Human Rights at Georgetown Law - Overview

Interested in human rights? Georgetown Law offers many exciting opportunities for our students to learn about, and practice, human rights law. Here are some ways you can get involved:


Take a human rights class, and get to know our human rights faculty:
Georgetown Law offers dozens of classes each year in human rights-related subjects. Click here for a list of 2009-2010 human rights course offerings.

In addition, the Human Rights Institute coordinates the Father Robert F. Drinan, S.J., Visiting Professorship in Human Rights. This position, named for Father Drinan, a former Law Center professor, human rights advocate, priest, and member of the U.S. Congress, is designed to bring distinguished practitioners to Georgetown Law to teach, lecture, and interact with our students and faculty. Judge Thomas Buergenthal of the International Court of Justice was our inaugural Drinan Visiting Professor in academic year 2007-2008, and Judge Fatsah Ouguergouz of the African Court of Human and Peoples' Rights served in the position in academic year 2008-2009. Aryeh Neier, President of the Open Society Institute will visit Georgetown Law in the spring semester 2010 and will teach a course on the Practice of Human Rights.


Enroll in a human rights clinic (J.D. students only):
Georgetown Law offers several clinics through which students can practice in the area of human rights law. These include the International Women's Human Rights Clinic and the Center for Applied Legal Studies. For a complete listing of clinics offered at Georgetown Law, click here.


Enroll in the Human Rights Certificate program (LLM students only):
Graduate (LLM) students may elect to pursue a Certificate in Human Rights while at Georgetown Law. For more information on this program, click here.


Enroll in the Certificate in Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies:
LLM and JD students may elect to pursue a Certificate in Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies while at Georgetown Law.  For more information, click here. 

 

Be part of a human rights fact-finding project:
The Human Rights Institute supervises an annual student-initiated fact-finding investigation, through which students plan and carry out all aspects of a field mission abroad, publish a report on their findings, and engage in related advocacy. To help guide students through this process, the Institute offers courses on the relevant law and policy, and human rights fact-finding skills and methodology. In 2009-2010, the Human Rights Institute will oversee advocacy on the resettlement of Iraqi refugees in the United States, and will guide students through all aspects of a new investigation into how the intellectual property provisions of trade agreements affect access to essential medicines in the Dominican Republic. To read the reports published to date, click on the links below.


Join a human rights-focused student group:
Georgetown Law has several student groups that are active on human rights-related issues. These groups host events, organize projects, and are a great way to get to know other students who share your interest in human rights. These groups include Georgetown Human Rights Action, Amnesty International-Georgetown Law Chapter, the Workers' Solidarity Group, and the International Law Society. For a complete list of student groups on campus, click here.


Complete a writing project for a human rights organization:
The Human Rights Institute works with students interested in carrying out research and advocacy projects on behalf of leading human rights organizations, and provides guidance for students undertaking such work. In 2009-2010, Georgetown Law students will have the opportunity to work with the Institute for International Law and Human Rights to draft memos on human rights-related subjects that will be shared with members of Iraq's Parliament. Students may apply to intern in IILHR's office, or may consider working with Human Rights Institute Interim Director Rachel Taylor to complete a supervised research paper on a topic identified by IILHR. For more information, contact Rachel.


Attend a human rights panel, lecture, or conference:
Each year, the Human Rights Institute organizes dozens of panels, lectures, and roundtable discussions at which prominent human practitioners meet with Georgetown Law's students and faculty to discuss their work. For a listing of past events, click here. Our largest annual event, the Samuel Dash Conference on Human Rights, named for former Law Center professor Sam Dash, brings together leading figures in the human rights field to discuss and debate a current human rights issue. Information about past Dash Conferences, including the conference programs and webcasts can be viewed through the links below:

  • 2006: War, Terror, and Human Rights: Setting the Agenda Program | Webcast
  • 2007: Constitutional Checks and Balances in the Post-9/11 Era: Revitalizing Congress's Role Program | Webcast
  • 2008: The Future of Human Rights Program | Webcast
  • 2009: Rule of Law in the Context of Military Interventions Program | Webcast

In addition, several other Georgetown Law institutes host programs on human rights-related subjects. For a complete list of institutes, click here.


Undertake a human rights internship or externship during the academic year:
Students can take advantage of Georgetown Law's location in Washington DC, and the school's close ties to human rights organizations here, by working at human rights organizations during the academic year. Many students take on this work as interns, and arrange work hours and supervision entirely through the host organization. Other students take on this work as externs, and receive two credits through Georgetown Law. For information about the externship program, click here. Human Rights Institute Interim Director Rachel Taylor regularly meets with students to discuss internship and externship opportunities.


Work for a human rights organization over the summer:
Georgetown Law students have many opportunities to take on human rights-related work during their law school summers. Some students do this through the school's International Internship Program (for 1L J.D. students) or though other advertised positions. The Office of Public Interest and Community Service (OPICS) advises students on these opportunities, as does Human Rights Institute Interim Director Rachel Taylor.


Publish a law review article on a human rights topic:
Several Georgetown Law journals publish articles on human rights-related subjects. For a complete listing of the school's journals, click here.


Attend an expert working group session:
The Human Rights Institute regularly hosts expert working group sessions in which human rights leaders, government decision-makers, scholars, and others come to Georgetown Law to collaborate in a non-adversarial setting in pursuit of effective solutions to pressing human rights problems. These sessions are often open to interested Georgetown Law students, and are a great opportunity to meet leaders in the human rights field.


Seek out human rights-related curricular and professional advice:
Human Rights Institute Interim Director Rachel Taylor regularly meets with students to provide guidance on course selection, internship and externship opportunities, and human rights careers.  If you are a Georgetown Law student interested in setting up an appointment, please click here to email Rachel.


Nominate someone for the Bettina Pruckmayr Award (J.D. students only)
The Human Rights Institute manages the selection process for the Bettina Pruckmayr Award in Human Rights, an annual prize awarded to a graduating J.D. student who has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to human rights work while at Georgetown Law. The Human Rights Institute provides nomination information for the award on its website when it is available.


Apply for a post-graduate human rights fellowship (J.D. students only):
The Human Rights Institute administers Georgetown Law's post-graduate human rights fellowship program, which provides full funding for two or three graduating students to work for one year at a human rights organization in the United States or abroad. The Human Rights Institute will post information 2010-2011 fellowships on its website when it is available. To read bios of past fellows, and to learn about their fellowship work, click here.


Other exciting human rights programs and activities: