Application Information: MPhil in Justice and Transformation

The interdisciplinary postgraduate programme in Justice and Transformation is offered in collaboration with departments in the Humanities Faculty, the UCT Law Faculty, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation and the International Centre for Transitional Justice. The programme brings together a range of different disciplines in the areas of transitional justice, human rights, conflict reconciliation and social justice within a coherent academic programme designed to train and equip academically grounded and professionally qualified graduates for diverse practical and specialised roles in this field.

Programme objectives

The programme has been designed to locate current concerns and topical interests in justice and transformation in the more general perspectives of normative theory and comparative studies. It is inspired by the new directions in writing, research and teaching generated by the South African TRC-process but not confined to these. Instead, it links these new research interests and current debates in the general area of transitional justice with the more lasting intellectual perspectives provided by a thorough grounding in relevant academic disciplines.

Programme structure

The full MPhil-programme comprises a coursework programme with 4 semester courses in each of the Honours and Masters years plus an Honours Project and a dissertation component. It allows exit options after the first year with an Honours degree and entry options at Masters level. It is offered:

1. Human Rights; 

2. Conflict Resolution; and

3. Social Justice in Transformation.

The sub-programmes share the compulsory programme core courses and each specialisation has its own core electives with the remaining credits coming from a list of approved courses relevant to the Justice and Transformation programme. Some of the sub-programmes provide for Internships which may be substituted for one or more courses components (but not for the core courses).

General admission requirements

At Honours level: a first degree majoring with an upper 2nd or close approximation in the general areas of human rights, conflict studies, political ethics and/or social and political theory.

At Masters level: a good Honours degree or its equivalent. Each of the sub-programmes has its own disciplinary-based entrance qualifications (see below).

Location and Curriculum

The Justice &Transformation programme is administratively based in the Political Studies department which also offers a range of other departmental programmes in International Relations, Political Science, Public Policy etc. The curriculum for the Justice& Transformation programme is based on compulsory programme core courses (in Comparative Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Justice in Africa) and core electives for each of the specialised sub-programmes (in Human Rights, Conflict Resolution and Social Justice in Transformation) as well as a range of elective options in the general area of justice and transformation. These have been so designed that they can offer specific specialised qualifications within a broader humanities and social studies perspective:

• The general programme in Transitional Justice provides a theoretical grounding and comparative understanding of the interdisciplinary field of Transitional Justice at the intersection of human rights discourses, democratic transitions and post-conflict reconciliation;
• The sub-programme in Human Rights Law grounds the professional and specialist qualification for lawyers in a broader theoretical and comparative understanding of the historical and political contexts in which Human Rights Law function;
• The sub-programme in Conflict Resolution locates a practice-oriented introduction to current approaches to peace operations and post-conflict reconciliation in the African context within a broader comparative understanding of violence, the state and conflict in world politics
• The sub-programme in Social Justice in Transformation is designed to combine a focus on issues of social justice related to poverty and development with the combating of legacies of racism and redressing of racial, gender and social inequalities within more general normative and theoretical perspectives.

Programme students are required to participate in the non-credit-bearing monthly Programme Seminars and Workshops to be offered in collaboration with and hosted by the IJR.

Target constituencies

In general the Justice & Transformation programme enables students with appropriate undergraduate backgrounds in a range of interdisciplinary studies related to human rights, conflict studies, political ethics and/or social and political theory to pursue a coherent and dedicated postgraduate programme of studies qualifying them for careers with NGOs or research institutions in the areas of transitional justice, conflict resolution and/or human rights work.It also provides an opportunity for those in NGOs, local government or civil society institutions who have already obtained practical and professional experience in this field to augment this by a more advanced and integrated course of postgraduate study.

• The general Honours/Masters MPhil in Transitional Justice caters for a wide range of international, African and local students in anthropology, literature, history, philosophy, political studies etc attracted to study and research in the emerging new interdisciplinary sub-field of transitional justice.
• The sub-programme in Human Rights Law is aimed at students and practitioners who already have some academic background and/or a professional qualification in law and who are interested in working in the field of human rights law, and more especially at those who desire to supplement their legal expertise with a more general humanities education relevant to law, politics and transformation.
• The sub-programme in Conflict Resolution is aimed at students who wish to obtain a basic practice-oriented introduction as well as a general background and qualification for work in the area of post-conflict resolution and peace operations.
• The sub-programme in Social Justice in Transformation is aimed at students who wish to obtain a general background and qualification for work on issues of social justice related to poverty and development and/or on projects of institutional transformation, employment equity, gender equity, affirmative action etc

Specific entrance requirements

General programme in Transitional Justice:

A first degree majoring (with an upper 2nd or close approximation) in such disciplines as Politics, History, Philosophy, Social  Anthropology, Sociology, Literature etc as required for admission to the programme core courses.

Specialisation in Human Rights law:

A strong LLB (with an average percentage of 60% or more throughout) or other appropriate qualification in Law as well as admission requirements for programme core courses.

Specialisation in Conflict Resolution:

 A first degree with a major (with an upper 2nd or close approximation) in Political Studies, Psychology, Social Anthropology, Sociology etc. as well as admission requirements for programme core courses.

Specialisation in Social Justice in Transformation:

A first degree with a major (with an upper 2nd or close approximation) in Sociology, Social Anthropology, Psychology, Development Studies etc as well as admission requirements for programme core courses.

Further information

For further information on this programme please contact the convenor Professor Andre du Toit: andre.dutoit@uct.ac.za

International students - more information here

Scholarship and bursary information here.

Application information here.

 back to homepage