Graduate and Law Student Handbook 2025-26

Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies sandiego.edu/peace ▪ MS in Conflict and Management Resolution ▪ MA in Social Innovation ▪ MA in Peace and Justice ▪ MS in Humanitarian Action (Online) ▪ JD/MA in Law and Peace and Justice Embedded Graduate Certificates The Kroc School is excited to offer three, 9-unit, embedded graduate level certificates to all USD graduate students. sandiego.edu/peace/ academics/certificates Certificate in Mediation and Conflict Resolution Conflict is a natural and inevitable part of human interaction, but it also holds the power to transform individuals, communities, and systems. The Certificate in Mediation & Conflict Resolution equips students with the tools to navigate conflict constructively and drive meaningful change in their workplaces, communities, and broader systems. This program combines theory with practice to prepare students to analyze conflicts, manage difficult conversations, and design interventions that mitigate conflict and promote collaboration. Whether you’re working in the nonprofit sector, corporate leadership, education, or public policy, the skills you’ll develop will help you transform conflict into an opportunity for growth and innovation. Certificate in Social Entrepreneurship Social entrepreneurship is an emerging field that combines business, innovation, and entrepreneurial approaches to address pressing social and environmental challenges. This graduate-level certificate program provides a unique opportunity

to explore diverse organizational models—non-profit, for-profit, hybrid entities, and innovative ownership structures like Employee Stock Ownership Plans, co-ops, and Benefit Corporations—all aimed at creating sustainable social impact. Students will gain the skills and tools necessary to design innovative business models, tackle systemic social problems, and build resilient, purpose-driven organizations. Certificate in Conflict Resolution for Healthcare Leaders Offered in collaboration with the Hahn School of Nursing, this certificate is designed for healthcare professionals seeking to enhance their ability to lead and work effectively with interprofessional teams. The program provides participants with the skills necessary to navigate and resolve community agencies, and healthcare organizations. Through case studies, simulations, and applied projects, students will develop expertise in fostering collaboration, improving team dynamics, facilitating difficult conversations, mediating disputes, and implementing conflict resolution strategies. Graduates of this program will be well-prepared to lead with confidence, influence positive organizational change, and ensure the delivery of safe, patient-centered care. Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice: Together with partners, we develop and champion evidence based, justice-centered solutions to ending cycles of violence. sandiego.edu/ipj ▪ California Violence Prevention The Kroc IPJ is proud to work on reducing violence in our hometown of San Diego and throughout conflicts in diverse healthcare settings, including hospitals,

develop more effective and more community-centered approaches to violence prevention and public safety. sandiego.edu/peace/ institute-for-peace-justice/ initiatives/san-diego-initiatives.php ▪ Women, Peace and Security international women, peace and security organizations, the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice (IPJ) identifies the most critical peacebuilding challenges facing women leaders around the world. The institute then co-develops applied and actionable research to identify evidence-based solutions. sandiego.edu/peace/ institute-for-peace-justice/ initiatives/women-peace-security ▪ Violence, Inequality and Power (VIP) Lab The Violence, Inequality, and Power (VIP) Lab is investigating how inequalities of power shape the landscape of violence. The VIP Lab delivers practical, actionable ideas that partners can implement at the systems level to confront harmful power inequalities and reduce violence. sandiego.edu/peace/ institute-for-peace-justice/ violence-inequality-power-lab ▪ Cross-Border Initiatives As the closest peace institute to the U.S.-Mexico border, the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice (IPJ) seeks to build peace in Mexico and the border region through research grounded in a nuanced understanding of the challenges faced by border communities and in partnership with local scholars, practitioners and policymakers. sandiego.edu/peace/institute-for peace-justice/initiatives/cross border-initiatives.php Together with local women peacebuilders and renowned

California. In collaboration with our partners, we help leverage evidence and learning to

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