The Certificate of Advanced Study in Postconflict Reconstruction (PCR) is a 12-credit, multidisciplinary program for law and graduate students preparing for careers in PCR, peace studies, rule of law initiatives, humanitarian relief, international law, and international development.
For more information on required courses, please click here.
Who Can Apply?
This certificate is available to matriculated Syracuse University law and graduate students. Interested students are STRONGLY ENCOURAGED to visit the SPL office during the spring semester of their first year to register for the certificate and to discuss a course plan with staff.
How Do I Apply?
- Interested students should first consult with their Faculty Advisor who will determine whether the student can pursue the CAS in PCR, consistent with the requirements of his/her degree program.
- Students then must complete a Graduate School Internal Admissions Form signed by the students’ department representative. This application should be submitted to the SPL office during the fall semester of the student’s first year in his or her graduate program.
- Students also must fill out a Proposed Program of Study Form and submit it to the SPL office.
- The Professional Profile Form helps us connect you with our professional network. Please fill this form out and submit it to the SPL office.
If you require more information, contact Danielle Scharf at dlscharf@syr.edu or 315.443.2284.
How Do I Receive the Certificate?
- Law and graduate students must file a diploma request form on MySlice (and update their addresses). Filing on MySlice activates the certification process and awarding of a degree.
- You will be reminded by SPL in February/March of your final year to complete the Diploma Request Form and to submit your Final Program of Study Form.
- Projects or courses otherwise not listed may qualify for credit subject to approval by the Program Director. To petition to have non-listed study qualify for the CAS, complete a Waiver Petition Form and submit it to the SPL office.
- The Program Director will recommend granting the CAS in Security Studies to students who have met all of the requirements and who are in good standing.
What Are the Requirements?
- Students must complete 12 credits—nine course credits (typically, two required courses and one elective) plus one capstone project or internship.
- No course may count if taken pass/fail or audited.
STUDENT TESTIMONIALS
“I enjoyed the PCR program and learned a lot , especially in Humanitarian Action, which helped reaffirm my passion for the field of international development and encouraged me to work for the United Nations.”—Ruitong (Flora) Zhou, MPA ’17
“The PCR program combines a very practical and grounded perspective on policymaking and policy implementation with theoretical insights on how PCR should best be conducted, across the entire security-development spectrum. What I gleaned from the program came to be instrumental in my fieldwork in Afghanistan on private sector development.”—Jiayi Zhou, MAIR ’12
The CAS in PCR provides students a documented familiarization with the various dimensions of postconflict work, the actors who conduct it, the trade-offs and dilemmas they face, and the lessons learned from its application across settings throughout the world. Students learn the tools required for success in public service careers in reconstruction, human security, and development, including:
- Analytical techniques tailored for work in international development communities.
- A better understanding of how the US and the international community can effectively participate to rebuild shattered societies.
- New ways of thinking about the nature of conflict, cooperation, and security.
Specific topics include international law and the rule of law, human rights and human security, refugee law, peace and conflict studies, diplomacy and international relations, humanitarian relief, economics of development, and capacity-building. This sequence of specialized coursework is coordinated across the Maxwell School, College of Law, Whitman School, and Newhouse School. All students take a core course—Fundamentals of Postconflict Reconstruction—and complete a Capstone Project/Internship related to PCR.
An additional aspect of SPL’s CAS in PCR graduate program, the David F. Everett Postconflict Reconstruction Speaker Series brings established, widely known postconflict experts to SU to deliver a lecture and to meet with students.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
Students will be able to . . .
1. Identify and describe the main concepts of postconflict reconstruction; the various dimensions and goals of postconflict work, the types of actors that conduct it, the trade-offs and dilemmas they face, and the lessons learned from its application across various settings.
2. Evaluate techniques and tools used by international intermediaries, as well as local stakeholders, to assist societies transitioning from violence to sustainable peace.
3. Improve writing skills and other modes of communication crucial to careers in this field.
4. Apply current research and theoretical approaches to real-world post conflicts issues through professional development experiences [capstone/internship].