The Transitional Justice Leadership Program was developed in consultation with Professor Paul van Zyl, the Director of the Transitional Justice Project at the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at NYU School of Law. Professor van Zyl served as Executive Secretary of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission before co-founding and serving as Executive Vice President of the International Center for Transitional Justice, an international human rights organization that works to assist countries pursuing accountability for mass atrocity and past human rights abuse.

Each year, five students are selected to take part in the Transitional Justice Leadership Program. Transitional Justice Scholars are guaranteed enrollment in two courses that comprise the classroom component of the program. In the Fall semester, scholars will enroll in a seminar entitled Transitional Justice, which offers an insight into the legal, moral, and political issues that nations must confront as they seek to come to terms with a legacy of human rights abuse. During the Spring semester, scholars will participate in a seminar entitled Case Studies in Transitional Justice, which provides a detailed analysis of transitional justice initiatives in more than a dozen countries.

In addition to these two classes, during the academic year scholars will receive guidance in: developing research projects aimed at eventual publication; obtaining academic-year internships with human rights organizations, including at NYU School of Law’s Center for Human Rights and Global Justice; and in providing research assistance to transitional justice institutions, such as the International Center for Transitional Justice. They will also be expected to develop original works of legal scholarship to submit to the Annual Emerging Human Rights Scholarship Conference, which provides students with a unique opportunity to receive detailed feedback from their peers and from experts in the field, in order to prepare work of publishable quality. In addition, as part of their affiliation with the CHRGJ, scholars will also have opportunities for collegial interaction with professors and visiting experts.  As scholars look to their time after the LL.M. program, they will also receive advisement on seeking unpaid internships in a variety of transitional justice institutions, such as truth commissions, courts, reparations programs, and local human rights organizations in countries throughout the world. Funding from NYU to pursue such opportunities is available on a competitive basis through application to the International Law and Human Rights Student Fellowship Program.

How to Apply to the Transitional Justice Leadership Program

After accepting an offer of admission and enrolling in NYU Law’s LL.M. program, there will be an opportunity to apply for the Transitional Justice Leadership Program prior to the course registration process for the academic year. Those who apply and are selected for this program are guaranteed enrollment in the two courses that comprise the coursework component, as well as offered guidance as described above. Provided the selected students are active participants in the program, a notation will be made on the students’ official transcripts. Students not selected for the program may still register for either or both of the classes through the normal registration process; however, as with all Law School courses, enrollment is not guaranteed and is highly competitive.

To apply, please send submit a current CV, a relevant writing sample, and a cover letter detailing your interest in the program to Robert Anselmi at AnselmiR@exchange.law.nyu.edu. The deadline for applications is June 1, 2013.