Human Rights

The MSc in Human Rights is a one-year intensive course that prepares you for a career in human rights research, policy or advocacy in international organisations, governmental and non-governmental bodies, or academia. There is also a two-year part time option.

You will explore the theory, politics and law of human rights and examine the mechanisms and limitations of national and international action to protect human rights.
You will either complete a research dissertation or undertake a monitored internship.

The MSc in Human Rights is a 90-credit programme, including 60 credits of modules taught by staff in the School of Politics and International Relations and the School of Law. Full time students must take three 10-credit modules in the autumn trimester, and three 10-credit modules in the spring trimester. Students must also submit a thesis worth 30-credits or pursue an Internship instead in the summer trimester.

SPIRe part time programmes run for 2 years and students normally do 1 -2 modules per semester. The final 30-credit module is completed during the second year of the programme. PT students should complete the research design module in year 2.

Please note that our part-time programmes run during the day and are not timetabled in the evenings or at weekends.

Core and Option Modules for MSc Human Rights

These are the current modules for 2023/24 but are subject to change. Each of the following modules carries 10 credits unless otherwise specified.

Autumn Trimester Core
POL41020 Politics of Human Rights
POL42330 Research Design

Autumn Trimester Option
GS40100 Gender, Conflict-related Harm & Transitional Justice
​LAW40780 Law of the ECHR
POL40050 Theories of International Relations
POL40140 Theories of Global Justice
POL40160 Comparative Public Policy
POL40540 Comparative European Politics
POL41510 Politics and Change in the Middle East and North Africa
POL41650 The Global Political Economy of Europe
POL41870 Political Economy of Institutions and Comparative Development
POL41980 Peace & Conflict Studies
POL42040 Gender & the Political System
POL42070 Politics of (mis-)information
POL42470 Gender, Identity, & Difference
POL42490 Politics of Ireland North & South

Spring Trimester Core
EQUL40070 Human Rights Law and Equality
POL41030 Theory of Human Rights

Spring Trimester Option
DEV40020 Gender and Development
​LAW42130 UN Human Rights Practice
POL40100 Politics of Development
POL40370 International Political Economy
POL40610 EU Foreign, Security, and Defence Policy
POL40970 Politics of European Governance
POL41720 Gender, Peace, and Security
POL41860 Governance, Politics and Development
POL42050 Quantitative Text Analysis
POL42060 International Security
POL42440 Political Economy of Security
POL42480 Contemporary Election Campaigns: Democratic Norms and Empirical Research
POL42500 Politics of Authoritarianism

Summer Trimester
POL42300 SPIRe Internship (30 credits)
or
POL42310 Thesis (30 credits)

A primary degree with at least Second Class Honours Grade 1 (2H1) in a relevant subject such as political science, international relations, social science, sociology, history, geography, economics, global studies, public policy, development studies, EU studies, law. 2H1 is equivalent to 60 per cent, B minus or 3.08 GPA - in American system: B or 3.00 GPA.

Your application will be considered on its individual merits and relevant professional experience will also be taken into account.

English language requirements: applicants whose first language is not English should have met TOEFL, IELTs, or computer-based TOEFL requirements (600, 6.5, or 250 respectively), or the Cambridge English Test (Certificate in Advanced English at a minimum of Grade B, or Certificate of Proficiency in English at Grade C). Applicants who obtained a previous degree from an English-speaking university may be exempted from this requirement. Click here for further info.

Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the English language requirements, may enter the programme upon successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes. Please see the following link for further information http://www.ucd.ie/alc/programmes/pathways/

These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes

The following entry routes are available:
MSc Human Rights FT (W035)
Deadline: Rolling*

MSc Human Rights PT (W110)
Deadline: Rolling*

* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised.

90

W035: 1 year full-time
W110: 2 years part-time
Mode of delivery: Face-to-Face

MSc Human Rights (W035) Full Time
EU fee per year - € 8525
nonEU fee per year - € 19900

MSc Human Rights (W110) Part Time
EU fee per year - € 5600
nonEU fee per year - € 9950

***Fees are subject to change

Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website. Please note that UCD offers a number of graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information please see International Scholarships.

SPIRe operates a Graduate Scholarship programme. To access details, see SPIRe Graduate Scholarship Scheme.

Next Intake: 2024/2025 September.

Careers & Employability
Graduates work with international private-sector employers, government agencies and NGOs as:
• Human Rights Specialist
• Field Officer
• Human Rights Consultant
• Child Protection Adviser
• Public Information Officer
• Journalist

Recent graduates of MSc in Human Rights now work in:
• Front Line Defenders
• United Nations, New York and Geneva
• Amnesty International
• Médecins sans Frontières
• PLAN Ireland
• Irish Aid
• Oxfam