Our Motivation

With its establishment in 2012/13, the on-site master’s program in Global Studies with a Special Emphasis on Peace and Security in Africa, jointly offered by the Global and European Studies Institute (GESI) at Leipzig University, Germany, and the Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) at Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia, accentuates a hitherto much neglected transregional and transnational perspective on Africa´s role within shifting global orders. Issues of peace, security and development in Africa are ultimately linked to globalization processes. Thus, conflict dynamics on the continent, such as civil wars, intra-state and cross-border conflicts are examined by linking Peace and Security Studies and Global Studies.

The Digital Master Program in Global Studies with a Special Emphasis on Peace and Security in Africa (M.A. GSPSA) builds on the expertise of both institutes, GESI and IPSS, in the transnational and interdisciplinary training of experts specialized in research on peace and conflict in Africa under the global condition. With a fully digitalized M.A. GSPSA we ensure that students as well as lectures residing in the various regions on the globe and sub-regions on the African continent to co-produce knowledge on conflict dynamics in Africa. By omitting travel restrictions due to financial and other material constraints we create a more inclusive study program.

Our Aims

The IP Digital project at GESI coordinates the integration and implementation of the Digital M.A. GSPSA starting with the winter term 2021/22. Within the project, we compile the necessary digital infrastructure as well as the legal, organizational and personnel conditions for further digitalization projects. Resulting best practices will be shared with other institutions of higher education in Germany and on the African continent. Hence, important insights, successes and failures will be systematically processed to ensure the projects scalability and transferability. 

Our work

To that end, we are conceptually and didactically revising our on-site M.A. program to meet the demands of digitalized international higher education We further improve and digitalize our curriculum, including transparent information on course structure, content, teaching methods and workload as well as exam and evaluation modalities.

We provide our students with a comprehensive and integrated digital infrastructure to conduct their studies from anywhere and at any time. From application, enrolment, retrieving exam results and communication with peers, to graduation and alumni conferences, we offer a fully digitalized student life cycle that is manageable online and on the go.

A digital propaedeutic supports (prospective) students in getting accustomed with a digital campus and provides them with a platform for contact and exchange with their fellows. Moreover, it introduces the necessary digital skills for synchronous and asynchronous learning.

To support our students with a centralized and easy to access knowledge database we provide them with an E-Library based on open educational resources. The E-Library will continuously be updated and includes best practices of the IP Digital project itself as well as sources for sound academic work and specific content at the juncture of Global Studies and Peace and Security Studies. The E-Library will be comprised of various source materials such as written materials, audio and video files.