Starting this fall, UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 new conflict resolution and analysis certificate will provide students with the opportunity to dig deeper into the theories behind conflict and uncover what causes disputes. They 麻豆精品 S檒l also learn the tools needed to resolve conflict at all levels: personal, professional, local, regional, national and global.

麻豆精品 S淐onflict is rampant in society, 麻豆精品 S says Alisa Smith, associate professor and chair of the legal studies department. 麻豆精品 S淪tudents and professionals who earn a conflict resolution and analysis certificate will have a deeper understanding of the origins and root causes of conflicts, and they will learn strategies for resolving interpersonal and community conflicts. 麻豆精品 S

The 15-credit-hour program is based at UCF Downtown in the legal studies department, with one for undergraduates and another for graduate students. 麻豆精品 S淎s lawyers, we 麻豆精品 S檙e used to seeing conflicts move through the process and get resolved one way or the other, 麻豆精品 S says circuit civil mediator and visiting lecturer, Elizabeth Gillham. 麻豆精品 S淭hat 麻豆精品 S檚 why I think the legal studies department is the perfect home for this certificate. 麻豆精品 S

Kristin Grossman, a legal studies adjunct professor and Florida Supreme Court certified family mediator, echoes this sentiment: 麻豆精品 S淎 lot of times lawyers lack the skills to self-regulate and move through conflict in adaptive ways. 麻豆精品 S This certificate will prepare future lawyers and students interested in legal careers the chance to learn how to navigate conflict personally and professionally, in an inherently adversarial system, says Grossman.

Conflict exists outside of the legal system as well, and students from any program can participate in the certificate.

Whether there 麻豆精品 S檚 a dispute between neighbors about where a fence should go or a family squabble, conflict is everywhere.

麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 because people are people, 麻豆精品 S says Grossman.

Students from any program, pursing any career field, can benefit from the lessons learned in this certificate. Future social workers, human resource managers, insurance claim representatives, business majors and psychology students are all examples of people who could profit from the skills of recognizing conflict, analyzing it and then resolving it as peacefully as possible.

麻豆精品 S淲herever you find yourself, whatever sector you find yourself in, you 麻豆精品 S檙e going to have an expanded capacity to be able to navigate conflict skillfully, 麻豆精品 S says Grossman.

The coursework differs for undergraduate and graduate students, but the core classes are fundamentally the same. Students will learn the theoretical basis behind conflict and engage in role-play scenarios to practice their newly acquired skills. Once the core classes are complete, students are required to choose two electives, many of which are housed in other departments at UCF, such as communications, management and public administration.

In addition to more advanced coursework, graduate students 麻豆精品 S certificate experience includes a required practicum, where they will be working in Orange County community schools, flexing their conflict-resolution skills. Grossman explains the practicum as an opportunity for graduate students to assist high school students, their parents, administrators and teachers move through conflict.

Undergraduate students will have the option to choose between working in elementary-level community schools or joining UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 mediation team, which simulates a mediation conference between two parties involved in a dispute, says head coach Gillham.

Both certificates will be available online.

麻豆精品 S淐onflict is woven into the fabric of a society, 麻豆精品 S says Gillham. 麻豆精品 S淗aving these basic skills of recognizing conflict, getting to the heart of it, and then working towards resolving it are going to be important no matter what field you go into. 麻豆精品 S