The International Disaster Management and Humanitarian Response programme is a multidisciplinary course designed to enhance collaboration amongst natural and social sciences, medicine and the arts in exploring disaster risk reduction and humanitarian response. As demand grows around a strategic global response to the ever-changing and increasing risks, shocks and stresses arising from natural and anthropogenic hazards, it is increasingly important that we build an understanding of the root causes of vulnerability to disasters as a pathway to developing resilient communities. This programme seeks to bridge the divide between development and humanitarian action - bringing together cross disciplines including development planners, and climate scientists, on the intersection of disaster risk reduction. As a student you will explore methods for improvement in building the disaster resilience of communities - both globally and locally in the UK. Through the course you can expect to build research expertise, practical knowledge and management skills in disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery in order to reduce negative impacts on health, social, economic and environmental spheres. You will find this multidisciplinary programme unique, with the core courses demonstrating the linkages across disaster risk management, climate change, sustainable development and humanitarian action. The compulsory courses create an integrated approach to the field - rather than offering a selection of discrete modules available in geography, sociology, history and environmental science rather than a dedicated programme. The University of Manchester is unique in having strengths in humanitarian and conflict response underpinned by history, politics, medicine, geography and development studies. This will provide you with wide options to choose from whilst having a grounding in humanitarianism and disaster management. For the third level dissertation you will be asked to choose from a wide range of topics that relate to disaster management and humanitarian response. It aims to provide a critical insight into destabilising events and develop an understanding and appreciation of disaster risk reduction and humanitarian response; develop knowledge and understating of key issues which inform the debates on disaster risk reduction and humanitarian response; develop practical expertise in risk and vulnerability analyses, disaster preparedness and response and the integration of development and humanitarian action; foster an informed attitude on ethical issues related to humanitarianism, including international actions taken by governments, inter-governmental and non-governmental organisations in response to disasters of both natural and human origins; develop strategic research methodologies and techniques, including data gathering, collation, analysis and dissemination of results in disaster risk management and humanitarian action contexts. Assessment procedures in different courses vary, but our basic objective is to achieve a good balance between formal examinations, continuous assessment, composed mostly of essays, and project work.