in Political Science at Stanford University. Focusing on the politics of development, he will specifically look at the question of why politicians behave in the ways that they do and explore the systems of interactions between citizens and politicians.
Macdonald encourages MSC students not to be dismissive of the idea of studying at universities such as Stanford, Princeton, or Oxford.
“The teaching is certainly very strong at MSC,” he says. “The boundaries that many of us might see between the Menno Simons College and Stanford or Princeton—they’re not has big as we make them out to be in our minds.”
Macdonald transferred to the IDS program in the third year of his studies and identifies the practicum program as one of the reasons he was interested in IDS. He describes his time as an intern with a Kenyan community development organization as an excellent experience.
“Before going on practicum, I thought ‘what am I going to do? What am I going to accomplish?’ But I realized it’s primarily a learning experience for myself and I was happy to go there and learn,” he says.
Macdonald also spent some time working for an Ethiopian consulting firm conducting project surveys and evaluations. This experience equipped him with an understanding of how surveys work and provided fieldwork experience in rural areas.
While Macdonald enjoyed learning through his practicum and work experiences, it was through those that his interest in academia was affirmed.
“My experiences in Kenya and Ethiopia made me more interested in questions of how the world works rather than being on the ground and practicing.”
Macdonald most recently worked as Project Coordinator for AidGrade, an organization whose mission is to improve the effectiveness of development efforts by understanding and encouraging what works using rigorous, actionable and engaging evidence.
As a Project Coordinator, Macdonald’s work involved bringing together and analyzing the evidence from impact evaluations of various development interventions such as deworming and microfinance, among others.
Ellen Paulley is the Writer and Social Media Coordinator at Menno Simons College
Faculty: In Their Own Words
Karen Ridd, Teaching Associate Professor, Conflict Resolution Studies
Dr. Jonathan Sears, Associate Professor of International Development Studies
Dr. Jodi Dueck-Read, Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution Studies
Dr. Jerry Buckland, Professor of International Development Studies
