Study

We are happy to announce that UCL’s MSc in Humanitarian Policy & Practice has been selected as one of eight programmes for the Commonwealth Shared Scholarship for 2025/26. The scholarship covers tuition fees, living costs, and travel to the UK. 

For more information about eligibility criteria and how to apply, please visit UCL Scholarships & Funding. Deadline: 9 December 2025. 

Postgraduate Taught Studies

We welcome students who would like to study with us at the Centre. We bring a wealth of experience and the practical application of research findings to our teaching. We have excellent connections to government and non-governmental agencies, UN organisations and civil society, all of which contribute to an enriched learning environment.

We currently offer a taught Masters programme in Humanitarian Policy and Practice.

Armed conflict, environmental disasters, disease outbreaks, the escalating impact of the climate emergency, and political, economic and social systems that intentionally exclude individuals and render certain groups vulnerable, demand rigorous ways of understanding complex and dynamic systems, and effective ways of working to both mitigate risks and respond to individual and population needs.

Our new MSc Humanitarian Policy and Practice will equip students with the necessary skills to understand and analyse the increasingly complex drivers of crises, with an appreciation of historical trends, future projections, and the place of humanitarian response within the context of wider diplomatic and development efforts. 

For more information, please email: iehc.mschumanitarianpolicypractice@ucl.ac.uk

This below information session was led by Prof Maria Kett,  Programme Director for the MSc Humanitarian Policy and Practice, and Dr Ben Oldfrey, UCL Research Fellow. They share more about the programme and answer live Q&A's.

Postgraduate Research Studies

We also welcome applications from potential doctoral candidates in any of our focus areas. We particularly welcome applications from students with lived experience of any of the focus areas.

Current PhD students 

Taiwo Ladapo

Health outcomes of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children arriving via small boats to the United Kingdom

Primary supervisor: Professor Maria Kett
Co-Supervisors: Professor Sarah Eisen

Arianne Bobba

The Perception of Leprosy Stigma: Societal Factors and Resilience in People Affected by Leprosy in Northern Mozambique

Primary Supervisor: Professor Maria Kett

Co-Supervisors: Professor Katrina Scior

Dr Israel Adekunle Balogun

What are the barriers experienced by persons with disabilities in accessing humanitarian services the Northern Nigeria? (working title)

Joint Primary Supervisors: Professor Maria Kett and Professor Nora Groce

Co-Supervisors: Dr Victoria Austin

Anna Hope  Landre (UCL Computer Science)

How can we use technology to uncover, visualize, and facilitate networks in the transnational disability community?

Primary supervisor: Professor Catherine Holloway

Co-Supervisors: Professor Maria Kett, Dr Victoria Austin
 

Recent completed PhD students 

Ellie Cole - 'What does a disability-inclusive pandemic response mean for Liberia and how can it lead to genuine systemic change?' (2025)

Claire Brundle - 'Understanding the inclusive classroom for children with SEND in the UK: How does occupational therapy as a conceptual framework contribute to our understanding?' (2025)

Dahn Bee Park - 'Support for tertiary education for students with disabilities in South Korea' (2025)

Abigail  Ewen (UCL Institute for Risk & Disaster Reduction) - 'Disability and Identity in Time of Crisis in Nepal: Balancing urgency and inclusion in disaster risk reduction.' (2025)

Rosamund Greiner (UCL Institute for Global Health) - 'Zika, gender and disability in Colombia' (2024)

UCL Humanitarian Scholarships

UCL Humanitarian Scholarships enable students at serious risk and/or displaced due to armed conflict to pursue full-time Masters degree studies at UCL.

The International Masters Awards enable international postgraduate taught students, from a diverse range of backgrounds, to take up their offer of study at UCL.

Find out about funding available to students here:  https://www.ucl.ac.uk/scholarships/fund-your-studies