6 December 2015

How to manage the unmanageable?

What if a 100 Meter Tsunami hits Rotterdam? What if the African Union closes its borders to avoid European war refugees? – and what if NSA’s prism programme is taken over by Anonymous?

"Organisations need to protect themselves from crises; it being terrorism or organized crime; potential regional crises or financial crises, in the countries where they operate or plan to operate.

Karen Lund Petersen, Associate Professor and Director of Centre for Advanced Security Theory

Global challenges, such as the financial crisis, environmental problems and terrorism, have transformed the traditional way of assessing security and risk. How do we predict the unpredictable, or think the unthinkable? In 2014 the Department of Political Science launched a new master’s programme addressing these topics. The department, together with private companies and public institutions, saw a need to consider a number of questions concerning risks and security.


A programme with an international outreach

The idea behind the programme is to train graduates to identify opportunities for change in the complex and risky environments and to put these reflections into action. The programme attracts students from a broad range of countries. This year’s intake was 60% international students coming from 16 different countries. The first class of students will graduate in the summer of 2016

International Cases and Close Cooperation with Organizations

The students’ casework is formed in close cooperation with future potential employers. ”During the programme students do real-life practical casework for a company or organisation. The students tell us that this is a huge learning experience for them”, says Programme Manager Christian Hartwig Niebuhr.

The programme grew out of a strong research base at the Department of Political Science as well as an identified need for candidates with specific skills in security risk management. Head of Studies Karen Lund Petersen elaborates; “The labour market needs future employees who are able to asses a wide range of risk and security issues, and who are able to handle and implement them."

For further information go to the website or contact Christian Hartwig Niebuhr, Programme Manager at Department of Political Science, or Karen Lund Petersen, Head of Studies at Department of Political Science.