2025 Applications are now open for the Free Research on Tax and Development course

Ednah Carrick August 18, 2025

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Closing Date: 31 August 2025

2025 Applications are now open for the Free Research on Tax and Development course

Overview

As part of the International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD)’s commitment to nurture joint teaching and learning opportunities around tax and development, ICTD is accepting applications for the 2025-26 Research on Tax and Development course.

The course includes diverse methodological training, new material on tax and development issues, and individual mentorship for all participants. It is designed for researchers, revenue administration employees, civil society activists, journalists, academics, and anyone interested in learning more about tax and development and how to conduct research on these issues.

The course is primarily aimed at participants from lower–income countries, although ICTD may make exceptions in selected cases.

What is the course?

The Research on Tax and Development course is designed to help participants:

Gain a strong understanding of the current tax and development research landscape
Learn basic research methodologies
Develop their own research projects and ideas

In order to achieve these goals, the course is comprised of a range of online and offline learning sessions throughout the year. These include:

Introductions to key themes in contemporary research on Tax & Development, such as Tax and Gender, Informality, and International Taxation
Training on how to engage with this literature, write a literature review and identify gaps in the literature
Training on how to develop a research question and how to write research proposals
Introductions to both qualitative and quantitative research methods
Training on project management, publication, and research dissemination

Participants will also be assigned research mentors from within the ICTD’s network to help them develop their own research ideas and projects.

Who is the course for?

The course is designed for researchers, revenue administration employees, civil society activists, journalists, academics, and anyone interested in learning more about tax and development and how to conduct research on these issues. The course is primarily aimed at participants from lower-income countries, although we may make exceptions in selected cases.

What are the entry requirements?

You must have successfully completed an undergraduate degree. While the course is open to applicants with all academic backgrounds, ICTD may prioritise those with some connection with the field of taxation (e.g. accountancy, law, economics, etc.)

What does it cost?

The course is entirely free of charge for all participants. To the degree that travel (to training workshops) is involved, the entire cost for all participants will be covered by the ICTD. If required, the ICTD will also support participants’ internet costs for online training sessions.

Where is it taught and how much time will it take?

The course is taught through a mixture of online and offline training sessions over a period of nine months, starting in December. The online training sessions will be primarily conducted on Zoom/Teams and the ICTD’s online learning platform. ICTD also plan to include an in-person workshop, which would likely be held in a city in Africa.

The program has been designed to facilitate participation alongside full-time work schedules. Participants should expect to spend a few days of each month on reading and developing their research projects, and a few blocks of 3-4 days for intensive training sessions either online or at an in-person workshop.

What are the outcomes?

At the end of the course, participants will be issued a participation certificate from the ICTD. They will also have produced, by the end of the course, either a project proposal that can be used to apply for research funding or further support from the ICTD, or a blog on an important and underdeveloped area of research that will be published by the ICTD.