International Studies Program

Public Policy Summer Training

The International Studies Program at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University is pleased to present its Public Policy Summer Training Courses for 2009. The courses are designed for government officials and policy makers involved in policy reform and fiscal management in developing and transition countries, as well as their counterparts with international development agencies.

• Courses Offered in Summer 2009
• Training Instructors
• Participant Background
• Tuition and Funding
• Visa Applications

Training Instructors

• Andrey Timofeev
• Cristian Sepulveda
• Eunice Heredia
• Felix K. Rioja
• James Alm
• Jenny Ligthart
• Jorge Martinez
• Juan Gomez
• Katherine Willoughby
• Mark Rider
• Musharraf Cyan
• Neven T. Valev
• Roy Bahl
• Sally Wallace

The Andrew Young School's graduate program in public budgeting and finance is ranked in the top-five among graduate programs in the United States by US News & World Report. Our training courses are facilitated and taught by senior Andrew Young School faculty members that -in addition to their solid academic credentials- have extensive experience in real-world policy reform and technical assistance around the world.

Participant Background

Participants need no previous experience in economics, budgeting or public administration, although the program is designed to be most useful for central, regional and local government officials, policy makers and program managers from developing and transitional countries.

Participants do not need any previous experience with computers. Although all courses are taught in English, simultaneous interpretation can be arranged for groups of non-English speaking participants.

In previous years, our training programs have attracted participants from countries around the world, including officials from Albania, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Guinea, Jamaica, Kenya, Macedonia, Malawi, Mali, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Serbia and Montenegro, South Africa, St. Lucia, Tanzania, Thailand, Turks and Caicos, Uganda, Ukraine, Venezuela, Vietnam and Zambia.

Previous participants further include officials from USAID, DFID (United Kingdom), the Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and the World Bank.

Tuition and Funding

Tuition for the three-week fiscal decentralization course is $7,650, tuition fee for the macroeconomics and education policy courses are $5,000 per course, and tuition for the tax policy and the public budgeting courses are $5,500 per course. The tuition fee includes all training-related costs, including instruction, course materials, single-occupancy lodging accommodations, local transportation and cultural activities. However, the course tuition does not include airfare to/from Atlanta, health insurance, meals, or other incidental expenses. The estimated cost for meals and incidental expenses for Atlanta is $49 per day.

Participants are typically funded by their government (e.g., Ministry of Finance) or through bilateral or multilateral development agencies. The participant is responsible for securing a commitment for funding before submitting the application. Examples of multilateral development agencies are the United Nations Development Program, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Inter-American Development Bank. Follow this link for additional information regarding funding opportunities.

Visa Applications

Note that due to the length of time needed for the U.S. Government to process visas, it is highly recommended that you submit your training program application as soon as possible. Once your training program application is received, Georgia State University will be able to provide supporting documentation for the visa application process.

Cancellation Policy

Cancellations made more than 10 business days before the beginning of the course will be reimbursed in full less the cost of the wire transfer. Cancellations made less than 10 business days before the beginning of the course will be reimbursed 60% of the total fee. This withholding is to cover the cost of the penalty fee paid to the hotel for canceling the room and the costs incurred for the purchase training supplies.

Please note that we reserve the rigth to cancel any course up to 30 days before the beginning of the course based on projected participation.