MSc in International Human Rights Law
About the course
The part-time, two-year MSc in International Human Rights Law is aimed at mid-career lawyers and other human rights advocates who wish to pursue advanced studies in international human rights law but seek to do so alongside work responsibilities.
A central objective of the course is to ensure that you not only know about but can also effectively and expertly apply human rights law. The curriculum places equal emphasis on the substance of human rights law, its implementation and research.
Students come from all over the world and from a variety of advocacy settings; from various international and non-governmental organisations, governments, universities, foundations, the media, the armed forces, medicine and other fields and from private and corporate practice. The faculty is also diverse and includes internationally recognised human rights scholars and advocates. The programme seeks the widest possible diversity among both students and tutors.
The course is undertaken part-time over a period of 24 months. It includes two periods of online distance learning as well as two summer residences held at New College, Oxford.
During the summer residences, past students have found it beneficial to immerse themselves within the MSc in International Human Rights Law community. If your personal circumstances permit therefore, we strongly encourage you to consider booking your accommodation during the residential sessions with New College, which will be facilitated by the course organisers. This may help you to benefit from what the course offers in terms of additional opportunities for discursive engagement and networking. Lunches and dinners are already included in the course fee and will also be provided at New College. If you have any concerns around this, for example regarding dietary restrictions, please get in touch with the Course Administrator to discuss them.
Course structure
An overview of the course structure is provided below. Details of the compulsory and optional elements of the course are provided in the Course components section of this page.
Year one
The first period of distance learning is the compulsory Fundamentals of Human Rights Law online course. This comprises guided online study over two terms, with each of its units including reading periods followed by tutor-guided asynchronous seminars supplemented by some live encounters. You will require consistent, ready and reliable internet access.
The first summer residence in Oxford will comprise three weeks of tutor-led small group seminars plus a week for independent revision and two exams. During the first in-person residence you will take two electives, which will be selected from a list of options. In addition, the first summer session will include one week of dissertation-related exercises to prepare you for the independent dissertation work you will undertake in your second year. In total, the first summer residence is just over five weeks in length.
Year two
For the second period of distance learning you will work independently on researching and writing your dissertation with one-to-one online support from your supervisor. The dissertation will be on a topic of your choice related to international human rights law, however the topic must be approved by the course examiners. You will require consistent, ready and reliable internet access.
The second summer residence in Oxford will comprise three weeks of tutor-led small group seminars plus a week for independent revision and two exams. During the residence you will take two more electives, which will be selected from a list of options. Not all are offered every year. In total, the second summer residence is four weeks in length.
Attendance
This course is part time. It includes two periods of online distance learning as well as two summer residences held at New College, Oxford.
For the online learning, you will be expected to devote 15-20 hours per week to private study when not in Oxford. For the compulsory Fundamentals of International Human Rights Law course, teaching is not live so you are not required to be online at specific times, but you will be expected to contribute to online discussions within a certain timeframe.
The summer residences are a compulsory part of the degree programme. You will be expected to be in Oxford for just over five weeks for the first residence and four weeks for the second, in July/August. Provisional dates for the residences are provided on the course page of the faculty's website. The summer residences are intensive and you are expected to be able to study full-time during these periods.
Resources to support your study
As a graduate student, you will have access to the University's wide range of resources including libraries, museums, galleries, digital resources and IT services.
The Bodleian Libraries is the largest library system in the UK. It includes the main Bodleian Library and libraries across Oxford, including major research libraries and faculty, department and institute libraries. Together, the Libraries hold more than 13 million printed items, provide access to e-journals, and contain outstanding special collections including rare books and manuscripts, classical papyri, maps, music, art and printed ephemera.
The University's IT Services is available to all students to support with core university IT systems and tools, as well as many other services and facilities. IT Services also offers a range of IT learning courses for students to support with learning and research, as well as guidance on what technology to bring with you as a new student at Oxford.
You will have access to The Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, which is part of the Faculty of Law, and convenes a range of interesting events and seminars during the year focused specifically on topics related to human rights, the rule of law and democracy, some of which are hosted online. Students on the course would be welcome to attend these events.
