Brandeis University

Program Information

Degree Offered

MA in Coexistence and Conflict

Format: Campus

Program Description:

The Master's Program in Coexistence and Conflict at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management focuses on the challenges posed by inter-communal and societal conflicts in today's world. Our vision is to bring greater professional policy and practical expertise and leadership to bear upon these challenges. Since its inception in 2004, the program has become the preferred choice of mid-career professionals who want and need to understand how better to prevent, manage and resolve such conflicts.

Our students come from a variety of institutions, including government and intergovernmental personnel and military and financial institutions. We have welcomed diplomats, journalists, lawyers, artists and aid and development workers, as well as people working in the donor and N.G.O. worlds. At least 80 percent of our participants are international, and they have on average eight years of experience working in their fields.

Students in our program recognize that managing intercommunal conflict and violence is critical to national and international security in today's world. As societies are becoming more diverse, many more countries are facing ethnic, religious, cultural and social conflicts. The globalization of such conflicts is also increasing. The Master's Program in Coexistence and Conflict at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis is designed to meet these challenges.

The program is designed for early and mid-career professionals who already work within governments, international agencies or related fields, such as security and diplomacy, aid and development, human rights, democracy work, education, civil society and community development.

The program takes 16 months to complete. It involves an academic year in residence at Brandeis (September to May) followed by a three-month field placement and completion of a master's paper by December of the second year.

The Master's Program in Coexistence and Conflict provides the professional skills to design and implement successful interventions that enable groups, nations and regions to embrace coexistence values, i.e., societies living together more equitably, while respecting each others diversity and acknowledging each others interdependence.

The Brandeis Master's Program in Coexistence and Conflict:

* Provides a solid grounding in contemporary and developing theories on the causes of inter-communal conflicts, from the local to the global.
* Emphasizes the skills needed to design strategic interventions that prevent, mitigate or resolve inter-communal conflicts and violence.
* Focuses on mainstreaming coexistence and conflict knowledge and skills within governments and international and inter-governmental organizations.
* Includes a master's field project in an area of conflict or with an organization involved in coexistence and conflict interventions.
* Teaches dialogue and mediation skills designed for work in inter-communal conflict situations.
* Introduces students to evaluation skills to help them to assess the success of conflict interventions.
* Helps students develop partnership skills in delivering coexistence work through democracy, security, legislative, mediation, human rights, political, equity and development work.
* Offers a wide choice of electives, including language courses that are relevant to participants' career interests.

Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC)

Eligibility Requirements:

Statement of purpose; transcripts of all undergraduate work completed; three letters of recommendation; five years of international experience

International Student Requirements:

Proof of English language proficiency

Tuition & Financial Aid

Financial Aid Offered: Yes

Classification: Doctoral/Research Universities - Extensive

Institution Sector: Private not-for-profit

Locale: Small City

Size & Settings: 5,000 - 9,999