THE INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR SERVICE-LEARNING™ & LEADERSHIP

AND THE COLLEGE OF THEOLOGY, ARTS AND SCIENCES DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AT CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY-PORTLAND:

MASTER OF ARTS IN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND SERVICE

The International Partnership for Service-Learning™ and Leadership and Concordia University-Portland announce the anticipated start of the 2012 graduate program in
International Development and Service.

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Reflecting today’s demand for graduates to understand a variety of perspectives and leaders to navigate complex partnerships, this graduate program is interdisciplinary in nature and requires both significant Service-Learning™ and international study activities.  Drawing from the fields of global nonprofit management, international educational leadership, sustainability, and international studies, the degree educates leaders for professional careers with global nonprofits and educational and community development organizations with an international focus.

This degree program is a multi-national collaboration between the International Partnership for Service Learning™ (IPSL), Concordia University-Portland, International Centre for Intercultural Exchange in Italy, Payap University in Thailand, Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador, Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara in Mexico and the University of Technology in Jamaica..   

The program can be completed in four semesters and requires 36 graduate credit hours. Students spend two semesters in Portland, Oregon, on the campus of Concordia University-Portland, as well as two semesters at two different IPSL International program locations (Siena, ITALY, Quito and/or The Galapagos Islands, ECUADOR, Chiang Mai, THAILAND.)   

While in Portland, students take courses at Concordia in the College of Theology, Arts & Sciences, as well as in the School of Management, taught by Concordia University faculty members.  While abroad, courses range from Organization, Development and Volunteerism, Topics in International Non-Profit Leadership, Gender and Society, Political Sociology, Public Health Issues in SE Asia or Latin America, Peace-Building as a Philosophical Enterprise, Cultural Anthropology, History of the European Union, Finance,  Ethics from a European Perspective, to the History of Italy Through Cuisine and Reflective Writing.

Courses such as Contemporary Issues in International Education, Introduction to Nonprofit Management, and Non-Profits on the Global Stage frame the program and ensure that students graduate with essential knowledge and skills. Students choose from a series of courses that fit their interests and career goals. The courses allow students to develop expertise and leadership skills that prepare them to work in such areas as international education (e.g. in an international programs office at a college or university), global nonprofit management, international program administration, fundraising, government service, or international volunteer/service-learning™ management.

Service-learning™ is central to the IPSL-Concordia master’s degree. Throughout the program, students engage in substantive service work at a local agency in Portland and in the host communities abroad. The primary purpose of the service is to meet a need in the community. In the process, we draw on service as a source of learning about organizations, leadership, social problems, diverse populations, and the role of service and service-learning in civil society. With a seminar called “Institutions in Society” that runs throughout the program, IPSL students reflect on service and their role as civically engaged leaders in a multicultural society.

While abroad, students live with local families, take classes at our partner universities, and serve in local agencies. They also conduct an organizational case study to apply what they have learned to a real problem in the field. Upon their return to Portland during the last semester, students focus on their culminating project, a theory-to-practice analysis that brings together their coursework, research, and service with a practical problem solving approach.

In addition, the Teaching English as a Second Language certificate program that is currently being taught at Concordia would be one of the options for the summer term activity by the students in this program (not included in the comprehensive program fee). 

Program Highlights

• Four semester/20 month program as a full-time graduate student
• First semester at Concordia University in Portland, OR
• Second semester at International Center for Intercultural Exchange (Siena Italian Studies) in Siena, ITALY
• Optional: Summer in the Concordia University-Portland TESL one-month certificate program 
• Third semester term abroad attending a partner university in Payap University – Chiang Mai, THAILAND, or Universidad San Francisco de Quito – Quito and Galápagos Islands, ECUADOR,
• Fourth semester at Concordia University to finish culminating project/thesis.
• Students can choose to focus in Global NGO/Non-profit Leadership or International Education Leadership
• 10-15 hours of service work per week throughout the program.  The service placements are in the area in which the students focus:  Global NGO/Non-profit Leadership or International Education Leadership.
• 36 credits total minimum required for degree.  Students can take up to 40 semester credits with no additional IPSL fees/tuition.
• Annual program fee is $31,750. Fee includes: Tuition and fees, academic advising, medical insurance, room and board for two semesters abroad, , in country round trip flights from Quito to the Galapagos Islands, service placement administration, professional development opportunities and networking opportunities, orientations and retreats. Fee DOES NOT include room and board for two semesters in Portland, Oregon, books, international flights, passport and/or visa fees, personal spending and travel money.