Master of Science in Humanitarian Action (MSHA) < University of San Diego (2023)

MSHA500 | FOUNDATIONS: PEACE, JUSTICE AND SOCIAL CHANGE

Units: 3Repeatability: No

The course introduces students to a series of big ideas for making the world more peaceful and just, and how to apply them in shaping their own lives and careers of purpose. The first half of the course features lectures and discussion sections that explore foundational theories behind peace, justice, and social innovation; where they overlap; and where they are in tension. The second half of the course explores specific fields of inquiry and practice in a more intimate setting, with an emphasis on comparing diverse approaches to common problems. Throughout the course, students will be challenged not simply to learn a spectrum of ideas and practices, but to understand how they fit together, where and how to learn more, and how to craft their own educational and professional trajectories so that they can be part of the change they want to see in the world.

MSHA501 | FOUNDATIONS OF HUMANITARIAN ACTION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

The distinction between development aid and humanitarian aid is fast dissolving as complex humanitarian emergencies (CHEs) become protracted and global climate change leads to the increasing scope and frequency of natural disasters. This course will discuss the principles and politics that shape humanitarian practice and give students the tools to pursue positive outcomes in an increasingly complex humanitarian space. The course will provide an overview of the evolution of humanitarian assistance and an analysis of how this evolution shaped the current humanitarian regime. It will give students a sophisticated sense of the current humanitarian landscape and its different actors, from government donors to UN agencies and local and international NGOs. It will discuss best practices in key humanitarian sectors and give students the knowledge necessary to engage the key conversations and controversies currently shaping humanitarian practice and policy.

MSHA513 | PROGRAM DESIGN, MONITORING AND EVALUATION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

Humanitarian interventions take place in conflict-affected and politically-sensitive contexts. Humanitarian actors have the ethical responsibility to ensure that their work has a positive impact and avoids doing harm. Moreover, there is increasing pressure from donors that limited resources are used in programs to maximize relevance, effectiveness, efficacy, efficiency, impact, and sustainability of funded programs. Accordingly, design, monitoring, and evaluation (DME) have become indispensable parts of humanitarian and peacebuilding programming. This course is designed to prepare students to design, monitor, and evaluate humanitarian interventions. It will feature case studies, hands-on exercises, and specialist guest lectures to develop familiarity with planning tools, evaluation types and designs, metrics and indicators, data collection methods, and human subjects research ethics. Students will be required for their final project to produce an evaluation plan for an appropriate intervention of their choosing.

MSHA520 | DISASTER MANAGEMENT AND PREVENTION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

Climate change and ecological collapse pose growing threats to people, states, and economies. It has been estimated that a 1-degree increase in global temperatures would require a near tripling in disaster response spending over 15 years just to match the current level of humanitarian coverage. However, it has also been shown some truth to the old proverb about ounces of prevention: for every dollar spent on reducing vulnerability to disaster, two dollars are avoided on future damages. This course is designed to introduce students to the basic theories, strategies, and best practices for reducing the risk of hazards and technological disasters in an age of environmental and political instability. Along the way, it will encourage students to think critically about the so-called “triple nexus” between humanitarianism, development, and peacebuilding.

MSHA530 | HUMANITARIAN DIPLOMACY

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

This course is designed to provide students with two critical frameworks for accessing and operating in humanitarian crises. On the one hand, it explores official, state-level (Track I) bi- or multi-lateral diplomatic efforts to prevent, mitigate, or resolve humanitarian crises. On the other hand, it explores the unofficial (Track II) and micro-level initiatives of humanitarian negotiations engaged in by non-state actors to obtain access to crisis-affected populations, facilitate dialogue among parties to conflict or rivals for resources, and even broker truces, peace agreements, or other arrangements with the potential to reduce human suffering in Complex Humanitarian Emergencies.

MSHA540 | DISPLACEMENT, CLIMATE AND HUMANITARIAN ACTION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

Climate change is one of the urgent challenges of our time, and disaster displacement is one of its most devastating consequences. Populations worldwide are suffering the impacts, affecting people living in some of the most fragile and conflict-affected countries disproportionately. This course is designed to address the increasingly important links between climate change and mass migration, illustrating key challenges to, and new horizons of, humanitarian action in the coming decades.

MSHA550 | HUMANITARIAN SAFETY AND SECURITY

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

This course will introduce students to basic concepts, strategies, and practices for promoting safety and security in a humanitarian emergency. It will include modules on international humanitarian law, the system of global governance designed to tackle “problems without passports,” the responsibility to protect (R2P), humanitarian access negotiations, and best practices in the field.

MSHA590 | DATA VISUALIZATION AND ANALYTICS FOR HUMANITARIAN ACTION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C-

Long considered a “soft” area of practice, more art than science, humanitarianism and adjacent professional fields increasingly rely on using data to design, garner support for, and evaluate their initiatives. Data visualization comprises a powerful set of tools and techniques used to explore and present information. Combined with program research skills and fluency in statistics, it can help us understand problems we confront, interventions we craft to solve them, and the effects of those interventions. It can help us to communicate, telling visual stories that can convince our target audience, be they colleagues, policymakers, funders, or the general public. This course is designed to cultivate basic data visualization and statistical skills that can provide a solid professional advantage in the job market.

MSHA592 | NEW STUDENT ORIENTATION

Units: 0Repeatability: No

This orientation course introduces students to the University of San Diego and provides important information about the program. Throughout the orientation, students will learn to successfully navigate through the online learning environment and locate helpful resources. Students will practice completing tasks in the online learning environment as preparation for success in their online graduate courses. This orientation course will be available to students as a reference tool throughout the entirety of your program.

MSHA594 | SPECIAL TOPICS IN HUMANITARIAN ACTION

Units: 1-6Repeatability: Yes (Repeatable if topic differs)

A special topics course in areas within humanitarian action.

MSHA595 | LOGISTICS FOR HUMANITARIAN RELIEF

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA520 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA530 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA540 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA550 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA513 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA590 with a minimum grade of C-

This course serves as an introduction to many of the most common technical aspects of humanitarian aid delivery, including camp coordination and camp management (CCCM), water & sanitation, food aid, public health planning, and rapid needs assessments.

MSHA599 | HUMANITARIAN CRISIS SIMULATION

Units: 3Repeatability: No

Prerequisites: MSHA500 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA501 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA520 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA530 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA540 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA550 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA513 with a minimum grade of C- and MSHA590 with a minimum grade of C-

This multi-day simulation will begin with a workshop on humanitarian standards for delivery, operations, and accountability, and culminate in an online simulation of a complex humanitarian emergency in a virtual environment.