Postgraduate Internships

The LL.M. Program in International Human Rights Law is unique in that its commitment to its graduates extends beyond commencement. Upon completion of this LL.M. degree, all students have the opportunity to apply for additional funding from the program — up to $6,000 — to seek an internship with an appropriate human rights institution or non-governmental organization. In recent years, students have completed internships at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, the International Center for Transitional Justice, CEJIL, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and various other United Nations bodies. Our internship assistance — in addition to our faculty expertise, intimate class size, and research opportunities — contributes to Notre Dame’s international reputation.

As we have for the past several years, our program continues to partner with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington, D.C. (the primary human rights body of the Organization of American States) to sponsor an eight-month internship for up to two graduating LL.M. students each year. The cost of funding the internships is split equitably between both parties. We have a similar arrangement for a yearlong clerkship at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in San Jose, Costa Rica. Program representatives have met with officials from the African human rights system, and we are eager to replicate this successful model at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the nascent African Court. These standing relationships with international tribunals attract students to our program each year and ensure that these tribunals are staffed with the best-educated human rights lawyers available.

Class of 2022

Members of our Class of 2022 landed the following postgraduate clerkship/internship positions.

  • Angélica Suárez Torres: Judicial Fellow/Law Clerk, Inter-American Court of Human Rights
  • Angella Ngwalo: Law Clerk, African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights
  • Anshu Raj Singh: Climate Law and Policy Research Associate, Office of the General Counsel, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
  • Nicolás Buitrago Rey: Research Associate, Notre Dame Reparations Lab; Supervisory Unit, Inter-American Court of Human Rights; and Visiting Researcher, Max Planck Institute of Comparative Public Law and International Law, Heidelberg, Germany
  • Grace Oladipo: Hague Academy of International Law Summer 2022 Graduate and Legal Intern, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • Shambhavi Shekokar: Research Associate, BHP and Notre Dame Interdisciplinary Team on Implementing the Human Right to Water
  • Roqia Samim: Senior Research Associate, Notre Dame Law School LL.M. Program in International Human Rights Law
  • Mariam Koroma: Consultant, Human Rights Unit, University of Pretoria
  • Esther Akhigbe: Legal Assistant, South Bend Human Rights Commission
  • Simba Mubvuma: Law and Policy Research, Notre Dame Pulte Institute for Global Development, and De-Risking Analysts Team Lead, The IDEA Center at Notre Dame