Undergraduate Career Exploration

The Human Rights Program helps prepare students for careers in human rights through internships, research, and practicums—all of which encourage students to engage actively with current human rights issues and debates. Undergraduate students can gain real-world human rights experience through the GLOS 3896: Global Studies Internship course. Global Studies majors may also elect to pursue a concentration in human rights. Our flexible program allows students to develop specific expertise, skills, and knowledge through a concentration individually designed for them in consultation with their advisors. This flexibility gives students a unique set of analytical, research, and writing skills key to success in the professional world.

Internships

Undergraduate students should consider enrolling in GLOS 3896: Global Studies Internship, a foundational human rights course offered every spring that pairs students with a local human rights organization to complete a 90-hour internship for credit. Students study human rights theories and concepts, the research and advocacy practices of human rights NGOs, and their strategies and tactics. Students then apply these concepts within the context of their internship sites while developing professional competencies of human rights scholars and practitioners. Students have interned at a range of human rights and local justice organizations, including, among others, the Center for Victims of Torture, The Advocates for Human Rights, Global Rights for Women, and the League of Women Voters. Successful completion of this course fulfills the experiential learning requirement for the B.A. program in Global Studies.

Each year, the Human Rights Program supports two internship opportunities for undergraduate students who seek field experience in leading human rights organizations to complement their academic studies. The selected students intern at leading human rights organizations for the upcoming summer. The interns are also recipients of the Fraser Fellowships, offering $3,500 in funding each. Learn more about the Fraser Fellowships and funding opportunities for undergraduate students.

Please see this list of organizations with a human rights focus that may be of interest to students as they search for internship options. Read our student internship stories.

Career

Undergraduate students who have majored in Global Studies and concentrated in human rights have gone on to pursue a variety of graduate degrees, serve in government positions, and work in non-profit organizations both locally and internationally. Learn more about career paths and resources for Global Studies majors and career opportunities in Global Studies.

Resources

For additional career resources, including how to create a resume and cover letter, visit CLA Career Services or explore Handshake, the University's exclusive online career database.