Why you should study this course
This course is suitable for graduates who want to gain or build on their knowledge of international human rights law. The course aims to offer you opportunities to explore, develop, practice and enhance your understanding of:
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The Internationalisation of Human Rights: the importance in both academic and practical contexts, for lawyers and legally-interested individuals to be able to critically analyse the way in which human rights frameworks serve to regulate the practice of human rights within the global system of states.
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Human Rights in Practice: drawing on your legal knowledge and practical skills in order to apply them to the various and often complex situations and cases, involving the application of international human rights norms.
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Social Justice: the development of human rights is dependent on the social and political movements that seek social justice for victims of human rights abuses. This course asks you to consider the role that various actors play in the development of human rights regimes.
During this course, you will be given the chance to study a wide variety of legal topics, all designed to provide you with the opportunity to gain a strong grounding in key legal principles, alongside a direct focus on topics relevant to human rights law in an international context.
Additionally, you can expect to have opportunities to further develop your ability to apply legal knowledge and the skills acquired, to the theory and practice of international human rights law.
Year one
Modules
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Gender, Race, Sexuality and International Human Rights - 15 credits
The module will explore the legal framework governing the lives of women, men and ethnic minorities, as well as gay, lesbian, transgender and queer individuals. In doing so, you will examine the theoretical and practical application of gender, race and sexuality within the international human rights framework. By addressing the impact of human rights provisions and the values underpinning the international human rights framework, you will be able to critically examine the way that human rights advocacy and legal reform has impacted the lives of individuals.
Compulsory
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Minority Rights and Activism - 15 credits
This module will explore the role that human rights activism has played in securing rights for minority and/or vulnerable groups. You will be able to explore how effective human rights advocacy has been in securing human rights for minority and/or vulnerable groups, as well as the legal barriers and limitations that human rights activists are faced with.
Compulsory
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Terrorism, Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights - 15 credits
By looking at the interrelationship between state security, law, and human rights, you will gain an appreciation of the development and practical implementation of terrorist and counter-terrorist strategies governing the domestic and international arenas. The module will address the theoretical perspectives underpinning terrorist and counter-terrorist responses at both the domestic and international levels in order to provide you with an understanding of the approaches driving the legal implementation of terrorist and counter-terrorist measures.
Compulsory
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Islamic Law and Human Rights - 15 credits
The main aim of this module is to provide you with a comparative perspective of Islamic law and its compatibility with modern international law in general, and human rights law in particular. The key subjects of analysis include the nature, sources and objectives of Islamic law and international human rights law, women’s rights in Islamic law, child rights in Islamic law, minority rights, and Islamic criminal justice.
Compulsory
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The Regional Protection of Human Rights - 15 credits
This module will compare the institutions, jurisdiction, and procedures of regional human rights bodies. The module will provide a historical, social, and theoretical basis for understanding the development of regional systems for the protection of human rights in relation to the universal system proffered by the UN.
Compulsory
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Contemporary Issues in International Human Rights Law - 15 credits
By approaching human rights from a global perspective, you will be able to develop an understanding of the historical, theoretical, conceptual, and legal regimes governing this area of law. You will learn about the legal frameworks underpinning the international human rights regime, as well as its component parts. This will enable you to critically assess the way that International Human Rights Law has been deployed to address international human rights issues.
Compulsory
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Leading Strategic Change through Creativity and Innovation - 10 credits
This module aims to provide you with a framework of knowledge and understanding of how to manage change using creativity and innovation, in different types of organisational scenarios. You will critically assess strategies for change and change management and explore the leadership skills required to lead such successfully.
Compulsory
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Research Skills - 15 credits
The aim of this module is to provide you with the research and presentation skills appropriate to scholarship at postgraduate level and thus to allow you to display enhanced research and legal skills during your programme, specifically in the preparation and writing of their written assessments.
Compulsory
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Research Design - 15 credits
The aim of the module is to provide you with a basis from which to undertake a substantial research project appropriate to the master’s level. In doing so, the module will be geared towards enabling you to identify an appropriate research topic and to develop a research strategy for its completion.
Compulsory
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Project - 50 credits
In this module you will carry out a substantive piece of independent research into a legal issue relevant to your course of study. You will be expected to draw upon the knowledge acquired, and the intellectual, technical and analytical skills developed throughout your course. You will be supported in this module through a series of group supervisions and will be allocated a project supervisor.
Compulsory
Professional experience
The professional experience opportunity2 enables you the opportunity to apply for optional professional experience in semester 1, which, upon successfully securing an opportunity, will extend the duration of your master’s to either 16, 20 or 24 months. The professional experience provides an opportunity for you to develop expertise and experience in your chosen field with the aim of enhancing your employability.
Professional experience may also be subject to additional costs, visa requirements being met, subject to availability and/or competitive application. Professional experience opportunities are not guaranteed but you will benefit from the support of our Talent Team in trying to find and secure an opportunity. Find out more about the professional experience option.
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.
How you'll learn
You will be taught by a team of academic staff which includes internationally recognised researchers at the forefront of their field.
You will be taught through a number of different teaching methods which may include:
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Workshops
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Lectures
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Seminars
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Tutorials
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Presentations
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Group projects
This course can be studied on a full-time or part-time basis. Whilst we would like to give you all the information about our part-time offering here, it is tailored for each course each year depending on the number of part-time applicants. Therefore, the part-time teaching arrangements vary. Please request information about studying this course part-time.
Teaching contact hours
The number of contact hours may vary from semester to semester, however, on average, it is likely to be around 12 contact hours per week in the taught semesters.
Additionally, you will be expected to undertake significant self-directed study of approximately 35 hours each week, depending on the demands of individual modules.
As an innovative and enterprising institution, the University may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2022/2023 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Assessment
This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which could vary depending upon the module. Assessment methods may include written coursework, reports, tests, and presentations as part of individual assignments or group work elements.
The Coventry University assessment strategy aims to ensure that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.
International experience opportunities
Our LLM in International Human Rights Law course is inherently international in nature. Further supporting this international focus is the experience of our academic staff and the typically diverse makeup of Coventry Law School students. As well as having an international focus throughout your studies, the course aims to offer opportunities to attend field trips overseas and to engage in collaborative online international learning (COIL) projects with students from universities elsewhere in the world. Where available, these opportunities stand to enhance your ability to examine issues from several perspectives and gain a deeper understanding of how issues would be addressed in different legal systems.
Please note that all international experience opportunities may be subject to additional costs, competitive application, availability and meeting applicable visa requirements2.
