UNITAR Fellowship/ Visitors Programme with Columbia University Law School and NYU School of Law
With increasingly complex global challenges such as climate change and public health pandemics, it has become incumbent on the international community to cultivate analytical practitioners who, based on a solid footing in international law, can think long-term and act strategically in concert with diverse stakeholders. The UNITAR Fellowship and the Visitors Programme enable select participants to take semester-long courses on international law and its sub-domains at one of the most prestigious law schools in New York.
Through this unique opportunity, delegates at permanent missions to the United Nations in New York can complement their diplomatic practice with a deepened academic understanding of the legal concepts, principles and theories that underpin international relations. By having access to the schools’ plethora of academic resources, participants will expand their knowledge and professional networks, gain fresh insights and become more competent in carrying out their responsibilities.
Depending on courses selected, participants can develop expertise on various areas of international law relevant to their work at the United Nations, inter alia: human rights law, environmental law and maritime law, international commercial arbitration, intellectual property law, humanitarian law, regional governance and foreign direct investment.
Participants can indicate their preferred choice of school and, once accepted, can take up to three courses at the school during the spring semester, which runs from January to April 2011. In addition to attending classes, participants must complete readings and other assignments as required by course instructors. Most law courses use Socratic method, in which instructors randomly call upon students for answers. Please visit http://www.law.columbia.edu or http://www.law.nyu.edu for course listing and syllabi. (Registration is closed for 2011).
The Fellowship and Visitors Programmes are offered primarily to diplomats accredited to the UN Headquarters in New York. Applicants should have a law degree and/or an academic background in law, international relations, politics or related fields, have several years of working experience in national government service and be sufficiently fluent in English to follow graduate-level courses.
All participants who successfully complete the Fellowship/ Programme receive a certificate of completion jointly from UNITAR and Columbia Law School or New York University School of Law.