The Master of Laws in Human Rights Advocacy

The Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Human Rights Advocacy, offered jointly by the University Network for Human Rights and NOVA School of Law, provides students with a multidisciplinary understanding of human rights standards and their application to social conflict, and equips them to challenge abusive conduct by diverse sets of actors. The program combines rigorous study with hands-on training and engagement in human rights practice under the supervision of experienced, reflective advocates. 

The LL.M. offers an immersive approach to human rights study and practice that goes beyond the limited, legalistic model of most law school clinics. No prior law degree is required.  

In the field of human rights today, the skills required for effective human rights defense include a blend of legal training in the law of human rights, fact-finding and documentation expertise, advocacy through campaigns in traditional and social media, grassroots organization, and other non-legal advocacy methodologies. Students enrolled in this LL.M. will have an unparalleled opportunity to sharpen these skills by engaging in supervised, practical work. 

Central and unique features of this LL.M. program are UNHR’s Human Rights Simulation Exercise, followed by an  opportunity for supervised travel and field work with partners fighting rights abuses. 

The Simulation Exercise trains students to conduct human rights documentation in a controlled setting without causing unintentional harm to members of  communities affected by human rights violations. Further details about the Simulation Exercise can be found here or below  on this page.

Should students successfully complete the Simulation Exercise and other foundational requirements, they will  begin work with partner communities. They are given background preparation materials before traveling to apply what they’ve learned in class to projects on the ground. Working closely with their supervisors, students participate in meetings and interviews with local rights activists, abuse victims, authorities, and other stakeholders. They also visit sites of past, ongoing, and potential violations, and conduct other forms of field investigation.

This program is taught in English.

Further information on the Regulations for the LL.M. in Human Rights Advocacy is available here (in Portuguese).

About NOVA School of Law

Founded in 1973, NOVA University Lisbon is one of Portugal’s leading universities.

Participants in the ACTS program will be hosted by NOVA School of Law, which has a strong focus on public law, international law, and human rights. NOVA University Lisbon and its School of Law are consistently recognized in major international rankings, including the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2025) and the QS World University Rankings.

Curricular Overview 

The program consists of three semesters over twelve months: 

1. Semester one involves study of human rights standards with faculty from NOVA School of Law. 

1. Semester two brings a range of globally recognized scholars and activists to campus for intensive, week-long modules. Students will have the opportunity to interact closely with leading thinkers and practitioners in human rights. 

2. Semester three is a full-time clinic with human rights simulation training and close, supervised work with communities challenging rights abuses. 

Additionally, students may pursue a fourth semester to complete a thesis and earn a Master’s degree from NOVA Law School. 

Objectives of the LL.M. 

The LL.M. aims to equip the next generation of advocates with a thorough understanding of human rights standards and norms, as well as the essential skills needed to work with affected communities. Students will:

• Develop a strong foundation in the philosophical grounding, legal and governance theory, and doctrine underpinning human rights and human rights law.

• Combine the study of human rights with reflective engagement in humanities and social sciences

• Build interviewing and analytical skills in a situation of conflict

• Sharpen non-legal methods of human rights defense and promotion, including fact-finding and documentation, advocacy through campaigns in traditional and social media, and grassroots organization, amongst others.

Academics 

Semester on Human Rights Standards (Late August.-Dec.) 

The first semester provides students with a broad introduction to international human rights, led by UNHR Executive Director Jim Cavallaro, alongside a number of modules taught at NOVA School of Law. Together, these courses are designed to equip students with a strong foundational understanding of human rights law, standards, and institutions, providing the basis for the more practice-oriented components of the program that follow.

Modules with Experts, Second Semester (Feb.-May):

This semester is coordinated through the full-time course, Topics in Human Rights Practice I & II, 10 ECTS each (spring). This course highlights expert practitioners who spend one week teaching modules in their areas of expertise. Previous examples of week-long modules include:

• Migration, Public Health, and Human Rights, Nadejda Marques, Visiting Professor of Public Policy, Wesleyan University and Former Researcher, Human Rights Watch Angola

• The United Nations Special Procedures, Aua Baldé, Chair, United Nations Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances and Professor, Catholic University of Lisbon

• The Laws of War: A Critical Understanding, Samuel Moyn, Professor of law and history, Yale University

• Investment Law, Trade Law and Human Rights, Sergio Puig, Professor of Law, European University Institute and University of Arizona

• Race, Racism, Human Rights and Social Justice, Ed Telles, Professor, University of California, Irvine

• Preventing Torture, María Luisa Romero, former Minister of Government of Panama and Vice-Chair and Rapporteur of the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture

