The Master's degree program in Flight, Migration, Society prepares students for later professional activities in practice and research in the field of flight and migration by combining scientific and application-oriented study elements and enables them to contribute to a sustainable development of society.

It focuses on the interdisciplinary analysis of social transformation processes and approaches socio-spatial, economic, socio-cultural, political, legal and psychosocial dimensions of modern immigration societies and global migration dynamics. The program will address the interrelationship of regional and global structures and the historical momentum of migrations as well as different fields of social action – such as media, family, education, language and religion – and identity and foreignness in modern societies.

The Master’s degree program in Flight, Migration, Society can be studied in full-time or part-time and is aimed at graduates of degree programs in the social sciences, humanities and cultural studies. It was designed for interested graduate students from diverse disciplines with a strong interest in questions and problems surrounding flight, migration and integration processes as well as social transformation processes. It is also suitable for practitioners who are already working in the profession or have already gathered work experience and would like to qualify further.

In order to guarantee the quality of our teaching, the degree programs of our Faculty of History and Social Sciences are regularly accredited by independent agencies. The Master’s degree program Flight, Migration and Society has been assessed by the AQAS agency in summer 2021 and has received the accreditation council’s quality-label.

Contents

The degree program consists of a total of 14 required modules (110 ECTS credits) and a required elective area (elective area and Studium.Pro with 5 ECTS credits each), which allows students to set their individual specialization. At the beginning of the program, students are introduced to the basics of the topic area of flight, migration and society, including legal and historical approaches, which are discussed and reflected on. Further required modules enable deeper approaches to the contents of the program. They are not assigned to individual disciplines, but are oriented towards various fields of social action, e.g. "Education and Family", "Glocal Dynamics", "Media and the Public" or "Institutions and Practice", to which different disciplines contribute their respective expertise. Parallel to this, students will be familiarized with procedures for data collection and evaluation and methods of, for example, empirical social research with a special focus on flight and migration research. 

The second part of the Master's program consists of a practice and research-oriented specialization phase in which a student research project, a required internship and the elective section are completed. During this phase, students have the opportunity to not only gain practical but also international experience, e.g. by integrating a semester abroad into their studies or completing their required internship as part of a stay abroad. Finally, in the fourth semester, students write their scientifically substantiated Master's thesis.

Generally, students of the Master’s program in Flight, Migration, Society have the possibility to complete a semester abroad during their studies. It is recommended that they take their semester abroad in the third semester of the full-time program or the fifth or sixth semester in the part-time program. Students have the opportunity to discuss their planned stay abroad with the degree program coordinator and module coordinator at any time in advance, and thus be able to assess beforehand whether preferred courses at other universities can be credited to their program or not. In the Master’s program in Flight, Migration, Society, crediting of study achievements that have been acquired abroad is effected via the responsible board of examiners and, as a rule, in consultation with the respective module coordinators. Students are also supported by the KU International Office, both with regard to the semester abroad and the subsequent recognition of study achievements.

In addition, the required internship can also be completed abroad. Please contact the International Office for information on internships abroad (contacts, application and financing).

In addition to stays abroad, the Master’s program also offers students the opportunity to participate in international research and teaching formats, such as the "Migration Studies Summer Academy" or "Student Research Weeks", and thus contribute to the internationalization of the degree program in particular and the KU in general.

A required internship and other practice-oriented courses (e.g. the (Student) Research Project) impart application-oriented skills in the Master's program, while the "Institutions and Practice" module focuses on different players in the field of flight and migration.

The required internship must be completed in a field of activity that has a close relation to the degree program content. The minimum duration of the required internship is seven weeks (equivalent to 35 working days) and can divided between different time periods and institutions once.

After a case-by-case assessment, internships that have already been completed before enrolling in the Master's program in Flight, Migration, Society or other practical experience gained in the course of a professional activity can also be recognized (in part or in full). In each case, the reference to the field of flight and migration is decisive (see internship module description - in german).

Career prospects

The degree program qualifies graduates for a wide range of coordinating, conceptual, advisory and management tasks in the field of migration and refugee work. Career opportunities are available in public administration, public authorities and municipalities, churches and welfare organizations (e.g. activities connected to the organization and coordination of civic engagement), companies, chambers, political, private and church foundations, non-governmental organizations, the media, educational institutions and research. International organizations in development cooperation are a further professional field.