European College of Parma Foundation

For whom and why?

The Master’s program is designed for professionals working in assistance, social support, and psychosocial care, whether already active—or wishing to engage—in humanitarian emergencies or in local services dedicated to individuals and communities facing vulnerability or distress.

The program trains specialists capable of acting with competence, ethics, and sensitivity when supporting people and communities in crisis. Based on the international MHPSS (Mental Health and Psychosocial Support) approach, it develops the ability to:

• work within multidisciplinary and intercultural teams in complex environments;

• build care relationships grounded in active listening, recognition, and the empowerment of individual and community resources;

• design and implement integrated psychosocial interventions adapted to real field contexts;

• collaborate with institutional and civil-society actors to develop services that are sensitive to trauma, context, and cultural dimensions.

The Master prepares practitioners to address the challenges of mental health in humanitarian or social contexts through solid theoretical, practical, and reflective tools. Graduates are equipped to understand the interplay between individual needs, collective dynamics, and systemic constraints.

For Whom and Why?

The Master’s program trains Psychologists, Psychiatrists, and mental health professionals capable of intervening with competence, ethics, and sensitivity in humanitarian settings and in community services dedicated to people in situations of vulnerability.

In contexts marked by collective trauma, disasters, forced migration, and systemic violence, psychological support cannot rely on a standard clinical approach.

It requires flexible tools, intercultural competencies, rapid assessment abilities, and the capacity to build authentic care relationships that are deeply humane and respectful of the complexity of individual experiences.

The training program is based on the MHPSS (Mental Health and Psychosocial Support) approach promoted by international organizations, integrating clinical dimensions with social and community perspectives.

Psychological intervention is therefore part of a multi-level strategy that includes promoting resilience, strengthening community ties, and providing support aimed at protection and overall well-being.

In settings affected by collective trauma, natural disasters, forced migration, conflicts, and systemic violence, psychological care requires integrated, flexible, and culturally adapted approaches.

Graduates of the program will be able to:

• Assess and intervene in emergency and crisis situations at both individual and collective levels

• Build effective therapeutic alliances in fragile environments through relationships based on empathy, active listening, and respect for cultural norms

• Adapt clinical protocols to unstable operational settings using resilience-oriented and psychosocial support tools

• Work within multidisciplinary and intercultural teams, contributing to the co-construction of participatory and do-no-harm interventions

• Maintain their own emotional and professional balance through self-care practices and critical reflection on their clinical posture

Thus, the Master’s program enables participants to acquire highly specialized skills in psychological and psychosocial care in emergency contexts, with constant attention to the well-being of both beneficiaries and practitioners.