Specialized Master’s degree Programme in Comparative Constitutional Law

The Faculty of Law offers a high quality Master’s programme in comparative constitutional law. The programme has a strong comparative focus that transcends South African Constitutional Law and seeks to expose students to the methodology of comparative constitutional law and different options of constitutional design and operation. The modules in the programme focus on the notion of a constitution, the interpretation, possibilities and limits of constitutions, a comparative exploration of institutional arrangements, models of rights protection, the legitimacy and power of constitutional review, mechanisms of constitutional reform, deliberative democracy, and the rule of law. The modules also deal with the comparative method of constitutional rights interpretation and the relevance of constitutional design in the management of divided societies. The comparators are major jurisdictions, including the USA, Canada, India, Germany and South Africa, with the emphasis on case studies from Africa. The different models of constitutional design that African states have adopted will be given special attention.

This one- year Master’s programme will appeal to students interested in interdisciplinary studies as many of the topics touch on themes from social sciences, including political science, history, sociology and anthropology.

Students are taught and supervised by highly qualified Faculty staff members, including Prof Wessel Le Roux, Prof Yonatan Fessha and Prof Karin van Marle.

The programme

The programme comprises of four modules and a research paper. Students are expected to complete two modules and a mini-thesis.

The modules are:

• Comparative Constitutional Law
• Constitutional Law, Politics and Theory
• Constitutional Rights Interpretation
• Constitutional Design in Divided Societies

Target

The content of this programme would be appealing to students from South Africa, the African continent, and the rest of the world. Students who are interested in pursuing a career in public law would benefit immensely from attending such a programme. The increasing cross-fertilization of constitutions makes such a programme attractive for those who look for careers beyond their respective national boundaries. The increasing involvement of international organizations in the process of constitution-drafting, makes this programme especially appealing to students. Students pursuing a career in the field of human rights and international relations could also benefit from this programme.

Admission requirements 

Applicants for the LL.M/Mphil in Comparative Constitutional Law programme must have completed their undergraduate studies in law before enrolling for the program. Candidates with an honours degree in social sciences (e.g. political science, international relations, etc.) may also apply for admission. Applicants must show proven ability to undertake advanced research

How to apply 

Completed applications must be submitted through the university’s online application system by the deadline.

 Admissions enquiries, contact: 

 Ms L. Loubser: lloubser@uwc.ac.za