Politics with Human Rights

Politics with human rights is a combination that connects the study of power and governance with the normative and legal frameworks that define the rights to which all people are entitled. Politics asks how power is organised, exercised, and contested within and between states. Human rights asks what limits should be placed on that power, what claims individuals and groups can make against states and other actors, and how international law and global institutions seek to hold those claims in place.

Together, they give you both a rigorous understanding of how political systems work and a critical perspective on justice, equality, and accountability.

At Leeds Beckett University, this part-time degree is designed for students who want to engage seriously with the ideas, power struggles, and political movements shaping societies around the world. You will question assumptions, challenge dominant narratives, and examine some of the most pressing issues of our time, from climate action and inequality to populism, global conflict, and the crisis of democratic governance. The human rights dimension adds a normative and international legal thread that connects political analysis to questions of justice and accountability.

A year abroad gives you an international perspective on the political and human rights issues the programme engages with. Interactive learning, live projects, and exposure to the sector connect your academic study to the real political world.

Studying part-time allows you to develop your political and human rights knowledge alongside work or other commitments, building the analytical and communicative skills that professional and civic life demand.

Graduates go on to careers in politics, the civil service, international organisations, NGOs, human rights advocacy, journalism, law, policy research, and community organising. Many pursue postgraduate study in politics, international relations, human rights law, or related fields. The combination of political analysis and human rights knowledge is particularly well suited to careers at the intersection of power and justice.