The Law Faculty is fortunate to have outstanding library facilities provided by the Bodleian Law Library. As part of the Bodleian, the Law Library shares in all the advantages of being part of the largest university library in the country, including the receipt, under legal deposit legislation, of legal material published in the UK and Ireland.
The Bodleian Law Library offers the vast majority of its holdings - some 550,000 items - on open shelves across four floors. Selected low-use material is housed in a book storage facility and is retrievable within half a day. The library serves a large community of graduate readers and academics in their research requirements. The strength of the collection lies in the depth of its UK holdings, combined with extensive holdings for European and Commonwealth jurisdictions. In addition, the library holds materials relating to international law, Roman law, and jurisprudence. To complement the paper collection, the Law Library provides a wide range of online legal resources. The Bodleian’s collection of Official Papers is also housed in the Law Library.
The library has 40 reader workstations and provides access to legal databases. There is a Graduate Reading Room, a large seminar room, IT rooms and small ‘discussion rooms’ for private study or group work. The law librarians offer a range of classes and one-to-one sessions to support the specific research needs of graduate students.
Supervision
An important person in helping your intellectual development during the degree programme will be your academic supervisor. This person will oversee your academic work and submit progress reports.
For the first three terms of your degree, your academic supervisor will be your tutor for the online Fundamentals of International Human Rights Law course. For the next two terms, your academic supervisor will be the person allocated to supervise your dissertation. The allocation is dependent on the subject area of your dissertation. For the final term, your supervisor is expected to be another Oxford University faculty member.
For this course, the allocation of graduate supervision is the responsibility of the Law Faculty and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff.
Efforts will be made to meet the preferences of graduate students to work with a particular member of the course team for the dissertation. Tutors and supervisors join as academic contributors to the programme from around the world, and there is therefore a wide range of experts supporting its offerings.
Assessment
The degree is assessed by coursework (20%), examinations (50%) and a dissertation (30%).
Your first period of distance learning is assessed by way of assignments, and the second by way of a dissertation. You will sit two examinations during each of the two summer residences.
Graduate destinations
Students have gone on to work as prosecutors and defence lawyers at the International Criminal Court, other UN criminal tribunals, and various regional human rights bodies. They work in private and multi-national corporate practice; in various ministries in their national governments and as UN officials ranging from refugee legal protection officers to country representatives. Others are judges, university professors, lawyers with their national armed forces, heads of NGOs and journalists.
Graduates from the course also include economists, obstetricians, epidemiologists, psychiatrists and forensic anthropologists. They are senior advisors in government around the world, Foreign Ministries, Defence Ministries and each and every one of the regional human rights bodies. They are defence counsel at Guantanamo Bay, do front-line community work in Afghanistan and emergency co-ordination in Sudan, Haiti and many other places. They represent indigenous peoples in northern Canada, Western Australia, the Philippines and Brazil.
Changes to this course
The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. The safety of students, staff and visitors is paramount and major changes to delivery or services may have to be made if a pandemic, epidemic or local health emergency occurs. In addition, in certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.
Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include illness, sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.
For further information please see our page on changes to courses and the provisions of the student contract regarding changes to courses.
Course components
Compulsory study
- Fundamentals of Human Rights Law online course
- A final year dissertation.
Options
To provide an indication of summer elective courses, previous options have included:
- Business and Human Rights
- International Rights of Children
- International Criminal Law
- International Equality Law
- Economic Social and Cultural Rights
- Domesticating International Human Rights Law
- Human Rights and the Environment
- International Humanitarian Law
- Racial Discrimination, Minorities and Indigenous Peoples
- Right to Life
- Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Human Rights
- Comparative Regional Human Rights Systems
- Freedom of Religion or Belief
- Transitional Justice
- International Rights of Women and Gender-Related Discrimination.
Not all options are offered every year.
Entry requirements for entry in 2026-27
Proven and potential academic excellence
Degree-level qualifications
Applicants are expected to have achieved the equivalent of the following UK qualifications:
- a first-class or strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours in any relevant subject.
Applicants with a lower second-class (2.2) degree or a GPA lower than 3.0 are most unlikely to be admitted. This is the case even if you took your degree long ago, have extensive experience or hold a senior position.
