Master of IR

Introduction

The Graduate International Relations program at Kateb has been serving as academic and intellectual hub for students from across Afghanistan since the inception of the Kateb with qualified degree holders as faculty members from different parts of the world.

International relations is the study of a country’s political principles and processes, its foreign affairs and its relations. International relations include concentration in subjects such as International Crisis Management, Political Behavior, Major Powers and Central Asia, Economic issues in local and international government systems. Graduates can work as Afghan diplomats or ambassadors, consulate heads and local government officers, or politicians.

Career Paths to Follow

Graduates of international relations from Afghanistan will have the opportunity to take part in maintaining positive relations between Afghanistan and world, and prevent international conflicts.

There are a number of jobs IR graduates can choose from.

1. Diplomat to serve Afghanistan’s interests in terms of politics and trade. Some of the major duties of a diplomats are representation, reporting, discussion and negotiation on topics such as war, trade, economy and sometimes social and cultural problems.
2. Political Analyst to be hired by the government, media companies or research institutions. Some of the major duties of a political analyst will be to discuss and interpret political crisis, political development and to advise the government official such as the president, ministers and deputy ministers of various topics as well as analyze election results of the media, political parties or the public.

Other jobs you can have as an IR graduate is working as a lobbyist or communication specialists at national or international organizations. These organizations hire IR graduates to deal and convince governments on international level.

Local Government, National and International Business Entities, NGOs, INGOs are some of the employers of a successful IR graduates.

Student Development Opportunities

Student Research

There are a number of research opportunities for Kateb IR students. Kateb Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies Center, Kateb Journal of Human Rights, Kateb Human Rights Center and Kateb Department of Research are platforms students from every department can use to write individual or joint research articles.

Mr. Atiqullah Jafari is the corresponding author of “The place of Public Diplomacy in Turkish Foreign Policy under the Rajab Tayib Ardogan Government with an Emphasis on Afghanistan. The Paper is a collective work of Mr. Atiqullah Jafari, Mohammad Musa Jafari and Mohseni Khawari.

The place of public diplomacy in Turkish foreign policy under the Rajab Tayib Ardogan government with an emphasis on Afghanistan

Atiqullah Jafari₁, Mohammad Musa Jafari₂,Mohssen Khawari₃

1- Graduated from Kateb Univesity, Kabul, Afghanistan, Corresponding Author1

2- Scientific Board Member of Kateb University, Kabul, Afghanistan

3- Professor at Kateb University, Kabul, Afghanistan

Abstract

Public Diplomacy, a platform for the development of soft power, it’s a new concept in Turkey, which acts as an accelerating factor for the soft power of the foreign policy instrument. Using public diplomacy, especially in the 21th century, not only has been a badge of fear and weakness of the countries, but is a good indicator to assess the sustainability and success level of foreign policy of the countries. The research is focused on the assumption that Turkey’s foreign policy is following deep strategic doctrine which trying to promote Turkey’s position in the Islamic countries and strengthen the shared cultural affairs. Thus, in order to achieve its goals, Turkey government is more interested in public diplomacy. Like other Islamic countries in Afghanistan, Turkey is also trying to strengthen the bilateral ties and attract Afghans attention through increasing its cultural, educational, and economic and media cooperation. Therefore, presence of a number of Turkey NGOs and associations in Afghanistan and increase of Turkey serials in TVs, increase in Turkey scholarships, expansion of trade relations, Turkey role in Afghanistan peace process and more importantly the tight relation of Dostum with Turkey are the issues that can be studied in terms of Turkey public diplomacy in Afghanistan. However, Turkey’s public diplomacy in Afghanistan still faces many challenges; like local nationalism and Islamism. Also in terms of public diplomacy, Turkey has to challenge with powerful rivals such as Iran, China, Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan and Russia. This is a library research, with a descriptive-analytical style using the relevant political books, valid articles and websites as the reference.

Key words: Public Diplomacy, Foreign Policy, Turkey, Afghanistan, cultural diplomacy, Ardogan

Kateb Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies Center

Kateb Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies Center aims to study, research and work for Peace Building in Afghanistan. The Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies concept is widely known and appreciated by Universities around the world and is a good opportunity for cooperation among universities. Unlike the past, when only the countries in conflict or arbitrary states  were part of the peace building process, today, international organizations and the public play prominent role in peace building process.

Because educational and scientific institutions can play prominent role in peace building, the Political Science Department at Kateb University strives to be part of the activities to enhance the peace building process through national and international organizations and educational institutions.

Organizations such as the High Peace Council is established in the country to enhance the peace building process however these institutions have focused on practical aspects of peace building rather than its theoretical knowledge. In order to have access to sustainable peace, mechanisms that enhance the conflict resolution process and sustainable peace at most, we need to deeply study peace and conflict resolution itself. This is why the Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies Center at Kateb University strives to enhance its network with the national and international research organizations in order to recognize the right platforms for research and support research ideas in the field.

Students from the political science department can become members of the Peace and Conflict Resolutions Studies. The center aims to build students’ capacity in order to be able to use the network and resources so that students can take part and initiate ideas for peace and conflict resolution studies and research. In that regards, research methodology workshops are also held for members.

Expertise of Faculty Members

Our every faculty member is expert in their own field and have contributed extensive years of their lives teaching and practicing International Relations concepts. Their experience helps to ensure that our curriculum at the department is designed and updated on a timely basis.

1. Amanullah Fasihi has a diploma in Humanities from Shaheed Al Turabi School in Mash-had. He received his bachelor and master’s degrees in Political Science from Firdausi University in Mash-had, Iran. He has participated in different teacher training courses organized by UN entities in collaboration with some Iranian institutions in Iran. Currently, he is a PhD student of Political Science at the Shahed Beheshti University, Tehran. He has also done some research works and published a book entitled “Building States”. In addition, he has written and published research essays for different magazines and news channels. Two of these are 8 TV News and Etilaat Roz Magazine. He has worked as faculty member and academic board member at Khuwaja Abdullah Ansari Institute of Higher Education Herat and Ghalib University respectively. Currently, he is a faculty member at the Department of Law and Political Science Kateb University.

Curriculum

Students study Afghanistan and International Politics, International Organization, Seminar on Third World International Politics, Seminar on Afghanistan’s Foreign Relations, Comparative Study of Political System in International Relations, Diplomatic and Consular Rights, International Political Economy, International Theories and Research Method in International Relations as compulsory subjects during a course of 2 years.

There are other elective courses offered such as the International Relations History, Role of Ideology in International Politics, Foreign Policies of Great Power, Technical English in International Relations, International Crisis Management, Development Theories, Comparative Foreign Policy, Military Strategy of Great Power, Globalization Theories and Their Effects on Afghanistan, International Security Studies and Development of Concepts in International Relations.

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