International Human Rights

If you undertake a Masters degree at UCD Sutherland School of Law you will be studying at one of the Top 100 Law Schools in the World. You will be taught by leading academics where class participation and interaction is encouraged. Our innovative teaching and small class sizes will allow you to develop strong analytical skills, and to hone your written and spoken critical insights.



This LLM will equip you with a specialised and in-depth knowledge and understanding of international human rights law, political theory of rights and international relations relating to human rights. The programme is interdisciplinary thus building on the strengths in this area of the Sutherland School of Law and the School of Politics and International Relations. Members of staff in the Sutherland School of Law have engaged in major research in this area spanning the full range of international human rights law, from asylum law and practice, the EU and fundamental rights, to the law of privacy in Ireland.



Students on the full-time programme starting in September have the opportunity to spend a semester abroad as part of the Comparative, International and European Law (CIEL) graduate exchange programme with our partner Universities.



More information on the CIEL programme and the other exchange opportunities for Masters students are available on the School of Law website.



Please note that for timing reasons, study exchange is not possible for part-time or January start programmes.

Stage 1 Core Modules

LAW40780 Law of the ECHR Autumn 10

POL41020 Politics of Human Rights Autumn 10

EQUL40070 Human Rights Law and Equality Spring 10

POL41030 Theory of Human Rights Spring 10

LAW40290 Dissertation Summer 30



Stage 1 Options - A)2 of:

Choose 2 of the following

LAW40150 International Competition Law Autumn 10

LAW40620 Punishment, Prisons & Public Policy Autumn 10

LAW40760 NGOs: Law, Governance and Social Change Autumn 10

LAW41040 Law and Governance of the EU Autumn 10

LAW41050 Coercive Confinement Autumn 10

LAW41270 Data Protection and Privacy: National and International Perspectives Autumn 10

LAW41450 International Tax Law Autumn 10

LAW41610 Patent Law Autumn 10

LAW42280 International Refugee Law Autumn 10

LAW41090 Climate Change Law and Policy Spring 10

LAW41150 Online Regulation Spring 10

LAW41200 Cross-Border Litigation: European and International Perspectives on the Conflict of Laws Spring 10

LAW42040 Culture, Heritage and Human Rights Spring 10

LAW42130 United Nations Human Rights Practice Spring 10

LAW42270 International Migration Law Spring 10

LAW42290 Gender, Conflict-related Harm & Transitional Justice Spring 10

LAW42300 Law & Rationality Spring 10

LAW42310 AI Regulation Spring 10

POL40100 Politics of Development Spring 10

Degree Requirements:

Applicants must hold a Law degree, or an inter-disciplinary degree in which law was a major component. Applicants must have achieved at least an upper second class honours or equivalent.



Applicants holding a Graduate Diploma in Law (60 ECTS Credits) may be considered but will normally be admitted only where they can show an exceptionally strong performance in both their undergraduate degree and diploma.



Exemption from these requirements may be given to those with significant, relevant, practical experience or those with a graduate qualification at Masters level or higher in a relevant discipline. Such applicants should state clearly in their application why they feel their qualifications/experiences are appropriate for admission to the programme.



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



English Language Requirements:

Applicants whose first language is not English must submit satisfactory evidence of competence in written and spoken English, i.e. overall IELTS 6.5 (including a minimum of 6.5 in the reading and writing parts and no part below 6.0) or 90 in the TOEFL iBT (with a minimum of 22 (reading) and 24 (writing) and no part below 20.) The test results must be less than 2 years old.



The School encourages all applicants whose first language is not English to attend the pre-sessional English programme offered by the UCD Applied Language Centre, details of which are available at www.ucd.ie/alc.

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/



International applicants should visit the UCD International Office website (www.ucd.ie/international) for information regarding our campus, location of UCD, visa information, registration and orientation.

Application Procedure



Applicants should indicate which programme they are applying for. All applicants should note:

Official transcripts must be submitted as proof of examination results by all applicants except UCD graduates.



The personal statement is an important component of the application. It should contain information demonstrating your capability to undertake the course successfully. You should detail any relevant research and practical experience including any publications and major essays/projects.



Applicants must nominate two academic referees (name, position, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number). If an applicant has been in employment for more than two years, one of the referees must be your employer.



Please note: If you are offered a place on the LLM programme, accepting that place is a two-part process. You must submit an on-line acceptance and you must also pay a non-refundable deposit (normally €500) within 15 working days of the date of your offer letter.



Letter Of Recommendation



You may be eligible for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), as UCD recognises formal, informal, and/or experiential learning. RPL may be awarded to gain Admission and/or credit exemptions on a programme. Please visit the UCD Registry RPL web page for further information. Any exceptions are also listed on this webpage. https://tinyurl.com/2ae2ffax

90

B440 - 1 year full-time

B441 - 2 years part-time

Delivery: On Campus

LLM International Human Rights (B440) Full Time

EU fee per year - € 9320

nonEU fee per year - € 19900


LLM International Human Rights (B441) Part Time

EU fee per year - € 4660

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.


We also offer scholarships for EU applicants. All applicants who apply before May 31st will be included. Further details at http://www.ucd.ie/law/study/scholarships/

B440 International Human Rights Master of Laws Full-Time

Commencing September 2025

Graduate Taught



B441 International Human Rights Master of Laws Part-Time

Commencing September 2025

Graduate Taught

The aim of this programme is to equip graduates to work in the field of human rights, either internationally or in Ireland, as a practising lawyer, legal adviser, policy-maker, advocate, researcher or academic. Career opportunities exist in inter-governmental organisations (United Nations, Council of Europe, European Union, Organisation for Cooperation and Security in Europe), government departments, international and domestic non-governmental organisations, and leading law firms.



Masters students in UCD Sutherland School of Law can benefit from engaging both with the UCD Careers Network and the Head of Career Development in the School. There are careers events hosted through the academic year and a specific Law Fair every October where Domestic and International Employers come on campus to meet with students.