Disaster Risk and Resilience PGCert

Postgraduate
Conversion course

Designed with input from sector experts, this course aims to equip you with the skills and knowledge to assess risks, enhance climate resilience and build expertise in disaster and risk management.

Year of entry

2025-26

Location

Coventry University (Coventry)

Study mode

Full-time

Duration

1 year full-time

Course code

EECT018

Start date

September 2025
January 2026
May 2026

How to apply

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Course overview

Learn how to assess risks, vulnerabilities and capacity in complex contexts and develop sector-relevant skills to enhance humanitarian response, participatory approaches, accountability and organisational change.

Key course content includes:

Opportunities to take part in simulated disaster response scenarios in our immersive Simulation Centre.⁴
Preparation to understand the concepts, theories, policy and practice within the areas of risk, humanitarian practice, development, disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation so that you are better able to evaluate the activities of NGOs, government organisations, multilateral agencies and institutions and drive necessary transformation.

5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities

QS Stars University Ratings

Ranked 9th Modern University in UK by the Times

The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2025

Ranked 8th for Overall Satisfaction in PTES

Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2024

Why you should study this course

Coventry University is a still a leading provider of higher education courses and consultancy services in emergency and disaster management capabilities. Benefit from access to our global network of alumni and industry connections.²
There is dedicated academic writing support available for those who are new to higher education or returning after a long break.

What you'll study

Explore disaster risk, resilience, adaptation and sustainability, with a focus on applying humanitarian principles and law. Gain skills in organisational readiness, disaster interventions, and monitoring and evaluation for accountability. Develop practical expertise to work with communities, build resilience and create sustainable programmes for effective, coordinated disaster response.

Modules

Supporting Transition to Postgraduate Study – 0 credits

Transition to postgraduate study by developing your academic skills, improving personal effectiveness as a learner. Look at areas such as critical reading, academic writing and referencing skills. Reflect on your learning to deepen your understanding of concepts and ideas. 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.

Compulsory

Disaster Risk, Resilience, Adaptation and Sustainability – 15 credits

Understand the concept and relationship between disaster risk, resilience, adaptation, development and sustainability through historical and current international events, strategy and policy drivers. Understanding the link between disasters and development is essential for those working or planning to work in international development, disaster risk reduction and emergency response in complex environments. Examine theories and their impact on practice at programme, agency, national, and global levels. Evaluate the aims, activities and programmes of NGOs, multilateral agencies and institutions. Understand the connection among sustainability, development, DRR, resilience and humanitarian practice.

Compulsory

Humanitarian Principles, Preparedness and Response – 15 credits

Learn the contemporary theories of humanitarian action and management approaches to disaster readiness and humanitarian response. Understand the organisational structure, 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.

Compulsory

Community Preparedness, Recovery and Resilience – 15 credits

Despite the popularity of community resilience in emergency and disaster management research, there is a confusing range of theories and an equally broad range of operational ideas. Understand resilience and how it connects to readiness and recovery efforts for communities. Through analysis of UK and international case studies, you will evaluate determinants of resilience and the role of professionals and communities in preparedness, recovery and resilience. Explore ways to work with community groups and examine the role of public services and NGOs. Focus on using sustainable approaches and evaluating the impact of resilience efforts.

Compulsory

Disaster Interventions, Evaluation and Learning – 15 credits

Review effective governance methods for integrating sustainable disaster interventions and the connection between international policy and local projects. Focus on the analysis of traditional emerging approaches to disaster interventions to evaluate opportunities and good practice perspectives for Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL). Case studies from response and DRR will be used to understand 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.

Compulsory

We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.

How you'll learn

Teaching and learning methods may include:

seminars and discussion
practical sessions and workshops
simulation exercises
study visits.²

Prefer to study 100% online? Click here to view our 100% online course.

Teaching contact hours

As a full-time postgraduate student, you will study modules totalling 180 credits each academic year. A typical 30-credit module requires a total of 300 hours of study. Study hours are made up of teaching contact hours, and guided and independent study.

