Cross-Cultural Communication: Developing cultural awareness, competences and skills
In today's world, individuals and organizations need to navigate intercultural situations and interactions on a daily basis. Cross-cultural competences need to be developed constantly in order to operate effectively in these multilateral settings, avoid misunderstandings and prejudices in negotiation and communication processes. In that context, the awareness of culture's effects on interactions, refined sensitivity, and competences and skills can enhance interactions within international relations and will consequently lead to more constructive outcomes.
The general objective of this e-Learning course is to develop the understanding of culture's effects on communication in the international field of work. With the focus on cultural awareness development, this course will teach valuable tools to enhance competences and skills to navigate intercultural interactions for improved and sustainable international relations.
- Enhance knowledge about concepts of culture;
- Explore challenges of cross-cultural communication;
- Expand the participant's cross-cultural competences;
- Deepen the knowledge about negotiations and leadership in a cross-cultural context.
The course content will include the following content:
- Concepts and dimensions of culture;
- Cross-cultural communication;
- Cross-cultural competence;
- Working in international contexts;
- Cross-cultural negotiations.
e-Learning: The course is internet-based, moderated by an intercultural consultant, asynchronous, and places emphasis on online discussions and self-paced learning. The participants will be primarily responsible for their own learning over the four-week span of the course. The course will consist of the following components:
- Compulsory and optional reading material, intended to teach the basic concepts and principles of the lesson's subject-matter;
- Additional audio-visual and reading material related to the lessons;
- Discussion board sessions at the end of each module. To be eligible for the course certificate, a passing grade of 80% on participation and test assessments is required;
- A Community Discussion Board will be available for participants to post questions or comments visible to the instructor and other participants. This discussion board will be moderated by the trainer and UNITAR;
Estimated learning time: minimum of 30 hours.
Participants will be eligible to receive a certificate of completion after the successful completion of the course.
The course targets mid to senior-level governmental officials as well as staff of intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations. It also targets entry-level and mid-career diplomats and private and public sector specialists. Moreover, young professionals from related fields are welcome. Postgraduate students with relevant experience in multicultural working environments are also encouraged to apply.
Admission requirements
There are no specific admission requirements. Participants who wish to enrol in one particular course without being awarded a diploma can still do so.
General requirements
- Have a good command of the English language
- Be computer literate
Technical requirements
UNITAR recommends the following as a minimum in hardware and software to take our e-Learning courses. Please consult your Network Administrator or Systems person to ensure that you have the following:
- Platform: Windows 10 or 11; MacOS 10.15 Catalina, 11 Big Sur, and 12 Monterey; Linux
- Software: Adobe Acrobat Reader, Microsoft Office (Windows or Mac) or Open Office
- Browser: Microsoft Edge; Safari; Google Chrome; t works better with Firefox 3.6 or higher. Note that JavaScript, Cookies and Pop-ups must be enabled.
Payment information
We highly recommend credit card payments.
For more information, please consult the UNITAR Multilateral Diplomacy Programme website or contact mdp-elearning [at] unitar.org (mdp-elearning[at]unitar[dot]org)