Professional Development Courses

The Professional Development Courses (PDC) is a collaborative initiative of The American University in Cairo’s (AUC) Center for Migration and Refugee Studies (CMRS) and St. Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS). The goal of these courses is to provide professional development opportunities to members of the refugees and the migrant communities as well as Egyptians working on behalf of the refugee and migrant communities of Cairo. The ultimate goal of the courses is to increase the access of marginalised communities to personal, professional and academic opportunities to improve their skills and help them access new opportunities, and advance their careers. 

Our Core beliefs

We believe that there are many highly talented and extremely motivated individuals working to advance the status of Cairo’s refugee and migrant communities and that these individuals can benefit from professional development courses to increase their access to personal, professional and academic opportunities. 

We believe that the true drivers of development come from marginalised communities themselves and that by investing in individuals working for their community, we are investing in the future of the community itself. 

Objective 

Our goal is to provide relevant, high-quality professional development courses to help individuals working for the refugee and migrant communities improve their skills, access new opportunities, and advance in their careers. 

About CMRS and StARS  

The Center for Migration and Refugee Studies (CMRS) at AUC aims to further our knowledge of refugee and migration movements in the Middle East and North Africa region, as well the international system as a whole. CMRS functions include instruction, research, training and outreach. The training activities CMRS organises are attended by researchers, policymakers, bureaucrats and activists from a great number of countries. 

It also provides training and capacity-building services to the refugee community in Cairo. St. Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS) works with refugees and vulnerable migrants in Cairo of all nationalities to increase their ability to meet their basic needs through education, legal services, and psychosocial support for adults, children, unaccompanied children and families. Our purpose is twofold: to provide high-quality services meeting the unaddressed needs of refugees and asylum seekers, and to provide a safe and inclusive space for displaced people to come together as a community.