Master of Laws in Human Rights [LLM(HR)]

The Master of Laws in Human Rights Programme [LLM(HR)] was established in 1999 in response to the growing demand for knowledge about human rights in the Asia-Pacific region. The programme focuses on human rights issues of global concern, including in the Asia-Pacific region, and aims to foster an active learning environment.

The diverse range of courses enables students to 1) understand the international human rights legal framework, 2) reflect on key human rights challenges from global, regional, and domestic perspectives, and 3) apply their knowledge to advocate for real change. The curriculum covers human rights law but draws on other disciplines such as history, politics, philosophy, and sociology to ensure the law is understood in context. It also has a clinical option so students can apply what they learn in practice.

Teachers include renowned experts in the field from around the world, including eminent scholars, judges, United Nations (UN) human rights mandate holders, and heads of non-governmental organisations.

We attract students from a broad range of backgrounds, including lawyers, judges, the staff of national human rights institutions and NGOs, journalists, doctors, scholars, government officials, and many others.

This diversity has enriched the learning experience and contributed to a vibrant international alumni network.

The Programme is offered on a one-year full-time or two-year part-time basis.

Candidates are required to complete 72 credits, including two 9-credit compulsory courses and a capstone experience in accordance with the regulations for this degree and the syllabus. Candidates may also choose courses from the course outlines of individual areas of law, and courses from any of the specialist programmes, but in any event no more than two courses from other LLM specialist programmes.

Please refer to the Regulations and Syllabus of your respective intake for more details.

Remark: Not all courses will be offered in any given year. You may also refer to the course schedule per academic year for actual classes available.

For admission in the academic year 2025-2026: To be advised

Applicants must comply with the General Regulations, the Regulations for Taught Postgraduate Curricula, and fulfil at least one of requirements (1) to (3) below AND (if applicable) requirement (4):

(1) hold a degree of Bachelor of Laws with at least second class honours or an equivalent qualification accepted by the University for this purpose; or

(2) hold a degree in a discipline other than law with at least second class honours accepted by the University for this purpose and have at least two years of relevant experience and professional qualifications; or

(3) have obtained either the Common Professional Examination of England and Wales or the Common Professional Examination Certificate of this University, provided that in either case a second class honours degree or a qualification of equivalent standard of this University or another comparable institution accepted for this purpose has also been obtained; and if applicable:

(4) for a candidate who is seeking admission on the basis of a qualification from a university or comparable institution outside Hong Kong of which the language of teaching and/or examination is not English, shall satisfy the Faculty English language requirement with one of the following recognised English tests*:

- IELTS (Academic): An overall band of 7.0 or above with no subtest below 6.5
- TOEFL (Paper-based Test): A score of 593 or above
- TOEFL (Internet-based Test): A score of 97 or above

*For admissions purposes, the test score report is regarded as valid if obtained within two years of the application deadline.
The Faculty does not accept scores from “IELTS Indicator” and “TOEFL iBT Home Edition” for admission.

The Faculty of Law is pleased to offer the following scholarships opportunities to outstanding full-time and part-time students:
 
For local applicants

 
 
For applicants from jurisdictions outside of Hong Kong, especially within the Asian region

*Tuition and living expenses are covered.
 
 
Full or partial scholarships may be awarded to a limited number of qualified students enrolled in the LLM(HR) Programme.

For 2025-2026 Intake

Details of the information session will be available in due course.

For 2025-2026 Intake

Main Round:

 
Clearing Round:

 
Interested applicants should submit their application at https://admissions.hku.hk/tpg/programme-list.

Admission offers may be made on a rolling basis, and hence early applications are strongly encouraged.



Programme-related Enquiries

✉ lawpgs@hku.hk