On this page:
Who should apply?
Credit weight
Timeline
Information and applications
Funding
Contact
Testimonial
Administered by the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism, the Program selects law students for placements as summer interns with NGOs and tribunals for 12 weeks.
Partner organizations provide students with practical work experience in human rights investigation, monitoring and reporting. The internships also provide exposure to the operation and implementation of international legal human rights instruments and norms.
Each year, about 30 students participate in the program; they work as volunteers, receiving partial funding from the Faculty of Law.
Who should apply?
Open to all BCL/JD students who are passionate about human rights, and eager to obtain practical experience at an NGO or international organization.
Credit weight
3 credits for the Summer internship and 3 credits for the Fall seminar.
Timeline
Information session held in early October. Applications are due in late October and interviews are held in November.
Information and applications
Visit the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism website section on International Human Rights Internships Programfor a list of organisations, descriptions of the internships, the application package, student experiences, a FAQ and more.
You can also read the blog where human rights interns share their thoughts and insights.
Funding
All participating students are automatically considered for funding at the time of selection. Students who already receive student aid may qualify for a Enriched Educational Opportunity bursary.
Students are responsible for associated tuition fees for the 3 credit Human Rights internships.
Faculty contact
nandini.ramanujam [at] mcgill.ca (Prof. Nandini Ramanujam), Centre for Human Rights and Pluralism.
Testimonial
“My human rights internship placement at the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network transformed the way I thought about law and its empowering possibilities. I was able to strengthen my intersectional approach to human rights by becoming aware of how HIV affects population groups differently depending on their status in society. Spending time at the Legal Network also enabled to envision a legal career in human rights as a viable option. My supervisors served as great mentors and provided me with useful advice, and I was able to meet human rights advocates and lawyers from across Canada.”
— Jihyun Rosel Kim, human rights intern, summer 2012, BCL/LLB'14