The degree is designed primarily for mid-career lawyers with at least three years full-time human rights law experience or its equivalent, though most come with far more experience. The majority of admitted students have a legal background and wide-ranging experience of international human rights law. However, applications from persons with degrees in other subjects who have extensive and wide-ranging human rights experience will be considered.
For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.5 out of 4.0.
If your degree is not from the UK or another country specified above, visit our International Qualifications page for guidance on the qualifications and grades that would usually be considered to meet the University’s minimum entry requirements.
GRE General Test scores
No Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or GMAT scores are sought.
Other qualifications, evidence of excellence and relevant experience
- Professional experience is a requirement for admission. Work experience in human rights may be either paid or voluntary. No matter how outstanding your academic record, if you cannot demonstrate a commitment to human rights based on your work, volunteer activities or concentration on human rights and international law at university, you are unlikely to be admitted. The selection committee looks closely at your statement of purpose and your CV/résumé to assess your eligibility.
- Publications are not required for admission to this course but may be helpful.
- Your degree experience will be enriched by the diversity of your classmates. How one views human rights is influenced by one’s background. Diversity means more than gender and nationality, although these of course are considered. The sector you work in is also important, as are other factors. The course does not ‘preach to the converted’ and applicants from all ideological, religious and cultural backgrounds are welcome. Diversity is an important admissions criterion but your academic record, work experience and commitment to the advancement of human rights are more so.
English language proficiency
This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level. If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement. The minimum scores required to meet the University's higher level are detailed in the table below.
| Test | Minimum overall score | Minimum score per component |
|---|---|---|
| IELTS Academic (Institution code: 0713) | 7.5 | 7.0 |
| TOEFL iBT* including the 'Home Edition' (Institution code: 0490) | 110 | Listening: 22 Reading: 24 Speaking: 25 Writing: 24 |
| C1 Advanced† | 191 | 185 |
| C2 Proficiency‡ | 191 | 185 |
| Oxford Test of English Advanced | 165 | 155 |
*Changes to the TOEFL iBT test are being introduced on 21 January 2026. The University will not accept TOEFL tests taken from that date to meet the English language condition until a review of the revised test has been completed. Our Application Guide provides full details of the tests we accept.
†Previously known as the Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English or Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE)
‡Previously known as the Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English or Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE)
Your test must have been taken no more than two years before the start date of your course. Our Application Guide provides further information about the English language test requirement.
Declaring extenuating circumstances
If your ability to meet the entry requirements has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic (eg you were awarded an unclassified/ungraded degree) or any other exceptional personal circumstance (eg other illness or bereavement), please refer to the guidance on extenuating circumstances in the Application Guide for information about how to declare this so that your application can be considered appropriately.
References
You will need to register three referees who can give an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for the course. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the types of reference that are required in support of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.
Supporting documents
You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the supporting documents that are required as part of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.
Performance at interview
Interviews are not normally held as part of the admissions process.
Offer conditions for successful applications
If you receive an offer of a place at Oxford, your offer will outline any conditions that you need to satisfy and any actions you need to take, together with any associated deadlines. These may include academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course. These conditions will usually depend on your individual academic circumstances and may vary between applicants. Our 'After you apply' pages provide more information about offers and conditions.
In addition to any academic conditions which are set, you will also be required to meet the following requirements:
Financial Declaration
If you are offered a place, you will be required to complete a Financial Declaration in order to meet your financial condition of admission.
Disclosure of criminal convictions
In accordance with the University’s obligations towards students and staff, we will ask you to declare any relevant, unspent criminal convictions before you can take up a place at Oxford.
Other factors governing whether places can be offered
The following factors will also govern whether candidates can be offered places:
- the ability of the University to provide the appropriate supervision for your studies, as outlined under the 'Supervision' heading in the About section of this page;
- the ability of the University to provide appropriate support for your studies (eg through the provision of facilities, resources, teaching and/or research opportunities); and
- minimum and maximum limits to the numbers of students who may be admitted to the University's taught and research programmes.
Funding
For entry in the 2026-27 academic year, the collegiate University expects to offer over 1,100 full or partial graduate scholarships across a wide range of graduate courses.
