Welcome to the MA in Peace and Conflict Studies Program

The Master of Arts in Peace and Conflict Studies program at Hacettepe University is a two-year program founded on the principle of developing cultures of peace and peace perspectives. The founder, Dr. Havva Kok Arslan, has developed her ideas into a Master's program focused on teaching peace processes that apply and promote universal ethics to Turkey and the global agenda.

Your first semester will be spent in Istanbul, where you will immerse yourself in peacemaking through an integrative analysis of the psychosocial, political, moral, and spiritual realities of our lives. Students will develop the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively analyze and evaluate the theories and practices of peacebuilding, while gaining an in-depth understanding of violent, destructive conflict in the world. The second semester will be spent in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, to give students the chance to experience life on Hacettepe University's campus, and benefit from visits to various official places like ministries, government offices, NGOs, and think tanks.

After your first year you may return home, or stay in Turkey in order to write your MA thesis. All course and thesis work will be taught and supervised by a group of highly credentialed international peace experts who bring years of dedication and expertise to trans-disciplinary processes of non violence and social transformation.

Hacettepe University's Department of International Relations is now accepting Peace and Conflict Studies students for the Fall 2013 semester in Istanbul, Turkey. Bridging two continents, Asia and Europe, Istanbul symbolizes the goals of peacebuilding in uniting people and cultures. Charming, diverse, and cosmopolitan, Istanbul attracts people from around the world to its rich cultural history and sheer beauty. As a secular democracy, Turkey is in a unique position to influence geopolitical realities and to act as a stabilizing, mediating force in the region. As a peace scholar, you will develop an understanding of Turkey's uniquely diverse history, and find that it offers an endless array of case histories to apply to your research.