Courses

The Curriculum

The interdisciplinary curriculum offers students a comprehensive study of conflicts and their resolution from diverse perspectives. The year is divided into different cycles, allowing students to gradually learn and apply recently-acquired knowledge in research and simulations.

The first semester is dedicated to obtaining in-depth knowledge about different fields concerning conflict resolution, ranging from international law to psychology, political science, anthropology and economics. A total of seven courses are taken in the first semester.

During the second and third semesters, students will be able to choose from a variety of classes, both electives and seminars, according to their interests and concentrate more on research and analysis. A total of two seminars and six electives are to be taken between these two semesters.

In the first semester, all students are registered for a course in negotiation skills. In the second semester, the course is meant to continue the material covered in the first semester while strengthening the students' own negotiation skills through role playing and simulations. The third semester is primarily dedicated to the multi-session mediation workshop, wherein students are divided into smaller groups and are expected to put their acquired skills to practice.

Credits

Students will have to complete a total of 39 credit hours,

The Introductory Courses as well as the Core Courses are compulsory and amount together to a total of 15 credit hours.

Students will have to chose 2 Seminar courses which correspond to 6 credit hours.

Among the list of diverse Elective courses, we require from the students to take 6, corresponding to 12 credit hours.

A year-long Departmental Seminar, which corresponds to 2 credit hours, will expose students to experts and leaders in conflict resolution, from a variety of fields. In addition, students will persue their own interests thorugh research and classroom presentations.

Finally, an intensive Mediation Seminar will represent 4 credit hours.

Please find a description of the courses hereafter

List of Offered Courses (varies by year)

Courses, 2012-2013*

First Semester Schedule: Click here (PDF format)

Second Semester Schedule: Click here (PDF format)

Introductory Courses

• Principles and Processes of Negotiation in Conflict Resolution
  Yonatan Kowarsky (Lawyer)
• Research Methods
  Dr. Udi Sommer
• History of the Middle East
  Dr. Uriya Shavit, Tel Aviv University
• Overview of Data Banks related to Mediation and Conflict Resolution
  Library Staff

Core Courses

• Political Approaches to International Conflicts and their Resolution
  Dr. Sapir Handelman
• Socio-Psychological Theories of Conflict Resolution
  Prof. Yechiel Klar, Tel Aviv University
• Cross Cultural Aspects of Conflict Resolution
  Assoc. Prof. Ran Kuttner, Creighton University
• Conflict and International Law
  Daniel Reisner (Lawyer)

Seminars

• Comparative Analysis of National and International Conflicts
  Dr. Alon Liel, Former Director General – Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jerusalem
• Environment, Conflict and Cooperation in the Middle East
  Dr. Clive Lipchin, Arava Institute of Environmental Studies
• The Processes underlying the Resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
  Gilead Sher
  
• Effective Facilitation and Consensus Building
  Dr. Yuval Kalish, Tel Aviv University
• Fundamentalism vs. Humanism – the Challenge of Mediation
  Prof. (Emeritus) Yehoshua Gitay, University of Capetown
• Culture, Conflict and Community Development
  Dr. Deborah Heifetz

Elective Courses

• Major Disputes in the Middle East
  Dr. Bruce Maddy-Weitzman, Tel Aviv University
• Decision Making in Conflicts' Development and their Resolution
  Prof. Dan Zakay, Tel Aviv University
• The Involvement of Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) and IGOs in International Conflict Resolution
  Prof. Nitza Nachmias
• Negotiating "Humanitarian Space": International Humanitarian Aid Organizations in Conflict Zones
  Daniel Beaudoin
• Interactive Models to Cope with Destructive Social Conflicts
  Dr. Sapir Handelman
• Game Theory and Conflict Resolution
  Maya Diamant
• Israeli Politics and Society
  Dr. Udi Sommer
• Conflict Resolution and Judicial Decision Making 
  Dr. Udi Sommer
• Palestinian Politics and Society
  TBA
• Resolving Labor Disputes In The Workplace, an International Perceptive: Examining Workplace Alternative Dispute Resolutions Models 
• Assoc. Prof. Alan Levy
• Leadership Theory and Practice
  Assoc. Prof. Alan Levy

Mediation Workshop

• Workshop 1: Major Concepts and Principles in the Mediation Process and learning the Role of the Mediator
• Workshop 2: Development of Skills for managing the Mediation Process
  Dr. Brian Polkinghorn, Salisbury University

*Courses and/or lecturers are subject to change.