Frequently asked Questions

There is no single answer to this question.
When Peace Studies has been created in the late 1950ies as a distinct academic discipline it merged the state of the art of psychology, ethnology and international relations. Gradually it embraced the topics, methods and didactics from a vast field of further disciplines between philosophy, law, languages, history or neuro-science and quantum physics. It follows a holistic and therefore trans-discipilinary approach to science. And it contains some unique fields of study, such as conflict analysis, conflict transformation and peace theory. Each student can approach peace studies in his or her own way, concentrating on concrete conflicts, sociological analyses, or regional issues, to name a few. Since the road to peace is often hindered by problems of resources and distribution, we also emphasise the importance of the relationship between peace and development.

Students are required to successfully complete 4 terms and a thesis in order to receive their degree.

The faculty of the programme is comprised of a diversity of educational, disciplinary, cultural backgrounds who are all dedicated to the field of peace and conflictstudies.
Guest lecturers and facilitators are also commissioned on particular topics, approaches and methodologies from all around the world in order to provide our students with a plurality of perspectives on peace and conflict.

The semester is comprised of both compulsory and elective course modules that run regular working hours with the exception of excursions and practical modules.
The standard duration of the study programme is 4 semesters or 120 ECTS-Credits, whereby according to the Universities Act of 2002, a workload of 1,500 (real) hours per academic year must be fulfilled, corresponding to 60 ECTS-Credits (one ECTS-Credit is equivalent to a workload of 25 hours).

The programme has welcomed students from universities around the world including Castellon, Spain, Jimma, Ethiopia, Brazil etc.
Further agreements are currently being established in order to facilitate further exchange.

The programs operate independently of each other.
However, due to cooperation agreements, students can transfer credits for full terms from one program to the other. Students can therefore also attend one or two terms at the program in Castellón. They will automatically be accredited as academic terms at our program in Innsbruck.

With the new regular studies masters Programme, you will be eligible to apply for PhD Programmes around the world depending on their individual admissions procedures.