The IOCM at a Glance

The IOCM is a unique master's degree program that combines International Relations, International Organization, and Crisis Management studies. 

There are no other study programs in Germany and only very few in Europe that focus on international organizations, even though many of you may consider to pursue a career in one of the almost 300 international governmental organizations or the 9000 international non-governmental organizations worldwide. International organizations are active in almost all policy fields. They pervade world politics and are highly relevant in an ever more interconnected world.  

In addition, we are broadening the traditional understanding of peace and conflict studies. Our understanding of crises is more complex, including challenges such as refugee flows, pandemics, and human rights violations. And our unique focus is on the management of those crises, i.e. how actors try to alleviate their effects when they break out and, even better, prevent them from arising.

By combining these fields of research, our particular focus is on how international organizations manage those conflicts and crises. This is their supreme task. They are crisis managers, be it the World Food Programme fighting famine, the World Meteorological Organisation forecasting and mitigating tornadoes, flash floods and droughts or the OSCE monitoring fragile ceasefires.