Off to a flying start

Six weeks into it, Dr James A. Malcolm updates us on the progress of the first online MA in Maritime Security administered by Coventry University.

Online MA in Maritime Security gets off to flying start

Coventry University’s inaugural online MA in Maritime Security has now entered its sixth week. The first student cohort officially began the 12 month MA programme in January, attending a 4-day residential workshop at the University’s main campus.

Here the students had the opportunity to meet staff, fellow Maritime Security colleagues, and learn more about the city. A range of lectures, roundtable discussions and practical exercises were delivered, with a variety of external speakers invited to share their knowledge and expertise.

Examples included a lecture on private maritime security companies and a roundtable discussion on the relationship between state fragility and maritime insecurity involving representatives from the Nautical Institute, International Association of Maritime Security Professionals and the Environmental Justice Foundation.

MA programme convenor, Dr James A. Malcolm told Maritime Security Review that the workshop had been a really useful way to kick-start the programme: “the students enjoyed the mixture of activities we developed for the residential workshop – both academic and social – and also appreciated the opportunity to engage with colleagues on our other online MA in Peacebuilding.

The workshop served a really important dual purpose then, providing students with key information on the one hand, and on the other hand energising them further, through discussions, for the year of study ahead. It was a great start to the MA programme”.

Since the workshop concluded, students have begun a lecture series, principally delivered through Coventry University’s virtual learning environment. The main objective of this lecture series is to introduce students to the theory and practice of Maritime Security.

The lecture series is highly interactive with online discussions, weekly short assignments, and regular tuition meetings with staff at the Centre for Peace and Reconciliation Studies.

So far students have focused on understanding the broader geopolitical context in which maritime security professionals’ work, and will now go on to discuss some of the main dimensions of maritime security, including the Law of the Sea and the privatisation of maritime security.

The lecture series will culminate in the students writing a 3,000 word essay, a chance, in the words of Dr Malcolm, “to showcase their knowledge and critical analysis skills in preparation for the subsequent dissertation project”.

Applications for next year’s online MA are open and further information can be found here.