Human Rights Concentration

Worksheet

Columbia College and General Studies students: Special Concentration in Human Rights
Click here to download the PDF of the Columbia College Major Declaration Form.

Note: GS students who wish to declare a Special Concentration in Human Rights should make an appointment with their advisor in the GS Dean of Students Office.

Degree Requirement

For a Special Concentration in Human Rights

Program of study: The Human Rights Special Concentration is intended to serve as a complement the disciplinary specialization and methodological training inherent in a major. Thus, students doing the Human Rights Special Concentration must also have a major or a full concentration in another field.

Students wishing to complete a Special Concentration in Human Rights will be assigned an advisor (generally someone in the department in which they plan to major). The program of study is to be planned, with the advisor, as early as possible.

Courses: Students must take a total of seven courses (22 points minimum):

1. HRTS V3001 Introduction to Human Rights (generally taken in the first or second year of study)
2. HRTS W 3996 Human Rights Senior Seminar
3. Five Courses from the Human Rights “Related Courses” listed in the bulletin or on the website.

Up to two courses counted toward the Human Rights Special Concentration may also be counted toward the student’s major or another concentration or minor. Students may petition to count as “Related Courses” those not listed in the bulletin or on the web site. Students may petition to count up to three courses from institutions other than Columbia or Barnard (for instance study abroad programs) toward the Special Concentration: those explicitly focused on human rights may be counted as “Core” courses. Students may count one course taken credit/fail toward the Special Concentration.

If you are interested in doing a Special Concentration in Human Rights, you should meet with one of the directors (listed below). It is helpful to bring a copy of the Human Rights Concentration Worksheet with you when you meet to discuss the program and your courses.

Director: Professor Sam Moyn, 616 Fayerweather, x4-3009, .

The “Track” Option

While most students will be interested in taking a selection of more generally targeted human rights courses such as those included on the standardized list of courses, some students may be interested in focusing their study of human rights on particular topics within the study of human rights, or on human rights issues within a particular region of the world. In order to accommodate such potentially diverse interests amongst the student body, students concentrating in human rights may petition for permission to structure their concentration according to a particular “track” of study, which “track” may include courses that would not generally be allowed to count towards the concentration. A few possible “tracks” are listed here.

Note, however, that this list highlights only a few of many possible “tracks.” Similarly, the list of courses within each track includes only some of many possible courses that may be related to/accepted as part of that track. Students wanting to structure their study according to these or other such “tracks” must do so in consultation with the Human Rights Faculty Director. Courses of study not granted such explicit approval will NOT count towards the student’s Human Rights concentration/major. Note also that the suggested “tracks” highlight only courses not included within the standardized list of related courses: students wishing to structure their study according to one of these tracks may, of course, find it useful to combine some “track”-specific courses with some more general human rights courses. Again, this is a subject to be determined individually in each student’s case, in discussion with a student’s relevant faculty advisor.

Concentration Worksheet

If you plan to complete the Special Concentration in Human Rights, you should fill out a Human Rights Concentration Worksheet. This worksheet lists courses you have taken and those you plan to take to complete the Special Concentration.