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International Development Summer Institute

Develop innovative strategies to address inequality around
the world

Students sit in folding chairs in a room with white walls and student artwork hung on the walls, facing two students who are standing in the front of the room.

Assess patterns of disparities and social justice through an interdisciplinary lens

The UCLA International Development Summer Institute (IDSI) is a three-week, intensive program for high school students passionate about developing innovative strategies to address some of the most critical issues the world is facing today.

This program engages students with debates around the widening patterns of disparities of wealth, power, privilege, and access to social justice—as well as the policies, interventions, and forms of citizen engagement intended to address them—both between and within the countries of the Global South and North. Utilizing Los Angeles, a microcosm of the developing world, as a living laboratory, this program offers students a unique opportunity to study, analyze, and critically assess the social, political and economic forces that have shaped inequality in the modern world through an interdisciplinary lens.

Through rigorous coursework, guided discussions and debates, an immersive project incubator lab, and workshops led by experts, students will be trained to develop policy memos and design interventions that are economically, environmentally, and culturally sustainable.

Fees and Payment Info

The program fee includes the unit fees for the UCLA coursework offered as part of the program and thus varies by UC student status. In addition to the program fee, students are assessed other campus and administrative fees during the summer. This is a summary of fees that commonly apply to the selected student type.

Actual tuition and fees are subject to change by the University of California. Visit the fees, payment, and financial aid section for important disclaimer, as well as more details on fees, payment instructions, and information on delinquency, refunds, and financial aid.

 

Program Fee $3,284
Registration Fee $350
IEI Fee $61
Document Fee (for first-time Summer Sessions students) $50

Meet your Faculty and Instructors

Michael Lofchie

Faculty – Associate Dean

Professor Michael Lofchie is the Associate Dean for Social Science, current Chair of the International Development Studies Interdepartmental Program, former Chair of the Department of Political Science, and a specialist in comparative politics and African studies. He served as the director of UCLA’s James S. Coleman African Studies Center from 1978 to 1989.

Professor Lofchie teaches undergraduate and graduate introductions to comparative government, and offers graduate seminars on the political economy of Africa and structural adjustment. His research focuses on the politics of economic reform in Africa. Professor Lofchie’s work has become an influential source for scholars and policymakers seeking to understand the dynamics of famine in Africa. He has worked as a consultant to U.S.A.I.D. and World Bank projects.

Portrait of Michael Lofchie. He is wearing a light blue buttoned down shirt and a white mustache.

Erica Anjum

Program Director

Erica Anjum directs the UCLA African Studies research center. She teaches courses in International Development in the UCLA International Institute and in Urban and Regional Planning in the UC Berkeley College of Environment Design. Her background includes multidisciplinary training and professional experience in the visual arts, STEM, philosophy, policy, planning, and regional and international development. Her current international projects focus on developing sustainable infrastructure to increase access to water and other basic needs in low-income countries and on addressing the needs of people, particularly women and girls, living in refugee camps in Africa, the Middle East, and South and South East Asia. Anjum’s current U.S. projects focus on increasing resiliency in vulnerable communities facing natural disasters particularly wildfires in California; hurricanes in Hawaii, New Orleans, and Puerto Rico.

Portrait of Erica Anjum. She is wearing a red patterned shirt, blue scarf and dark brown hair.

Joseph Wright

Program Assistant Director

Joseph Wright is a PhD candidate in education at the University of California, Los Angeles. His research focuses on several aspects of education in developing and emergency contexts including public health education, micro-finance and entrepreneurship education, and technology in education. He has a particular focus on the issue of gender equity. He also has a research interest in comparative religious education. Joseph received his BS from Brigham Young University, MSc from Oxford University, MPH from UCLA, and has worked for USAID, UNESCO, and various NGOs in Africa and the Middle East.