• Designing and Implementing Human Rights and Environmental Justice Projects and Advocacy Campaigns, Ruhan Nagra, Associate Director and Founding Director, Environmental Justice Clinic at University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law and Co-Founder, University Network for Human Rights

• Freedom of Assembly and Association, Maina Kiai, former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association

• Housing as a Human Right: Advocacy for Housing Justice, Leilani Farha, former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing

• Transitional Justice: Truth, Justice, and Reparation, Bernard Duhaime, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation, and guarantees of non-recurrence; Professor of Law, University of Quebec in Montreal; and Visiting Professor, University Paris II Panthéon Assas

• Doctrine, Practice, and Advocacy in the Inter-American System, James Cavallaro, Former President, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Co-Founder; Executive Director, University Network for Human Rights; and Visiting Professor, Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs; Columbia Law School

• Writing for Human Rights Advocacy, Pooja Bhatia, Journalist and Clinical Supervisor, University Network for Human Rights; and Emily Wilder, Journalist and Researcher and Editor, University Network for Human Rights

Practicum (or Clinic), Summer Semester (June-Aug.):

The third semester (Summer) is the Practicum, overseen by the University Network for Human Rights. This semester involves over 365 hours of supervised work by students, including the Simulation Exercise, supervised fieldwork, and preparatory and follow-up project work.  

Click here to see an example syllabus.

The Human Rights Simulation Exercise

Over the last two decades, University Network Director Jim Cavallaro and colleagues (including Ruhan Nagra, and others) have developed a unique fieldwork simulation training program. First employed when Cavallaro directed Harvard Law School’s International Human Rights Clinic and then expanded when he moved to Stanford Law School, this multi-day training exercise teaches students key fact-finding skills (interviewing, use of interpreters, documentation).

The exercise places students in a simulated situation of conflict, helping them avoid common pitfalls associated with international human rights practice, including cultural insensitivity, re-traumatization, and the endangerment of witnesses in high-risk situations.

The simulation exercise involves dozens of actors (trained to play a range of roles in a situation of conflict/rights abuse) in a fully-immersive experience in which small teams of  students gather information through interviews and other fact-finding methods. Student researchers interview actors cast as villagers, community activists, rebels, soldiers, ministers, journalists, and others to piece together an understanding of a complex situation of conflict or rights abuse. Students then engage in simulated advocacy sessions, including TV/radio interviews and presentations before officials and international fora. The team of UNHR supervisors and actors provide students with extensive feedback on their performance for each element of the simulation. This method of training has been replicated by law school clinics across the United States.

Supervised engagement in human rights advocacy

After completing the Introduction to Human Rights Advocacy course and Human Rights Simulation Exercise, students’ eligibility to participate in supervised fact-finding trips to work with a partner community facing rights abuse will be evaluated. Fieldwork involves significant and intensive pre-travel study prior to departure. In addition to the materials in the advocacy seminar, the simulation exercise, and the relevant modules, students are given background materials to prepare them for travel to work with the affected partner community.

Thus, students review substantive materials on the country and region in which their fact-finding and documentation will occur, as well as documentation related to the specific human rights project. This ordinarily involves texts (academic, human rights reports and journalistic), as well as video and audio files. When relevant, students may meet with speakers, activists or community members knowledgeable in a given situation. After several seminar sessions to discuss these readings, students travel in small groups with a supervisor (from the University Network for Human Rights) to the project site. Once at that locale, students work closely with their supervisor, participating in meetings with local rights activists, authorities, and stakeholders, as well as visiting sites of rights abuse or potential abuse. With close supervision, students interview victims, witnesses, and other stakeholders and gather information from other sources. On return to campus, students process interview notes and meet in a seminar format with their supervisors and peers to debrief and discuss the trip, the fact-finding and documentation process, and next steps, including advocacy strategy. In the weeks immediately following their travel, students continue to work with their supervisor on their advocacy projects.

Admissions

Application Timelines

Applications will be considered in two rounds. Round 2 will open only to the extent that places remain available following Round 1. Prospective applicants are therefore strongly encouraged to apply during Round 1.

How to Apply

To apply for the LL.M. in Human Rights Advocacy, click here. Once you have submitted the application, please click here to pay the application fee of $20.

The application will require you to attach a single pdf document containing documents below, in the following order:

1. Personal statement (maximum 500 words)

2. Academic transcripts 

3. CV/Resume

4. Writing sample (maximum 3,000 words)

5. Two letters of recommendation.

More information on these materials is available in the next section. Incomplete applications and applications with unpaid fees will not be reviewed.

