United Nations Human Rights Practice Micro-credential

This micro-credential will be of particular interest to those looking to develop the knowledge and skills required to engage effectively with the wide range of human rights procedures that operate at the United Nations for promoting and protecting human rights. This includes people working for non-governmental organisations, charities, national human rights institutions, government bodies and state agencies in the human rights field.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this micro-credential, learners will be able to:

• Demonstrate detailed knowledge of the normative evolution and substance of the UN international human rights framework.
• Critically engage with the practice and procedure of the core UN human rights institutions i.e., the UN human rights treaty bodies as well as the system of special rapporteurs and universal periodic review of the UN Human Rights Council.
• Have a good understanding of the interpenetration and interaction between the international human rights system and domestic human rights law and institutions.
• Critically evaluate the operation and effectiveness of UN human rights procedures as legal and policy tools.
• Be able to demonstrate interpersonal skills and competence in teamwork and interpersonal communication.

• The Normative Evolution of the International Human Rights Framework
• The UN Human Rights Regime
• Participants in the Regime
• UN Human Rights Treaty-Based State Reporting Procedures
• UN Treaty-Based Inquiry and Investigative Procedures
• UN Treaty-based Individual Complaint Procedures
• Reform of the UN Human Rights Treaty System
• The UN Human Rights Council and Universal Periodic Review
• The System of UN Special Procedures
• The Effectiveness of the UN Human Rights System in Practice

UN human rights procedures are essential tools that can be used by lawyers, civil society actors, and national human rights institutions to seek accountability for human rights violations at the international level. Government bodies are also required to account regularly to UN human rights bodies under these procedures on their progress in implementing human rights in their jurisdiction. This micro-credential comprises a practical, in-depth examination of the operation of these various procedures, including the practice and procedure of the UN Human Rights Treaty System and the UN Human Rights Council. A key benefit of this module will be that learners will be guided through the practical steps necessary to interface with these procedures in order to engage on human rights issues or claims at the international level. The module will also encourage students to reflect critically on the key challenges facing the procedures in ensuring effective protection of human rights.

This micro-credential is taught by a leading expert in the field of International Human Rights Law with extensive knowledge and experience of working with UN human rights procedures.

This is an experiential learning micro-credential in that it aims for learners to discover the potential as well as the limitations of the UN human rights system for addressing human rights issues on the ground. It will take a constructivist pedagogical approach whereby learners will be encouraged to learn by means of in-class activities; reflective learning; and task-based learning.

The course content is comprised of a pre-recorded lecture and a live face-to-face seminar each week. The teaching activities can be engaged with on campus at UCD (face to face) or remotely (online), depending on the learner’s circumstances and requirements.

A repository of resources will be available to support your learning, and as a UCD student you will have full access to the library. 

This is a 10 ECTS micro-credential and involves approximately 200 hours of learner effort.

Applicants must hold a degree in law or another relevant discipline, including the social and natural sciences. An upper second-class honours Level 8 degree (GPA 3.08), or international equivalent is required.

Applications will also be accepted from those with significant, relevant, practical experience or those with a graduate qualification relevant to the micro-credential.

Applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate proof of English proficiency as per UCD's minimum English language requirements.

All applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis.

• A 2,000 word blog post relevant to the UN human rights procedural framework. - 40%

• Individual, self-reflection by learning journal (3000 words). - 60%

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Peer review activities

This micro-credential is also a module on the UCD Sutherland School of Law’s LLM International Human Rights.

If you have any questions about this micro-credential, or would like to speak to a UCD staff member, please contact (opens in a new window)microcredentials@ucd.ie.

Please note: Learners can avail of only one form of funding per application. 

Micro-Credentials Learner Fee Subsidy-Human Capital Initiative Pillar 3

The HCI Pillar 3 Micro-credential Learner Fee Subsidy has been introduced to enable more learners to address critical skills gaps and engage with lifelong learning through micro-credentials. The HCI Pillar 3 Micro-credential Learner Fee Subsidy is funded by Higher Education Authority (HEA) and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. 

HCI Micro-credential Learner Fee Subsidies are available on identified micro-credentials only and in fixed numbers from March 2024 until October 2025.  

Please see Eligibility Criteria for further information.