Education in humanitarian studies

HUMANITARIAN STUDIES 2010: UNIVERSITY TRAINING AND EDUCATION PROGRAMMES IN HUMANITARIAN ACTION, First edition
ETUDES HUMANITAIRES 2010: FORMATIONS UNIVERSITAIRES EN ACTION HUMANITAIRE, Première edition
By Rainhorn, JD., Smailbegovic, A., and Jiekak, S.

This new publication from CERAH (Centre d’enseignement et de recherché en action humanitaire de Genève) presents a global overview of university training and education programmes in humanitarian action. It is the result of collaboration with academia worldwide to identify programmes and bring the information to humanitarian practitioners and organisations as well as to universities interested in initiating humanitarian education and training. It identifies and systematically presents 77 programmes offered to practising or entry-level humanitarian workers at undergraduate, postgraduate and professional levels of study. All the programmes intend to prepare students for one or all of the following: 1) interdisciplinary analysis of complex humanitarian crises, 2) identification and evaluation of the needs of the affected populations, 3) design and implementation of humanitarian projects that aim to save lives or reduce the suffering of people caught in crisis situations.

The publication comes at an interesting moment.  Universities are increasingly debating the establishment and definition of the new field of humanitarian studies, as demonstrated by the First World Conference of Humanitarian Studies that took place in the Netherlands in 2009, and the establishment of the International Humanitarian Studies Association, a network of people from a wide range of disciplines engaged in the study of humanitarian crises.
It is therefore instructive to gain the detailed overview of study programmes at universities around the world which this publication offers.    

With the growth of the humanitarian sector over the past two decades, and the complexity and interconnectedness of contemporary and future humanitarian challenges, there is a critical need for professionalism in the humanitarian workforce.  As Sir John Holmes points out in his preface to the book, idealism and commitment to beneficiaries – always the necessary ingredients of humanitarian work - must now be complemented with multidisciplinary skills, intercultural sensitivity, and the ability to perform at the highest level in challenging circumstances.

From very early on in their history, humanitarian organisations devoted attention and resources to training their workforces and developed a number of in-house training programmes.  Those are often seen as a vehicle for transmission of specific organisational values, cultures and ways of working. But now, universities are becoming more active in offering study programmes to both experienced and aspiring humanitarians.  In 1991, the first master programme was offered; in academic year 2010/2011 a total of 39 master programmes will be offered in 14 countries in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and North America.

Training and education of humanitarian workers is already being discussed within and between the academic and humanitarian sectors and this interchange will take on more importance in the years to come.  We hope that this publication will inform and spur the conversation and that it will eventually lead to training and education programmes and strategies built on the comparative advantage and value-added of each provider, and for the ultimate benefit of those who practice the profession and the populations they serve.

Download the document here. 

For further information contact:    amna.smailbegovic@graduateinstitute.ch.