Graduate Certificate Requirements:
Students wishing to pursue any certificate must submit an
Intent Form
by the end of the first week of their final semester. This is a non-negotiable deadline so that IU McKinney School of Law is in compliance with Indiana University policy. Students are encouraged to sign an
Intent Form
as soon as they find interest in a topic area; there is no penalty for not satisfying the requirements.
J.D. students may earn a maximum of two graduate certificates. ONLY CORE COURSES MAY BE COUNTED TOWARD BOTH CERTIFICATES. Students must inform the advisors of both certificates of their intent to seek two certificates. Contact the your advisor in Student Affairs or at osalaw@iu.edu with any questions or to schedule a progress review meeting.
Please note: ALL students pursuing a Graduate Certificate are required to have a final graduation check appointment with your advisor in Student Affairs or at osalaw@iu.edu at least one month prior to graduation.
Civil and Human Rights Law Graduate Certificate
The Graduate Certificate in Civil and Human Rights helps IU McKinney students prepare to become leaders in the ongoing historic struggle to advance civil and human rights.
As part of their coursework, students pursuing the Certificate directly participate in efforts to protect civil and human rights. Those students also conduct detailed study and analysis of existing law in this field, as well as policy proposals and campaigns to ensure enforcement of civil and human rights.
Students who pursue this Certificate are guided by IU McKinney faculty with extensive civil and human rights experience. Those faculty members serve both as course instructors and as professional mentors during and after the students' years at IU McKinney. The Certificate prepares students for a variety of careers in the field, ranging from global human rights advocacy to local roles as civil legal services attorneys and advocates in the criminal justice arena.
A Certificate in Civil and Human Rights will be awarded to J.D. candidates who complete at least 6 approved courses totaling at least 15 credit hours in Civil and Human Rights Law and closely-related subjects. Certificate students are required to maintain a cumulative 3.2 GPA in all required core and upper level courses applied toward the Certificate.
The Graduate Certificate in Civil and Human Rights helps IU McKinney students prepare to become leaders in the ongoing historic struggle to advance civil and human rights.
Required Core Courses
At least two of the following seven courses:
Civil Rights Law
First Amendment
Health & Human Rights Seminar
Housing Discrimination and Segregation
International Human Rights Law
Law and Social Change: The Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter
Race and the Law
Upper-level Courses - Must take either:
Not all courses will be available every semester every year.(a) three of the following, or
(b) two of the following plus an additional course from the required core course list above, provided that the required core course is not one of the two used to satisfy the core course requirement; or
(c) one of the following plus two additional courses from the required core course list above, provided that the required core courses are not one of the two used to satisfy the core course requirement; or
(d) two of the following plus an additional course in the Experiential Course basket below, provided that the experiential course is not used to satisfy the Certificate capstone requirement:
Antisemitism and the Law
Bioethics and the Law
Critical Race Theory
Disability Law
Discrimination in Employment
Domestic Violence and the Law
Elder Law
Election Law
Environmental Justice
Genocide & the Law
Federal Indian Law
Homelessness Law and Policy
Immigration Law and Procedure
Indiana Constitutional Law
International Criminal Law
International Law
Juvenile Justice
Labor Law
Law and Poverty
Law and Public Health
Military Law
Prison Law
Seminar in American Legal History
Seminar in Health Policy, Law & Bioethics: Reproductive Health Care & the Law
Seminar in Selected Topics in Constitutional Law: A More Perfect Union: Social Movements, Courts, and Legislative Politics
Sex Discrimination
Experiential Courses - Writing, Practical, Cultural Immersion, or Skills - Must take at least one of the following:
ACLU Externship
(ACrE) Advanced Course-related Experience [Civil and Human Rights law topic approved by CHR director]
Advanced Field Research [Civil and Human Rights law topic approved by CHR director]
Appellate Clinic
The Center for at-Risk Elders (CARE) Externship
Center for Victim and Human Rights Externship
Child Advocacy Clinic
Civil Practice Clinic
Criminal Defense Clinic
Elder Law Externship
Federal Court Externship
Health and Human Rights Clinic
Immigration Law Clinic
Indiana Legal Services Externship
Law Review Note [Civil and Human Rights topic approved by CHR director]
Public Defender Externship
REACH
Wrongful Conviction Clinic
