The International Human Rights Exchange is a full-semester, interdisciplinary program in human rights that is based in Johannesburg, South Africa.  Students enrolled in the program take classes at the University of the Witwatersrand, live in a residence hall on the main campus, and undertake an internship at a civil society organization in Johannesburg.

Several graduate schools, in the US and elsewhere, offer advanced degrees in human rights.  Among the better known programs are the following:

• Columbia University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, MA in Human Rights

• University College London, Institute for Human Rights, MA in Human Rights

• University of Connecticut, University of Connecticut, Human Rights Institute, Graduate Certificate in Human Rights

• University of Denver, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, Center on Rights Development, MA in International Human Rights

• University of Essex (UK), Human Rights Centre, MA in the Theory and Practice of Human Rights

• University of Pennsylvania, Graduate Certificate in Human Rights

Numerous law schools have human rights programs that offer courses in human rights law, as well as clinical and internship opportunities. They include:

• American University, Washington College of Law, Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law 

• Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Human Rights and Genocide Clinic

• Columbia Law School, Human Rights Institute

• Cornell Law School, International Human Rights Clinic

• CUNY School of Law, International Women’s Human Rights Law Clinic

• Fordham Law School, Walter Leitner International Human Rights Clinic and Crowley Program in International Human Rights, Leitner Center for International Law and Justice

• Georgetown Law Center, Human Rights Institute

• Harvard Law School, Human Rights Program

• Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Faculty of Law, Minerva Center for Human Rights

• New York University School of Law, Center for Human Rights and Global Justice

• Northeastern University School of Law, Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy

• Northwestern University School of Law, Center for International Human Rights

• St Thomas University School of Law, Human Rights Institute

• Stanford Law School, International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic

• UCLA School of Law, International Human Rights Program

• University of Notre Dame School of Law, Center for Civil and Human Rights

• University of Southern California School of Law, International Human Rights Clinic

• University of Texas at Austin School of Law, Human Rights Clinic

• Yale Law School, Orville H. Schell, Jr. Center for International Human Rights

A large number of law schools, both in the US and abroad, also offer an LL.M (Master’s) in human rights law.  Such programs are not only open to lawyers, they are also open to students without a legal background.  Below are some of the schools that offer this degree or related degrees in human rights law; for more information and a more comprehensive list of schools, visit this site.

• Åbo Akademi University (Finland), Institute for Human Rights, Master’s Degree Programme in International Human Rights Law

• The American University in Cairo (Egypt), Graduate Diploma in International Human Rights Law (1-year program)

• The American University in Cairo (Egypt), Master’s in International Human Rights Law (2-year program)

• American University, Washington College of Law, LL.M. in International Human Rights Law

• Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights (Switzerland), LL.M. in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

• Harvard Law School, LL.M. International Human Rights Concentration

• Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel), Faculty of Law, LL.M in Human Rights and International Law 

• Kathmandu School of Law (Nepal), LL.M. in Human Rights and Gender Justice

• Lund University (Sweden), Faculty of Law, Master’s in International Human Rights Law

• Northwestern University School of Law, LL.M. in International Human Rights Law

• Nottingham Trent University (U.K.), Nottingham Law School, LL.M. in Human Rights

• Saint Thomas University School of Law, LL.M./J.S.D. in Intercultural Human Rights

• University for Peace (Costa Rica), Master’s in International Law and Human Rights

• University of Aberdeen (U.K.), School of Law, LL.M. in Human Rights

• University of Bristol Law School (U.K.), LL.M. in Human Rights Law

• University College London, LL.M in Human Rights

• University of Essex (U.K.), School of Law, LL.M. in International Human Rights Law

• University of Hong Kong (China), Master of Laws in Human Rights

• University of Pretoria (South Africa), Faculty of Law, Centre for Human Rights, LL.M. in Human Rights & Democratisation in Africa

• Utrecht University School of Law (Netherlands), LL.M. in International Law of Human Rights and Criminal Justice

• University of Notre Dame Law School, LL.M. in International Human Rights Law

• Queen’s University of Belfast (U.K.), School of Law, LL.M. in Human Rights Law

There are lots of different ways to work in the human rights field, including via positions with nongovernmental organizations, think tanks, media outlets, intergovernmental organizations and government. Possible human rights careers include human rights advocate, public defender, documentary filmmaker, human rights lawyer, field investigator, aid worker, and professor of human rights.

Many students of human rights are not planning to pursue a career that is specifically focused on human rights, but are instead planning to apply the knowledge and skills they have gained via the study of human rights to other careers. Graduates with a minor or certificate in human rights may follow a range of career paths, including in diplomacy, social work, medicine, public health, urban planning, corporate responsibility and journalism. There is growing demand in these professions for expertise on human rights issues.

The study of human rights is particularly good preparation for future lawyers, because of the field’s grounding in the discourse of rights and emphasis on effective advocacy.  In addition, many students of human rights, given their heightened awareness of rights violations, power imbalances, and injustice, are drawn toward careers in government and politics, and seek to use their skills to institute policy reforms either domestically or internationally.

If you would like more detailed information about careers in human rights, watch some of the following videos, in which human rights professionals discuss their educational and career trajectories, how they got their first jobs in the human rights field, and what kind of work they do -

• Careers in Human Rights: An Alumni Forum, The New School, April 7, 2011 (panelists begin at the 0:06:45 mark)

• NGO/IGO Careers and Human Rights, Santa Clara University, October 6, 2011 (panelists begin at the 0:02:50 mark)

• International Human Rights Careers Seminar, Castan Centre, March 29, 2011 (panelists begin at the 0:02:15 mark)

• Domestic Human Rights Careers Seminar, Castan Centre, March 30, 2011(panelists begin at the 0:03:40 mark)

You can also learn about what it’s like to work at specific organizations, and how to get jobs there -

• International Rescue Committee: Work with Us, June 15, 2007

• Human Rights Watch, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) For Job-Seekers