We offer a variety of graduate level programs. They all share a core focus on understanding conflict and exploring potential strategies for intervention. Which one is appropriate for you depends upon your interests, goals, and the amount of time you are willing and able to invest.

Our students range in age from 22 to 72 and come from a variety of backgrounds. Some are recent college graduates interested in full-time study in preparation for a career in the field or in anticipation of further study in public policy, law school, or international relations. We also attract a consistent stream of international students.

More than half our students are working professionals. Some are interested in learning conflict management skills to advance and enhance their current careers; others are thinking in terms of career change. They come from a wide variety of fields including business management, health care, human resources, public health, environmental management, education, community planning & development, labor relations, media, and law.

The diversity of our students adds to the richness of in-class discussion, providing exposure and insights into different fields and enabling networking opportunities.

All our classes meet once per week, and are scheduled in the late afternoon, evening, or Saturday to accommodate students who are working while pursuing graduate study.

 

Graduate Certificate

The Graduate Certificate in Dispute Resolution focuses on pragmatic approaches to the resolution of conflict. Students study the theory, methods, and ethical perspectives of conflict resolution and participate in a mediation field internship in the district court system.

Certificate students complete 18 graduate credits, consisting of 5 required courses. The Certificate program can be completed in as few as 2 semesters or as many as 4 semesters. Certificate students and Masters students take the same foundation courses and are graded on the same basis. All coursework completed for the Certificate can be transferred to the Masters program.

Successful completion of the Certificate program allows practitioners to meet current and proposed qualification standards of most professional Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) organizations.

Application requirements and procedures for the Certificate Program are detailed here.

Master of Arts

The Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution is designed to allow students to explore the practice, design, and evaluation of a variety of conflict management and resolution applications. In addition to the foundation courses included in the Certificate program, the Masters program provides students the opportunity for in-depth investigation of conflict in specific settings of interest to them, be they organizational, international, or interpersonal in nature.

Masters students complete 36 graduate credits consisting of 9 required courses plus a substantial research paper, the Masters Project. The Masters program can be completed in 2 years of full-time study or as many as 5 years depending on a student's schedule and other commitments.

Application requirements and procedures for the Masters Program are detailed here.

Doctorate Program

UMass Boston offers a PhD in Public Policy with a concentration in Dispute Resolution. The Public Policy PhD is designed to educate students in methods and approaches to public policy analysis in a variety of policy areas.  The program provides interdisciplinary study at both the theoretical and applied levels, drawing on a variety of academic disciplines. The nine-credit concentration in Dispute Resolution allows students to focus on the role of conflict and conflict resolution in policies affecting areas such as international relations, state and local government and non-profit organizations.

This program is offered by the McCormack Graduate School of Policy Studies. Application requirements and procedures for the PhD program are detailed here.