Overview

All modules are offered on a rolling basis, at least once every eight months, ensuring they can be approached flexibly and fitted around the demands of full-time employment. Full time study is one year and part-time study is normally up to two years*.

This course includes the Consultancy Global Professional Development module developed in partnership with the Chartered Management Institute.

* This course can be offered on a part-time basis. Whilst we would like to give you all the information about our part-time offering here, it is tailored for each course each year depending on the number of part-time applicants. Therefore, the part-time teaching arrangements vary. Please contact request information for more information about studying this course part-time.

Modules

• Year one - Module titles

  • Disaster Risk, Resilience, Adaptation and Sustainability - Provides students with an understanding of the concepts and interrelationship between the concepts of disaster risk, resilience, adaptation, development and sustainability from the perspective of historical and current international events, strategy and policy drivers. An understanding of the disaster-development continuum is critical to those working or intending to work in international development, disaster risk reduction (DRR) and emergency practice in increasingly complex environments. The module takes an enquiring approach to theories and their impact on the field of practice at a programme, agency, country and global scale. It will demand a thorough and critical exploration and evaluation of the aims, areas of activity and programmes of NGOs, multilateral agencies and institutions. Thus, upon completion of this module, the student will be able to recognise the inseparable link between sustainability, development, DRR, resilience and humanitarian practice.(15 credits)
  • Training and Exercise Design and Delivery - This module aims to facilitate your competence to plan, design, and manage an exercise in the context of disaster, crisis and emergency management. The module will place exercises in the wider context of preparedness and organisational resilience, examining theories and approaches to training and exercising. In addition, the module will aim to help you critically assess and evaluate generic principles of training and apply them to training needs for disaster, crisis and emergency management. Approaches to the evaluation of exercises and associated learning will be developed, and the project management requirements for managing and organising exercises are also examined. (15 credits)
  • Resilience, Security and Emerging Technologies - This module aims to investigate today’s complex technology-dependant society and organisations, and the factors that influence security and resilience in complex and integrated systems. The module investigates vulnerabilities, risk and security challenges at an organisational, national and transnational level, going beyond the traditional cyber security purview to look at the demands in wider interconnected systems across critical infrastructure and city resilience, existential threats and global risks. The module evaluates the potential opportunities and risks associated with emerging technological advancements and considers them as part of a horizon-scanning approach. (15 credits)
  • Community Preparedness, Recovery and Resilience - Despite the recent popularity and frequent use of the community resilience concept in emergency and disaster management research and policy programmes, there is a confusing range of theoretical interpretations and an equally broad range of operational interpretations. This module aims to provide students with a high-level conceptual understanding of resilience and its relationship with preparedness and recovery activities done by and on behalf of communities. Through analysis of UK and international case studies, students will evaluate determinants of resilience and the role of professionals and communities in preparedness, recovery and resilience. Methods for engagement with community groups and the role of public service providers/NGOs will be critically assessed. Issues pertaining to sustainable approaches and monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of resilience interventions will be emphasized. (15 credits)
  • Humanitarian Principles, Preparedness and Response - This module equips students with an understanding of the contemporary theoretical perspectives of humanitarian action and management approaches to disaster preparedness and humanitarian response. This module aims to provide students with an understanding of the organisational architecture, drivers and standards in humanitarian response as well as current challenges and changes for organisations operating in the humanitarian response sector. This module takes a “humanitarian response agency” perspective; the community perspective being covered in a sister module. The relationship between relief, risk reduction and sustainable development being covered in a third module. Good practice in intervention management, monitoring and evaluation are covered in a fourth. (15 credits)
  • Disaster Interventions, Evaluation and Learning - This module reviews a good governance approaches to mainstreaming effective and sustainable disaster interventions and reviews the links between international policy and local projects. Thereafter the module focuses on the analyse of traditional emerging approaches to disaster interventions in order to evaluate opportunities and good practice perspectives for Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL). Case studies from response and DRR context will be used in order to bring together an understanding of the importance of undertaking an integrated approach where MEAL activities and results are shared between disaster phases, projects, programme and agencies to maximise learning benefits, impact of interventions, resilience and sustainability. (15 credits)
  • Risk, Incident and Leadership - This module aims to develop an in-depth understanding of a range of risk interpretations, and explore non-technical skills, minimisation techniques and leadership models that can be applied during incidents and crises. It will use models, theories and simulations to critically evaluate the challenges for leadership and decision making within the constraints of some command and control practices. Incidents are recognised as vital opportunities for learning lessons but there are usually challenges to facilitating and leading the implementation of change; you will investigate ways in which these barriers and challenges can be overcome.(15 credits)
  • Research Perspectives and Practice - This module is designed to equip you with the required skills in systematic critical evaluation, research design and data collection relevant to assessing practice and policy in disciplines aligned to emergencies and crises. The module content will review processes and principles for conducting research. You will explore intensive and extensive research designs, and be introduced to the principal methods of conducting extensive research, including social surveys, documentary, archival and census evidence, and quantitative analysis. The module also explores more intensive forms of investigation, including interviewing, ethnography and other forms of qualitative analysis. Issues of research dissemination and research ethics will also be considered. (15 credits)
  • Supporting Transition to Postgraduate Study - These online sessions will assist and prepare you in the transition to postgraduate education by developing your academic skills, in order to improve and enhance your personal effectiveness as a learner. It is particularly useful if you are new to Higher Education or have been away from study for some time. We will look at areas such as critical reading, academic writing and referencing skills. Throughout the module, you are encouraged to reflect on your learning in order to deepen your understanding and effectiveness as a quality independent learner. We set out clearly what we expect of students at postgraduate level and equip you with the resources to be able to meet expectations in this environment. This academic skill set is transferable and will be valuable not only in the immediate context, but also for continuing professional development. There is no assessment for this module.
  • Preparing to Research - These online sessions are designed to introduce you to postgraduate research, and will provide additional support for your working paper. It provides a mechanism to support the scoping of your research and will reinforce knowledge of research design and methods while aiming to ensure their effective application to your area of interest. It aligns with the content of the module Researching Perspectives and Practice. There is no assessment for this module.
  • Working paper - The aim of this module is to support you in defining a need or critical issue within the sector emergency management and resilience sector and exploring potential solutions for that problem through the practical application of theoretical approaches. Working with a supervisor, you will develop an industry-facing paper that researches and evaluates the evidence, and makes recommendations for change and overcoming expected barriers to that change at team, institutional, national level as appropriate. (50 credits)