This is a sponsored post on PCDN.

Communities need people who understand systems of violence and conflict, and who are prepared to lead change and build peace with justice.

The Master of Peace and Conflict Studies (MPACS) program prepares graduates to be catalysts for peace at community, institutional, and systemic levels. As a rigorous course-based professional degree program, MPACS connects theory, analysis, reflection, and practice. With a distinctive focus on civil society and community-led change, students graduate with tools to understand sources of conflict, polarization, and systems of violence, as well as to imagine and support transformative peacebuilding.

A graduate reflected, “On a professional level, MPACS gave me the voice and the ability to articulate injustice. It gave me the credibility to not call people out in their conflict but call them in and say here's where some of the changes need to be made. Taking the skills that I learned in MPACS and applying them to a business setting felt like a unique skill set. I quickly realized that this was unique in the context that I was bringing it, and that many people didn't have it. People started to notice.”

The MPACS program can be completed in 16 months by full-time students, with a part-time option also available. Students take a combination of core PACS courses and electives, with the option to include electives from other departments at the University of Waterloo.

Apply now for intake in Fall 2026 through the University of Waterloo. The application deadline is February 1, 2026. For more details, view the admission requirements and procedures.

Program Features

• Strong Foundations: Students are equipped to understand systems of conflict, violence and oppression, and to transform them through principled and effective social change.
• Interdisciplinary Breadth: Electives are offered in PACS as well as in Global Governance, International Development, Sociology, Political Science, and related disciplines.
• Field-Experienced Faculty: MPACS faculty bring diverse expertise, field experience and dynamic pedagogical approaches to the classroom.
• Engaged Community: Students benefit from diverse cohorts, strong collegiality, and the combined community, resources, and facilities of Grebel and the University of Waterloo.
• Independent Research: Students interested in research may pursue independent studies with a faculty supervisor to advance area-specific knowledge and their academic skills.
• Financial Aid: Full-time students are automatically considered for entry-based awards and receive funding for up to four terms of full-time study.

Experiential Learning Opportunities

• Internships: Develop skills as a practitioner while completing research that links theory and practice. Placements have spanned 70 organizations across 20 countries.
• Conflict Resolution Skills Training: Take workshops for academic credit through the in-house Conflict Management Certificate program or approved external workshops.
• Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement: Access support for early-stage non-profits and social enterprises focused on peace and justice.
• Map the System: Explore complex social and environmental issues while participating in a global competition run in partnership with Oxford University.

Career Preparation

Join a growing network of 200+ alumni who are making an impact in communities and organizations globally. MPACS career paths include conflict management, mediation and restorative justice, research and advocacy, community development, human rights work, law, non-profit leadership, and social change entrepreneurship.

Join Our Community of Peacebuilders

Get ready to make a real difference – apply now.

Discover more by visiting the MPACS website or joining an upcoming information session.

Contact MPACS at cgcmpacs@uwaterloo.ca