Teaching hours

Teaching hours may vary, depending on where you are in your studies, but on average you will have between 8 and 12 teaching and learning hours each week. You will also have the opportunity to attend optional sessions including time with a Success Coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback.

Guided and independent study

Throughout your studies, you will be expected to spend time in guided and independent study to make up the required study hours per module. You will be digging deeper into topics, reviewing what you’ve learnt and completing assignments. This can be completed around your personal commitments. As you progress to the end of your studies, you’ll spend more time on independent learning.

Online learning

As an innovative university, we use different teaching methods, including online tools and emerging technologies. So, some of your teaching hours and assessments may be delivered online.

Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which could vary depending on the module. Assessment methods may include:

reports
proposals
business cases
presentations
posters
coursework.

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

Entry requirements

Typical entry requirements:

An undergraduate degree 2:2 or above (or international equivalent) in a relevant discipline. Applicants with a lower class of degree and/or professional experience only will be individually considered and will usually be interviewed prior to being offered a place on the course.

We recognise a breadth of qualifications; speak to one of our advisers today to find out how we can help you.

Select your region to find detailed information about entry requirements:

You can view our full list of country specific entry requirements on our Entry requirements page.

Alternatively, visit our International hub for further advice and guidance on finding in-country agents and representatives, joining our in-country events and how to apply.

Some international students may require an ATAS certificate to study this course. For further information see our ATAS certificates page.

Typical requirements

English language requirements

IELTS: 6.5 overall, with no component lower than 5.5.

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.

For more information on our approved English language tests visit our English language requirements page.

Fees and funding

Student	Full-time	Part-time
UK	£3,733	Not available
International	£6,200	Not available

For advice and guidance on tuition fees³and student loans visit our Postgraduate Finance page and see the university's Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.

We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them.

The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:

Any optional overseas ﬁeld trips or visits: £400+ per trip.
Any costs associated with securing, attending or completing a placement (whether in the UK or abroad).

Irish student fees

The rights of Irish residents to study in the UK are preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement. If you are an Irish student and meet the residency criteria, you can study in England, pay the same level of tuition fees as English students and utilise the Tuition Fee Loan.

How do you know if you need to pay UK or international tuition fees?

We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Your fee status determines your tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available to you. The rules about who pays UK (home) or international (overseas) fees for higher education courses in England are set by the Department for Education. The regulations identify all the different categories of student who can insist on paying the home rate. The regulations can be difficult to understand, so the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) has provided fee status guidance to help you identify whether you are eligible to pay the home or overseas rate.

If you meet all the criteria required by any one category, including any residence requirements, your institution must charge you the home rate. You only need to find one category that you fit into.

Facilities

Our Simulation Centre uses an interactive screen and real-life scenarios to create a ‘virtual’ training environment. Role-play exercises are part of the course to help prepare you for situations in the workplace.

People walking in front of a building which has a big library sign

Lanchester Library

The library is usually open 24/7, in term-time. It’s where you can access your course’s specialist Academic Liaison Librarian. It’s also home to specialist teams which can support you with your academic writing and maths and statistics questions.

Glass modern building with a spire in the background

The Hub

The Hub is the centre of student life on campus. Facilities include a food court, convenience store, multi-faith centre, medical centre, hairdresser, coffee shops and the Your SU offices. It has fully licensed function spaces and a bar.

Two people working together with a laptop in front of them

Careers and employability

Get one-on-one career and employability guidance lasting up to 36 months from the end of your course. We’ll help you find placements and graduate roles, offer CV and application checks, mentoring, skills workshops, employer events and more.

Facilities are subject to availability. Access to some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) may vary from those advertised and/or may have reduced availability or restrictions where the university is following public authority guidance, decisions or orders.

