Minor

Stanford’s minor in Human Rights is a flourishing interdisciplinary program designed and run by the faculty and staff of the Center for Human Rights and International Justice. Housed within the Stanford Global Studies Division in the School of Humanities and Sciences, the Center strives to connect undergraduates with the full scope of human rights offerings on campus—academic, extracurricular, research, and professional pathways. Because the minor is inherently interdisciplinary, no one department on campus offers most courses that qualify for the degree. The Center develops and houses courses under the HUMRTS code taught by the faculty leadership of the Center and core academic staff. The minor in Human Rights also leverages over 200 existing courses taught by faculty from programs and departments across the university. The program is designed to offer students a great deal of flexibility in course planning while providing the structure and guidance undergraduates need to knit together a rich and coherent course of study in human rights theory and practice.

The minor fits squarely within the Center’s mission “[to equip] a new generation of leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to protect and promote human rights and dignity for all.” To this end, the Center collaborates with partners across Stanford University and beyond on innovative programs that foster critical inquiry in the classroom and the world. Core staff and affiliates prioritize offering personalized advising to students, referring them to faculty who teach about human rights across the university, connecting minors and other interested students with professional development opportunities such as internships, and cultivating a generally vibrant intellectual community.

The Center is deeply engaged with well-established interdisciplinary, policy-oriented programs, undertaking research and capacity-building initiatives with NGO and governmental partners domestically and internationally. These programs are geographically and substantively broader than is typical for some other human rights centers and focus on a wide range of issues, including judicial reform and capacity building, fair trial rights in domestic and international tribunals, human trafficking, trauma mental health, post-conflict justice and reconciliation, technology and human rights, anti-corruption work, human rights commissions and NGOs, and atrocity prevention and response. The Human Rights minor brings faculty research into the undergraduate curriculum, bridges study in the classroom with real-world application through internships and participation in ongoing Center projects, provides community-engaged learning opportunities, and facilitates sustained cross-disciplinary collaboration.  

To pursue the minor in Human Rights, students must follow the instructions at https://humanrights.stanford.edu/academics/minor opens in a new tab to submit a preliminary declaration of interest, complete a draft course plan, meet with the Center’s student services specialist, and once approved by the Faculty Director, formally declare the minor in Axess.