International Economic Development Program (IEDP) | Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

International Economic Development Program (IEDP)

IEDP students take a seven-week course and a week-long trip to a selected country. 

Learn from and engage with international policymakers

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International Policy in Practice (IPP) is a 3-credit graduate level seminar (PubPol 674)  uses a bi-directional learning model to provide students with first-hand experiences and knowledge of international policy in action, focusing on the practical realities and impacts associated with a given policy's design and/or implementation. Students will explore key policy areas in a specific country other than the United States as well as bilateral and multilateral policies and programs. The course includes both traditional classroom study and a one week trip abroad. Prior to travel, coursework explores the chosen country's history, current social and economic policies as relevant to the learning objectives, and future policy goals and priorities. Students also engage in directed reflection of study travel, and set individual and collective intentions for ethically-minded travel and international policy engagement. While abroad, students engage with stakeholders with relevant knowledge, lived experience and expertise in the policy area of focus, including key policy professionals working on policy design, implementation and/or evaluation. Upon return, students complete a set of curricular and applied deliverables. Ultimately, IPP fosters participants' abilities to engage in both international and domestic policy work in the future.

Students aboard a boat in Puerto Rico's bioluminescent bay
Exploring the Bioluminescent Bay

Each year, the country and policy area of focus is determined by the Ford School, the International Policy Center, and the course faculty instructor. In winter 2026, the course will continue its focus on international development in Colombia and travel to Bogotá. Ford School graduate students are competitively selected for the program during the Fall term prior to travel.

This program/course was formerly called the “International Economic Development Program,” or “IEDP.”  Since its inception in 2000, participating students have studied and traveled to over 20 countries.   More information is available through the International Policy Center.

Smiling students in straw hats in Colombia holding a University of Michigan Block-M flag
Amy Beck Harris and Ford School students in Colombia during the 2024 PubPol 674 trip
Aerial photo of San Juan, PR

Featured news

IEDP students get a close-up view of economic development in Puerto Rico

The International Economic Development Program (IEDP) took a COVID-required turn in 2022, exploring the economic, environmental, and cultural circumstances of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory.
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