UNIVERSITY OF LONDON LAUNCHES THE FIRST EVER DISTANCE LEARNING MASTERS IN REFUGEE STUDIES
The University of London International Programmes will shortly welcome its first cohort of students to the newly launched Masters in Refugee Protection and Forced Migration Studies.
This is the first distance learning course of its kind and was developed by the Refugee Law Initiative, a University of London research centre for refugee law. The lead academics will draw on their wide practical expertise in delivering the programme.
The Programme Director, Dr David James Cantor said, “This is the first ever distance learning postgraduate course to be run on refugee and forced migration studies. The course has a very strong academic component that is informed by the world-leading expertise of those designing and teaching the modules. Unlike many other postgraduate programmes, however, this is complemented by a consistent focus on developing students’ vocational skills in a way that will readily enable them to work in this field.”
He added, “Distance learning will ensure that the course will be an affordable option for students in the developing world, as well as the developed world. They won’t have to pay international student fees, deal with the bureaucracy and cost of visas, air fares, accommodation, or give up professional or domestic commitments. In this way we are hoping to create a virtual meeting place for students from all parts of the globe. Distance learning also means that we can more easily enrol leading specialists and practitioners who will provide expert knowledge. In these ways, we intend to offer democratic access to the course and recruit students and experts from around the world.”
Dr Cantor believes the MA in Refugee Protection and Forced Migration Studies will enable students not only to think constructively about related policy and law, but to develop actual policy recommendations.
He commented, “Having worked for the last 15 years in the refugee field, I can say that law and policy are the meat and bread of what we use to try to improve the humanitarian situation of refugees and other displaced persons. A critique of current laws and policies by itself can be useful, but of far less value than the positive recommendations that need to be generated.”
He added, “Working in this field is unusual, because one not only wears the hat of an academic – a student of humanity, as it were – but also there’s the imperative to try to use that knowledge to improve the situation of the subjects of one’s own research.”
The application deadline is 1 September 2014. To find out more or to apply, please visit www.londoninternational.ac.uk/refugee-migration.
For media enquiries:
Kyla Njoku
External Relations, University of London
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7862 8014
E: kyla.njoku@london.ac.uk
For more information about the course please contact:
Dr David James Cantor
Refugee Law Initiative School of Advanced Study, University of London
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7862 8827
E: david.cantor@sas.ac.uk
Dr Sarah Singer
Refugee Law Initiative School of Advanced Study, University of London
Tel: +44 (0)20 7862 8571
E: sarah.singer@sas.ac.uk