Required Materials 

Please prepare the materials below before submitting your application. 

• Personal Statement: Statements should be a maximum of 500 words, and outline your interest in the LL.M. in Human Rights Advocacy and your qualifications for the program.

• CV/Resume: Please ensure that your CV/Resume is no longer than three pages, and that it is written in English.

• Writing Sample: Ensure that the sample is no longer than 3,000 words, and that you are the sole author of the sample. An excerpt from a longer piece of work is acceptable.

• Transcripts: Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; if you have completed a graduate degree, please attach the relevant transcripts.

• Two references: Letters should be written specifically in support of your application to the LL.M. in Human Rights Advocacy; recommendation letters prepared for other programs should not be reused. If your recommenders prefer to submit their letters directly to UNHR, please provide their contact details in the application form.

• Publications: If applicable, please provide links to any publications you have contributed to or co-authored in your CV/Resume.

Candidate Profile

Ideal candidates for this program are early-to-mid-career human rights advocates who wish to deepen their understanding of human rights procedures and sharpen their hands-on skills working with communities affected by human rights abuses.

• Undergraduate degree : Applicants must hold an undergraduate degree from an accredited university, but no particular field of study or prior background in law is required. Strong candidates will have a solid academic record.

• Grades: There is no minimum GPA requirement, but we expect applicants to be high-performing.

• Work experience: While there is no minimum work experience requirement, the strongest applicants will generally have 2–3 years of professional experience in human rights, public service, or social justice. We recognize that relevant experience takes many forms. Activism, grassroots or community organizing, advocacy, and other forms of engagement with human rights or social justice issues are all highly valued.

• English-language skills: Prospective students may be required to submit TOEFL or IELTS scores if they do not hold an undergraduate degree from an institution where the language of instruction is English. 

Tuition and Fees 

Tuition Fees for the Academic Year 2027/2028

Tuition fees may be paid in full or in installments. The details of installments are to be determined with UNHR prior to the start of the program.

Estimated Cost of Attendance 

Below is the estimated cost of attendance for the academic year 2027–2028.

Tuition Fee Policy 

In case of withdrawal from the course, the amounts already paid are not refundable. The remaining tuition fee payments due for the academic year to which the application relates must also be paid.

Refund of the tuition fee is only possible where the previous course has not been completed by September, and is conditioned by its completion. In this case, the applicant must give proof of the situation through a declaration from the home institution, before the end of September. Amounts other than tuition fees (fees, school insurance, and administrative costs) are not refundable.

Financial Aid and Scholarships 

A limited number of scholarships are available towards the portion of tuition fees paid to UNHR. These scholarships do not apply to NOVA School of Law tuition and do not cover living expenses, personal costs, visas, or travel.

Due to resource limitations, scholarships are only available to applicants from middle- and low-income countries in the Global South who both  live and work there and plan to return to their home country after the program. Scholarship applicants are also expected to seek other sources of funding. 

Scholarship applications are separate from the program application and must be submitted immediately afterwards. The strongest candidates will typically have a strong academic record and at least three years of experience in human rights, grassroots organizing, advocacy, activism, or related work.

On rare occasions, individual donors may offer funding for candidates who meet a specific profile or set of criteria. If such an opportunity becomes available, details and eligibility requirements will be advertised on this page.

To apply for a general scholarship, please click here.

Portuguese Student Visa

The Portuguese student visa process can be lengthy and usually requires applicants to complete certain stages from their home country. Students are therefore strongly encouraged to begin the process as soon as possible after accepting their place. 

UNHR can provide supporting documentation but cannot guarantee that a visa application will be approved or influence processing times. 

Students are responsible for all visa-related costs and fees. Click here to review the visa requirements and application process.

Leadership and Coordination

Francisco Pereira Coutinho, Professor, NOVA School of Law

James (Jim) Cavallaro, Executive Director of UNHR & Visiting Professor, Columbia University

Aua Baldé, Professor, Catholic University of Portugal, Chair, United Nations Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances

Nausica Palazzo, Assistant Professor, NOVA School of Law

Academic Calendar

2027 - 2028 Academic Year  ‍

2027 - 2028 Academic Year  ‍

Dates for the 2027–28 academic year are still being finalized. The program is expected to begin in late August 2027. Confirmed dates will be published here as soon as they are available.

Any Questions?

Due to the volume of inquiries we receive, priority will be given to questions that are not already addressed on this page.

See more of NOVA School of Law

Master in Law—Specialization in International and European Law

Research & Development Centre on Law & Society

NOVA School of Law Knowledge Centres of CEDIS

Research Projects—NOVA School of Law