LLM or MSc Global Crisis, Conflict, and Disaster Management

Full Time: 12 months | Part Time: 36 months

The number, intensity, and impact of crises, emergencies, conflicts and disasters are increasing. During the past ten years alone, an estimated 1.5 billion people have been affected by some form of disaster or conflict-related event.

This exciting and timely multidisciplinary postgraduate taught programme examines the role of global law, policy and practice across the spectrum of possible crises, conflicts, and disasters. You will consider the complete disaster cycle of prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery, and explore all types of crisis and conflict (civil, international, post-conflict peace-building, and terrorism) as well as disasters, both man-made (pollution and contamination) and natural (earthquakes, cyclones, tsunamis, health pandemics).

The programme reflects on current and changing global priorities such as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-30; progressing the outputs of the UN Climate Change Conference 2015; UN Sustainable Development Goals 2015; and the World Humanitarian Summit 2016.

The aim of this programme is to equip you with many of the substantive, professional, practical, and personal transferable skills and knowledge necessary to operate effectively in inherently multidisciplinary crisis, conflict and/or disaster environments.

A number of schools will collaborate on the delivery of this programme: Law; Agriculture, Policy and Development; Politics, Economics and International Relations; Archaeology, Geography, and Environmental Science. There will also be input from other disciplinary perspectives too, together with practitioners drawn from across the conflict, humanitarian and disasters sectors.

As well as Law graduates, this programme will appeal to early to mid-career professionals working in roles dealing with different types of crises, conflicts and/or disasters, particularly governmental, intergovernmental, private/corporate, civil society/non-governmental who wish to broaden and deepen their existing areas of expertise. It will be also be suitable for recent graduates of any subject, those on career breaks, and career changers.

It is possible to take either an LLM or MSc pathway. Both are framed around the global architecture of crisis, conflict and disaster management with embedded multidisciplinarity. The key distinction is that an LLM route takes more optional law modules, whereas optional modules for the MSc are more multidisciplinary in nature.

Entry requirements

IELTS: 6.5 overall with no element less than 5.5 (or equivalent).

You are normally required to have a good undergraduate honours degree (or equivalent from a university outside the UK). If you have other qualifications and a number of years' relevant work experience then you may also be eligible to apply.

Standard requirement is a 2:1 or higher in an undergraduate degree. However, our participants come with a variety of relevant legal and non-legal experience and all applicants are considered on individual merit.

What will you study?

Planned Law modules include:

Global Architecture of Crisis, Conflict and Disaster Management
Human Rights Law, Policy, and Practice
Disaster Management
Hazard, Risk, Vulnerability and Resilience
Public International Law
International Refugee Law
International Law and the Regulation of Armed Conflict
International Criminal Justice and Post-Conflict Peace-building
Climate Change Disasters
Technologies and Weaponry
Research project
Professional placement

Non-law modules are expected to span such topics as:

Development (including, foundational concepts, food security, gender)
Political (including, contemporary diplomacy, conflict in the Middle East, terrorism)
Economic (including, macro/micro-economics for developing countries, economics of public/social policy, climate change and economics) (MSc pathway only)
Preparing for Floods

(MSc students will have economics modules and a broader selection of politics modules to choose from.)

Please note that all modules are subject to change. Please see our modules disclaimer for more information.

Practical training opportunities

A series of non-assessed, employability orientated, practical training events, inside and outside the classroom, will take place throughout the programme aimed at consolidating and applying substantive knowledge learnt as well as developing transferable professional and personal skills. This will include the opportunity to undertake a fantastic and unique practical ‘fragile/hostile environment training’ package delivered by external professional trainers¹.

^1. Subject to payment of an additional fee, and a minimum number of students wishing to take this element.

How much will it cost?

New UK/EU students: £7,580 per year

New international students: £15,670 per year

Additional Costs

These course fees cover the cost of your tuition. Some courses will require additional payments for field trips and extra resources. You will also need to budget for your accommodation and living costs. See our information on living costs for more details.

Financial support for your studies

You may be eligible for a scholarship or bursary to help pay for your study. Students from the UK and other EU countries may also be eligible for a student loan to help cover these costs. See our fees and funding information for more information on what's available.

LLM/MSc part-time

New UK/EU students: £3,990 per year

New international students: £8,035 per year

Additional, voluntary cost:

Practical fragile/hostile environment training (normally 5 days) approximately £1,600

Extra information:

Students may be eligible for a 10% fees discount if they are currently employed by a recognised NGO, have left NGO employment within 6 calendar months prior to enrolment on the programme, or will commence employment with an NGO within 3 calendar months of graduating from the programme. It will be necessary to produce appropriate documentary evidence of NGO employment to qualify for this discount.

What career can you have?

The skills gained by undertaking a postgraduate Law programme are in great demand from both legal and non-legal employers. As with any postgraduate taught Law programme, completion of the various entry points will be an asset for students seeking employment in international courts and tribunals, United Nations agencies, legal practice and advocacy in the international law field, international NGOs, the public service (in the areas of foreign relations, international development, etc), law reform agencies, the media (journalism and broadcasting), and academia (with further postgraduate study).

Graduates of this programme will be uniquely positioned and clearly distinguishable to prospective employers. In addition to acquiring knowledge of the key principles and topics associated with a traditional Public International Law and Human Rights related LLM programmes or a master's degree in crisis, conflict and/or disaster management issues, graduates of this programme will also develop a unique understanding of cutting edge law and policy, become more multidisciplinary conversant and therefore better equipped to work in inherently multidisciplinary environments.

The flexible nature of this programme allows students to select the degree qualification which best suits their background or area of expertise.