The Essex Human Rights Centre and the Essex Armed Conflict and Crisis Hub are once again presenting their successful practical development course in 2025, taught by leading practitioners in the field of international Human Rights and Armed Conflict.
Applications for our 2025 course have now closed.
If you are interested in joining future cohorts, please complete the Expression of Interest form below and we will be in touch with dates of future courses.
Expression of Interest Form
For enquiries, please contact: summerschoolsandshortcourses@essex.ac.uk
“One of the highlights for me has been speaking with renowned experts who have not only academic experience, but also a lot of practical experience. Engaging with militaries and other relevant international stakeholders has been really valuable to get their insights, which is something that hopefully us as practitioners, can utilize in our work. Also meeting all the other people, I’ve met some really amazing people with some really diverse backgrounds and developed connections with them.”
This course is designed to provide the foundations for understanding the role of international law in situations of armed conflict. We will learn how the law regulates the conduct of parties to the conflict, how it seeks to combine principles of military necessity and humanity, and the protections it provides to affected populations. Alongside the applicable rules, the course will provide insight into how these are implemented in practice, with a focus on the real-world challenges faced by those in the field.
All participants who successfully complete the course will receive a University of Essex, Human Rights Centre Certificate.
The design of the course requires limiting enrolment to a maximum of 40 participants.
The international Law in Armed Conflict course is held at our Colchester campus, starting Monday lunchtime and finishing Friday lunchtime with the sessions Tuesday to Thursday running between 9am to 5pm (lunch and refreshments are provided)
All sessions will include an interactive approach combining presentations, discussion, and case-studies.
A more detailed teaching programme will be sent to eligible participants ahead of the course along with any pre-reading materials.
Day 1:
Day 2:
Day 3:
Day 4:
In taking this course participants will:
The content of the course is suitable for practitioners - from the humanitarian and human rights world as well as staff from government and international bodies - intending to gain an understanding of the legal frameworks for regulating armed conflict.
It is also suited to post-graduate students and academics seeking knowledge in this field. A law degree is not required, but some familiarity with international law is recommended.
The course is delivered entirely in English. Thus, you are required to be highly competent in English.
Applications for our 2025 course have now closed.
If you are interested in joining future cohorts, please complete the Expression of Interest form and we will be in touch with dates of future courses.
Fees for the International Law in Armed Conflict course 2025 are;
Fee Type | |
Full/Commercial | £970 |
Student | £775 |
Academic/Alumni | £825 |
Public Sector/NGO/Charity | £825 |
Fee includes:
* Delegates will be responsible for obtaining their own food outside of these times. We recommend taking this into account when you budget for attendance. There is a Tesco located nearby, as well as many food outlets on campus.
Accommodation is not included in our Short Course package.
Delegates will be able to book on campus accommodation at very affordable rates.
We offer room only (£49) or bed and breakfast (£55) accommodation. Rooms have en-suite facilities with bedlinen provided as well as shared access to a kitchen.
The University of Essex's Colchester Campus is just one hour from London and Stansted Airport, and set in over 200 acres of beautiful parkland, and homes over 20 academic departments and schools.
Find out more about travelling to our Colchester Campus.
Once your application has been accepted, we will send you all the necessary information and links to make your accommodation booking.
“For me, the highlight of the four days was the examples we were discussing and the different background of the participants of this course. For example, there were people from NGOs, from the University, and the military. This makes the examples very debatable, and we discussed the current dilemmas of international conflicts. But the greatest thing for me is the huge experience of the staff and the professors. The professor’s knowledge is beyond my imagination. So, I enjoyed every day listening and taking part in the course discussions. So, if you have time during your summer to get some more experience and skills and to get familiar with international law, I recommend this summer school very much.”
Applications to the International Law in Armed Conflict short course 2025 are now closed.
If you are interested in joining future cohorts, please complete the Expression of Interest Form and we will be in touch with dates of future courses.
Webshop
You can pay for your place online via our Webshop which you will be sent a link to after completing the application form. The University bank will accept Visa, Mastercard, and Eurocard.
Paying by Proficio
Essex Research students need to enrol via Proficio in addition to the online application. If you are paying for your course fee using University of Essex Proficio funds, you will need to use the Proficio platform.
If you are interested in joining future cohorts please complete the Expression of Interest Form and we will be in touch when applications go live.
“This course equipped me with the understanding of basic concepts and principles of the legal framework governing armed conflict but also provided an opportunity to discuss topical issues of modern-day and past conflicts through the prism of International Humanitarian Law, International Criminal Law and other fields of International Law. It was fun, interactive, and extremely nicely explained (some of the concepts I have been grappling with for months were eloquently explained in 10-15 minutes!), we could ask questions, discuss our opinions and ask for the opinions of the lecturers. This is, by far, the best short course I've ever attended. I highly recommend it to anyone wishing to obtain knowledge of the international legal framework governing armed conflict from the renowned experts in the field.”