The Licentiate in Safeguarding is a four-semester program with the following structure:

Semester 1, Theoretical semester with workshop weeks (30 ECTS)

• Multidisciplinary foundation with regard to all major aspects of safeguarding.

Semester 2, Theoretical semester (28 ECTS)

• Elements geared towards personal development and human formation.

Semester 3, Practical semester (26 ECTS)

• 450 hours of supervised internship in a field of safeguarding related to the student’s specialization (in any country in whose language the student is proficient)
• 200 hours of literature study, reflection on experiences, written internship reports, online contact with IADC supervisors.

Semester 4, Theoretical semester (12 ECTS)

• Elements geared towards personal development and human formation
• A practical week on the future roles of safeguarding professionals (pass/fail).

The licentiate ends with final exams (written and oral) and the presentation and defense of a thesis: 14 ECTS for licentiate thesis and its presentation, 10 ECTS for the final exams.

Students may only take part in the final examinations if they pass the examinations of each individual course, the practical training, and the thesis.

Licentiate students must prepare a thesis under the supervision of a professor approved by the dean. The licentiate thesis consists of an original text of about 50 pages (about 100,000 characters), excluding the bibliography. Students will defend the thesis before the final oral examination.

Admission requirements

In order to be admitted to the Licentiate in Safeguarding candidates must have:

• at least a bachelor’s degree (1st cycle university degree) with a final grade average of at least Cum Laude in subject areas relevant to the subjects taught;
• sufficient knowledge of the language of instruction;
• personal motivation and the prospect of future work in the field.