Melbourne Law School’s specialisation in Human Rights Law (GDipHumRightsLaw) offers the widest range of human rights subjects in Australia.

Working with world-renowned experts who teach in the program, and fellow students from Australia and around the world, you’ll have a unique opportunity to examine a range of human rights instruments, institutions, theories and practices in contemporary context.

It’s ideal for lawyers who work, or are planning to work, in the field of human rights, as well as those with a non-law background working in development agencies and other human rights-related organisations in Australia and around the world.

The Graduate Diploma in Human Rights Law is part of the world-renowned Melbourne Law Masters program.

Students must complete 50 credit points of study from the prescribed list of subjects.

Students who do not have a law degree from a common law jurisdiction or any prior legal studies or experience are also expected to complete the two-day preliminary subject Australian Legal Process and Legal Institutions.

Subject timing and format

The Melbourne Law Masters program has been designed around the busy schedules of working professionals. Subjects are offered from February to December each year. Most subjects are taught intensively over five days, with some subjects taught for two hours each week during the semester.

Subjects will be delivered either online, on campus, or as a hybrid of both. Subjects delivered online will have a combination of pre-recorded lecture content, live sessions and discussion boards among other resources. On-campus subjects involve interactive, seminar-style classes in the Law Building in Melbourne.

Duration

Full-time students enrol in 50 credit points per semester (or half-year period) and have an expected course duration of six months. Part-time* students enrol in 25 credit points per semester (or half-year period) and have an expected course duration of one year. Semesters without enrolments require a student to apply for a leave of absence.

*Part-time enrolment is for domestic students only. Part-time students may reduce their study load to 12.5 credit points per half-year period and thus have a maximum course duration of two years.

As a student in the Graduate Diploma of Human Rights Law, you’ll develop an advanced understanding of the complex body of knowledge in the field of human rights law, including:

• An advanced and integrated knowledge of international and domestic legal and institutional frameworks for the protection and promotion of human rights
• An advanced appreciation of the relationship between law and politics, at the international and domestic levels, in the field of human rights law
• The cognitive and technical skills to independently examine and critically evaluate current issues by reference to international and domestic human rights standards
• The ability to understand and critically examine the interrelationships between international, regional and domestic histories, philosophies, policies and practices of human rights law
• The ability to participate in debates about the contested universality of international human rights and its application in diverse domestic jurisdictions in an engaged, informed and open-minded manner
• The ability to make a sophisticated assessment of the practical effectiveness of different mechanisms for implementing or enforcing human rights, including domestic and regional courts, specialised tribunals, national human rights institutions, human rights treaty bodies, international institutions and specialised agencies, nongovernmental organisations and international criminal courts
• The ability to analyse, interpret and assess the challenges posed to the implementation of international human rights obligations in the context of globalisation, particularly the increased threat to human rights presented by non-state actors and efforts to develop and strengthen accountability protocols and other mechanisms
• The ability to demonstrate autonomy, expert judgment and responsibility as a practitioner and advocate in the field of human rights law.

Applicants must have completed: A degree in law (LLB, JD or equivalent) leading to admission to legal practice, with a University of Melbourne equivalent score of at least 70, or equivalent

IELTS (academic English Only): 6.5 (no band less than 6.0)
TOEFL Internet-based test: 79 + ; Writing 21; Speaking 18; Reading 13; Listening 13;
Pearson Test of English Academic: 58 + no communicative skill below 50
Cambridge English: Advanced/ Certificate of Advanced English (CAE): 176 + no skill below 169.