If you apply by the January deadline shown on this page and receive a course offer, your application will then be considered for Oxford scholarships. For the majority of Oxford scholarships, your application will automatically be assessed against the eligibility criteria, without needing to make a separate application. There are further Oxford scholarships available which have additional eligibility criteria and where you are required to submit a separate application. Most scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit and/or potential.
To ensure that you are considered for Oxford scholarships that require a separate application, for which you may be eligible, use our fees, funding and scholarship search tool to identify these opportunities and find out how to apply. Alongside Oxford scholarships, you should also consider other opportunities for which you may be eligible including a range of external funding, loan schemes for postgraduate study and any other scholarships which may also still be available after the January deadline as listed on our fees, funding and scholarship search tool.
Details of college-specific funding opportunities can also be found on individual college websites:
Please refer to the College preference section of this page to identify which of the colleges listed above accept students for this course.
For the majority of college scholarships, it doesn’t matter which college, if any, you state a preference for in your application. If another college is able to offer you a scholarship, your application can be moved to that college if you accept the scholarship. Some college scholarships may require you to state a preference for that college when you apply, so check the eligibility requirements carefully.
Further information about funding opportunities for this course can be found on the faculty's website.
Costs
Annual course fees
The fees for this course are charged on an annual basis.
Fees for the 2026-27 academic year at the University of Oxford
What do course fees cover?
Course fees cover your teaching as well as other academic services and facilities provided to support your studies. Unless specified in the additional information section below, course fees do not cover your accommodation, residential costs or other living costs. They also don’t cover any additional costs and charges that are outlined in the additional costs information below.
How long do I need to pay course fees?
Course fees are payable each year, for the duration of your fee liability (your fee liability is the length of time for which you are required to pay course fees). For courses lasting longer than one year fees will usually increase annually, as explained in the University’s Terms and Conditions.
Where can I find more information about fees?
Our fees and other charges pages provide further information, including details about:
- course fees and fee liability;
- how your fee status is determined; and
- changes to fees and other charges.
Information about how much fees and other costs will usually increase each academic year is set out in the University's Terms and Conditions.
Additional costs
Living costs
In addition to your course fees and any additional course-specific costs, you will need to ensure that you have adequate funds to support your living costs for the duration of your course.
Living costs for part-time study
Your living costs may vary depending on your personal circumstances but you will still need to cover your cost of living on a full-time basis for the duration of your course, even if you will not be based in Oxford throughout your studies. While the range of likely living costs for a single, full-time student living in Oxford in the 2026-27 academic year is between £1,405 and £2,105 per month, living costs outside Oxford may be different.
Part-time students who are not based in Oxford will need to calculate travel and accommodation costs carefully. Depending on your circumstances and study plans, this may include the cost of a visitor visa to attend for short blocks of time (if visitor visa eligibility criteria are met).
Living costs for online study
Your living costs may vary depending on your personal circumstances but you will still need to cover your cost of living on a full-time basis for the duration of your course, even if you will not be based in Oxford during your studies. While the range of likely living costs for a single, full-time student living in Oxford in the 2026-27 academic year is between £1,405 and £2,105 per month, living costs outside Oxford may be different.
Further information about living costs
The current economic climate and periods of high national inflation in recent years make it harder to estimate potential changes to the cost of living over the next few years. For study in Oxford beyond the 2026-27 academic year, it is suggested that you budget for potential increases in living expenses of around 4% each year – although this rate may vary depending on the national economic situation.
A breakdown of likely living costs for one month during the 2026-27 academic year are shown below. These costs are based on a single, full-time graduate student, with no dependants, living in Oxford.
| Lower range | Upper range | |
|---|---|---|
| Food | £315 | £545 |
| Accommodation | £825 | £990 |
| Personal items | £160 | £310 |
| Social activities | £50 | £130 |
| Study costs | £35 | £90 |
| Other | £20 | £40 |
| Total | £1,405 | £2,105 |
For information about how these figures have been calculated as well as tables showing the likely living costs for nine and twelve months, please refer to the living costs page of our website.
