Advanced Certificate in Human Rights

About the program

The Advanced Certificate in Human Rights provides students with an introduction to core aspects of human rights practice, with a focus on community-level engagement.

Offered by the Department of Human Development, the 16-credit program outlines an interdisciplinary framework for incorporating human rights approaches into scholarly and professional development.

Students develop professional skills for working in human rights-oriented organizations at the local, regional, national, and international levels. The program offers human rights approaches to issues such as education, health, children, family, poverty, incarceration, immigration, and violence.

These issues are evaluated critically through the lenses of race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, place, community and/or nationality, with an emphasis on theories and practices of human rights as well as an overview of community-led approaches to human rights.

The program is intended for students seeking to broaden their skill set and gain a vocabulary in diversity and equity, and prepares students to work in roles such as researchers, policy analysts, rights advocates, program managers, community organizers, and legislative advocates. 

Our students go on to work in fields such as community organizing, policy analysis and development, academics, human resources and corporate responsibility.

Curriculum

The 16-credit certificate program is built upon the core curriculum of the Master of Science in Human Rights (MSHR) program. The MSHR, along with initiatives such as the Human Rights Institute, the Institute for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention, and the Freshman Immersion Program in Human Rights, has established °®¶¹´«Ã½ as a major center for human rights pedagogy and research. 

Students enrolled in the advanced certificate in Human Rights program are required to complete the following course of study:

  • Human Rights Theory and Practice I or II
  • Theorizing Social Change from a Human Rights Perspective
  • Methods of Human Rights Research
  • One Elective Graduate Course

Apply

Learn more about °®¶¹´«Ã½'s Graduate School requirements and begin your application here.

Applicants to the Advanced Certificate in Human Rights program must: 

  • Have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
  • Have an undergraduate grade point average of 3.0

Applicants are required to submit the following:

  • Graduate School application
  • Transcripts from you undergraduate institution
  • A current resume
  • A letter of recommendation from a professor or professional colleague, such as a supervisor or executive director of a nonprofit organization, who can evaluate your suitability for a certificate program
  • A 1-2 page personal statement that addresses why you are interested in the program

The Admissions Committee reviews applications on a rolling basis.

Current graduate students: Students may choose to add this certificate program on to their current graduate studies. Read more about the add-on application process on the Graduate School website.

For more information, contact: