Master of Science in Disaster Risk and Resilience

University of Canterbury

The Master of Science usually consists of two parts: coursework and a thesis, allowing you to investigate areas of interest and conduct independent and original research. Over 30 subjects are available, and some can only be studied at postgraduate level, which can allow for specialisation in academic and career pathways. For more information about why you should consider studying a postgraduate science programme at UC, see the Postgraduate Prospectus. The MSc may be awarded with Distinction, Merit, or Honours. The United Nations defines a disaster as a disruption of social and community function, involving so many losses and destructive impacts that affected communities and regions are unable to cope using their own resources. Global efforts to reduce the impacts of disasters over the last decade have failed to keep up with growing exposure of people and assets to natural and other hazards, which is generating new risks and a steady rise in disaster-related losses. To reverse this trend, UN member nations ratified the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2015. The Sendai Framework calls for a broader, more people-centred, preventative approach to disaster risk reduction, in which communities, government and private sectors, civil society organisations, academia, and research institutions work together to build resilience and develop collaborative disaster risk reduction practices. Learning ways to manage the risks from natural hazards is a relevant and fascinating area of study. Study Involve: Aotearoa New Zealand an outstanding laboratory for the study of multi-hazard disaster risk and resilience due to its location on the Pacific ‘rim of fire’, one of the most dynamic environments in the world. UC is situated in the centre of New Zealand’s South Island, Te Tai Poutini, where the 2010-2011 Canterbury Earthquakes and the 2016 Kaikōura-Hurunui Earthquakes have had extensive and complex impacts in the central and north-east of the island. This has created considerable scope for highly integrated, cutting-edge disaster risk and resilience research. The Master's programme is taught by a multi-disciplinary team drawn from the Disaster Risk and Resilience Group in UC's Te Tari Putaiao a-nuku, Department of Geological Sciences, from Lincoln University’s Department of Environmental Management, and from Te Pu Ao, GNS Science. This partnership increases the breadth of teaching expertise, student research projects, and industry practice connections.

Faculty of Science