Careers and opportunities

On successful completion of this course, you will have knowledge of:

risk, its components and influencing factors, approaches to assessment, and prioritisation and organisational role in planning, managing and recovering from humanitarian crises and disasters
policy and approaches for mitigating, preparing for, managing and recovering from crises, conflict and disasters for responding agencies, organisations and affected communities
approaches to assessing complexity and interaction and developing, monitoring and evaluating resilience in processes, systems, organisations and communities at risk from known and emergent threats in a sustainable way
stakeholder analysis and multi-stakeholder engagement, communication, co-operation and governance in all aspects of policy and strategy development, implementation and management, at all scales in disaster contexts
challenges and approaches for information management, evaluating uncertainty, ambiguity and complexity in knowledge, appropriate and defensible decisions for managing complex disaster situations
issues and challenges at the forefront of research and practice in disasters and resilience.

Opportunities exist globally within:

non-governmental organisations
multi-lateral organisations
national and local government
health services and epidemiology
the military
(re)insurance and risk management
city resilience
risk and resilience consultancy
security and safety sectors.

Where our graduates work

Previous graduates have gone to work in countries including the UK, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, the UAE, the US and Canada. Some have taken up roles as international humanitarian coordinator, country officers; DRR specialists, risk analysts and deployable response managers, policy developers and analysts, public administration or pursued research and lecturing within education.

Employers of our previous graduates have included: UNICEF, UNEP, WFP, Action Centre La Faim (Toronto, Canada), the Institute for Risk Management and Climate Change (Bogota, Colombia), WWF, Danish Refugee Council, Deutsche Bahn, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (Mumbai, India), United Nations Population Fund (Jakarta, Indonesia), the British and German Red Cross, The Netherlands Institute for Safety, Medecins Sans Frontieres and the Military.

How to apply

UK students

To apply to study for a postgraduate course at Coventry University, you can apply online. Please read the entry criteria page before applying.

Start your application

For further support or more information about your course get in touch with us today.

+44 (0)24 7765 2222

ukadmissions@coventry.ac.uk

Complete our contact form.

International students

Full-time international students should apply directly to the university. Please read our application pages to find out your next steps to apply.

How to apply

For further support for international applicants applying for postgraduate degrees view our International hub.

You can also download our international mini guide for an overview of study options and why you should study with us.

Get in touch with us today for further advice and guidance.

+44 (0)24 7765 2152

applications.io@coventry.ac.uk

Complete our contact form.

Disclaimers

Coventry University together with Coventry University London, Coventry University Wrocław, CU Coventry, CU London, CU Scarborough, and Coventry University Online come together to form part of the Coventry University Group (the University) with all degrees awarded by Coventry University.

¹Accreditations, partnerships and memberships

The majority of our courses have been formally recognised by professional bodies, which means the courses have been reviewed and tested to ensure they reach a set standard. In some instances, studying on an accredited course can give you additional benefits such as exemptions from professional exams (subject to availability, fees may apply. See the relevant body website for more details). Accreditations, partnerships, exemptions and memberships are subject to successful renewal in accordance with the relevant bodies’ standard review process and subject to the university maintaining the same high standards of course delivery. If the accreditation, recognition or membership of this course changes, we will seek to notify applicants and students as soon as possible.

Where relevant, the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) module content is undergoing assessment by the CMI to confirm that all criteria are met to the required standard. Whilst it is expected that students who successfully pass the module will be eligible to be considered by CMI for the CMI Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership Practice as an additional qualification, we cannot confirm this until the accreditation is approved. This is a normal part of the continuous improvement process for our courses to ensure they remain up-to-date and reflect best practice.

²UK and international opportunities

Please note that we are unable to guarantee any UK or international opportunities (whether required or optional) such as internships, work experience, field trips, conferences, placements or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be unpaid and/or subject to additional costs (which could include, but is not limited to, equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable travel, public authority guidance, decisions or orders and visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand any visa requirements, please contact the International Office.

³Tuition fees

The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation.

For international students, we may increase fees each year, but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation. If you defer your course start date or have to extend your studies beyond the normal duration of the course (e.g. to repeat a year or resit examinations) the University reserves the right to charge you fees at a higher rate and/or in accordance with any legislative changes during the additional period of study.

⁴Facilities

Student Contract

By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the current 2024/2025 contract is available on the website for information purposes however the 2025/2026 contract will apply for the 2025/2026 intake. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.