Penn's community for ​students interested in ​international development

Who are we?

iDev aims to provide Penn students exposure to the field of international development through a variety of professional lenses and nurture a network dedicated to global impact.

What do ​we do?

What is International Development?

International development is the pursuit of a better world for all through the reduction of poverty, inequality, conflict, disease, and other global issues. These pursuits are often encapsulated through the UN’s sustainable development goals, shown above.

Includes ​students & ​professionals in:

Careers in International Development

We understand there is a lack of resources for starting a job in this industry. We have developed a comprehensive database of tips, tricks, and resources on potential opportunities and careers in international development!

About Us

Hi! We are Sachit, Inaya, and Jack, three Penn students coming from different academic disciplines interested in international development. We identified a lack of community at Penn for students interested in careers in the field, so we started iDev — Penn's first student forum for people interested in international development!

Learn from leaders in the field and Penn alumni about careers in International Development!

Events

PAST

4/17

Q&A with Professor Cornelia Walther

iDev hosted Penn Professor Cornelia Walther, including her experiences at ​UN OCHA, UNICEF, etc. in countries including Chad, Afghanistan, Haiti, and ​DRC.

10/6

Global Social Impact: Actionable Cross-Generational Knowledge ​Exchange

iDev cohosted a portion of the Global Social Impact Conference, in ​partnership with the Carol and Lawrence Zicklin Center at the Wharton ​School. It was attended by the Tanato Foundation and the ILO.

3/26

iDev Discussion: Ethics on Foreign Aid

iDev facilitated a discussion on the ethics of foreign aid, with a specific focus on the case study of Haiti.

4/17

Pursuing a Career in International Development with Esther Wang

iDev hosted Esther Wang for a discussion about her career path in international development. She has had experiences at Bain and Bridgespan and co-founded IDinsights, a global non-profit bringing data to decisions in global development.

4/14

Global Actionable Knowledge Exchange Conference

iDev helped sponsor a conference with the Zicklin Center and Wharton School covering perspectives on development and sustainability. iDev facilitated a discussion specifically on the Middle East and North Africa region.

3/26

iDev Discussion: Ethics on Foreign Aid

iDev facilitated a discussion on the ethics of foreign aid, with a specific focus on the case study of Haiti.

2/28

Developing East Asia - What will it take to become high income?

iDev hosted a conversation with Hassan Zaman, the Regional Director for ​East Asia and Pacific, Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions at the ​World Bank. He spoke to us about the “East Asian Miracle” of broad ​economic development, the Middle Income Trap that countries face, and ​his work in Seoul on their continued economic development.