College preference
Students enrolled on this course will belong to both a department/faculty and a college. Please note that ‘college’ and ‘colleges’ refers to all 43 of the University’s colleges, including those designated as societies and permanent private halls (PPHs).
If you apply for a place on this course you will have the option to express a preference for one of the colleges listed below, or you can ask us to find a college for you. Before deciding, we suggest that you read our brief introduction to the college system at Oxford and our advice about expressing a college preference.
If you are a current Oxford student and you would like to remain at your current Oxford college, you should check whether it is listed below. If it is, you should indicate this preference when you apply. If not, you should contact your college office to ask whether they would be willing to make an exception. Further information about staying at your current college can be found in our Application Guide.
The following colleges accept students on the MSc in International Human Rights Law:
Before you apply
Our guide to getting started provides general advice on how to prepare for and start your application, including advice to help you evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive.
If it is important for you to have your application considered under a particular deadline – eg under the January deadline in order to be considered for Oxford scholarships – we recommend that you aim to complete and submit your application at least two weeks in advance. Check the deadlines on this page and the information about deadlines and when to apply in our Application Guide.
Application fee waivers
An application fee of £75 is payable for each application to this course. Application fee waivers are available for the following applicants who meet the eligibility criteria:
- applicants from low-income countries;
- refugees and displaced persons;
- UK applicants from low-income backgrounds; and
- applicants who applied for our Graduate Access Programmes in the past two years and met the eligibility criteria.
You are encouraged to check whether you're eligible for an application fee waiver before you apply.
Do I need to contact anyone before I apply?
You do not need to contact the department before you apply but you are encouraged to visit the relevant departmental webpages to read any further information about your chosen course.
Completing your application
You should refer to the information below when completing the application form, paying attention to the specific requirements for the supporting documents.
If any document does not meet the specification, including the stipulated word count, your application may be considered incomplete and not assessed by the academic department. Expand each section to show further details.
Referees:
Three overall, academic and/or professional
Whilst you must register three referees, the department may start the assessment of your application if two of the three references are submitted by the course deadline and your application is otherwise complete. Please note that you may still be required to ensure your third referee supplies a reference for consideration.
Your references should be from people who can provide an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for the course. Professional references are acceptable as long as they are relevant to the course of study, but academic references are preferable. Where possible, you should include at least two academic references, including from your latest academic studies, and at least one reference should be from one of your academic advisors. Personal references, such as those from family and friends, are not acceptable.
If you are a current or recent master’s student, one of your referees should be your supervisor, teacher or course director from that master’s programme. If you do not provide a reference of this kind with your application, we will usually ask you to do so before completing the assessment of your application.
Your references will support intellectual ability, academic achievement and motivation.
Official transcript(s)
Your transcripts should give detailed information of the individual grades received in your university-level qualifications to date. You should only upload official documents issued by your institution and any transcript not in English should be accompanied by a certified translation.
More information about the transcript requirement is available in the Application Guide.
CV/résumé
A CV/résumé is compulsory for this course. Most applicants choose to submit a document of one to two pages highlighting their academic achievements and any relevant professional experience.
Statement of purpose:
A maximum of 500 words
Your statement of purpose should be written in English and should explain your motivation for applying to this particular course and should focus on your academic, professional and voluntary experience in the human rights field.
If possible, please ensure that the word count is clearly displayed on the document.
You should provide evidence of your ability to commit sufficient time to study and fulfil all elements outlined in the course description (eg completing coursework, assessments, and attending course and University events and modules).
This will be assessed for:
- your education and work experience related to human rights;
- your reasons for applying;
- your career plans; and
- your ability to commit sufficient time to study and fulfil all elements outlined in the course description.
Start or continue your application
You can start or return to an application using the relevant link below. As you complete the form, please refer to the requirements above and consult our Application Guide for advice.
After you've submitted your application
Your application (including the supporting documents outlined above) will be assessed against the entry requirements detailed on this course page. Whether or not you have secured funding will not be taken into consideration when your application is assessed. You can find out more about our shortlisting and selection process in our detailed guide to what happens next.
Find out how to manage your application after submission, using our Applicant Self-Service tool.