I have thought long and hard about what skills and qualities might be helpful for a career in human rights. What does it take to work in the sector and be successful? I’ve identified the following attributes and skills that might be helpful as you start to think about a career in the sector. Please note: it is not gospel. I am sharing my own experiences and opinions.
SKILLS
Languages:
Many human rights roles will require fluency or a good working knowledge in two or more languages (including your mother tongue). If you are looking to work in the field then local languages will be particularly helpful. Arabic, French, Spanish or Mandarin may be particularly useful. International organisations may also have language requirements. To learn more about the importance of language skills in the human rights sector, see: The importance of language skills in human rights work.
It is worth spending time brushing up on your language proficiency, as it will help improve your job opportunities.
Project Management:
Project management skills are useful in any human rights position. You can build up these skills as a student by organising, managing or coordinating events.
‘Soft Skills’ – Strong interpersonal and communication Skills
It is vitally important to have polished soft skills including written and oral communication skills. Many human rights positions will require you to produce written work to a high standard including drafting reports and briefings. The ability to write succinctly is very important. In addition, you may be asked to give a presentation or deliver a speech at a human rights meeting, which will require strong oral skills. Again, you can develop these skills as a student by giving presentations or participating in moots and debates.
It is important to have good interpersonal skills as you may be working with or interviewing individuals who are extremely vulnerable such as survivors of torture. You will need to be able to build a rapport and communicate with them sensitively and compassionately.
Knowledge and expertise:
It is important that you have a good command of your subject area if you are to be a successful human rights professional and advocate. If you are interested in the issue of child soldiers then read as much as you can about it. You will find all you need to know online! Try to keep abreast of the latest ‘hot topics’ in your sector so you can speak and write with authority.
Research Skills:
Similarly, human rights positions may require strong research skills especially for those positions which involve report writing, articles or briefings on human rights issues. You can develop these skills as a student through your coursework projects etc.
Negotiation Skills:
As a human rights professional, you will often be required to use negotiation skills in your day to day work. For instance, you may be negotiating with government officials about their position on a particular human rights issue or may be negotiating with your work colleagues on a project. It will be helpful to develop these skills at an early stage of your career.
QUALITIES
Commitment to Human Rights and Social Justice:
It may sound obvious but you need to have a strong commitment to human rights and social justice. As a human right professional, you will be dealing with difficult and challenging issues (for example interviewing survivors of torture or sexual violence) so you need to have the “passion factor” and a strong conviction and belief in your work.
Respect and empathy are also very important qualities.
Tenacity and Determination:
You will have setbacks in your human rights career – it is a difficult and challenging career path to follow!
You will need to be tenacious in your job search as you may receive many rejections before you secure that all important job offer! You will also need to be determined and focused in your job search.
But you also need to be tenacious in terms of the job itself. You may be challenging governments on their poor human rights record and they will not like what you say. But you will need to persevere and be tenacious in your approach.
Resilience:
Human rights work can be tough both emotionally and physically particularly if you are working in the field. You can read more about the lifestyle [here].
It is important that you are a resilient person and can cope with challenging situations and can process difficult and distressing information. In my role as an immigration and asylum lawyer, I interviewed survivors of torture and sexual violence – it was not always easy to listen to these testimonies. Are you ready to listen to similar testimonies? You will need to deal with these issues calmly and dispassionately.
We will talk more about self-care in the section on lifestyle and salary [here].
Positivity:
It is important to stay positive even in the most challenging of situations. You may only have ‘small wins’ on your human rights campaigns (you cannot eradicate torture overnight) or in your advocacy but these are important wins nonetheless!
Equally, in terms of your job search, it is important to remain positive and optimistic that you will secure the right position in the sector.
Flexibility and adaptability:
Human rights professional need to be able to flex and adapt to new situations very quickly. If you choose to work in the field (for example in conflict or fragile-affected states) the situation may decline very quickly and you may be required to leave the country at short notice or in an emergency.
You will also need to be able to adapt to a new lifestyle if you are working in the field – this may be challenging.
Be flexible, open and adaptable in your approach to working in the human rights sector. It will be an important asset to you.
Cultural Sensitivity:
Human rights work requires a strong understanding of different cultures and a cultural awareness. You may potentially be living and working in a culture that is unfamiliar to you and it is important to be open minded and have a good level of cultural competence.