Deadline: 16th January, 2026.
The Leadership & Advocacy for Women in Africa (LAWA) Fellowship Program was founded in 1993 at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC, to train women’s human rights lawyers from Africa who are committed to returning home to their countries to advance the status of women and girls throughout their careers.
The entire LAWA Fellowship Program is approximately 14 months long – from July of the first year through late August of the following year. The LAWA Program starts with the Foundations of American Law, followed by a thesis writing course. From late August to May, the LAWA Fellows earn a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree at Georgetown, with an emphasis on international women’s human rights, and complete a major graduate thesis. Fellows are also welcome to apply for a specialized LL.M. or certificate program.
Fellows also participate in professional development seminars and networking events with recent U.S. law school graduates who are working in the field of women’s rights. After graduation, the LAWA Fellows have the option to complete an internship, but not every Fellow finds an appropriate internship placement or is selected by an organization to intern.
Benefits
The LAWA Program helps defray the costs for candidates who would not otherwise be able to afford an LL.M. degree and additional professional development training.
- The LAWA Fellowship provides the tuition for the mandatory summer courses (a U.S. $5,000 benefit) and for the Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree from the Georgetown University Law Center (a U.S. $86,294 benefit).
- On-campus housing is provided for the first three weeks of the summer program (a U.S. $1,500 benefit).
- Books and health insurance are also covered by the program for the duration (a U.S. $6,098).
- Fellows are also reimbursed up to $600 for miscellaneous medical expenses.
Eligibility
Candidates who are awarded a LAWA Fellowship must be prepared to cover the costs of all additional expenses (such as visas, travel, housing, utilities, food, clothing, etc.). Candidates must be able to demonstrate to the U.S. Embassy for visa purposes that they have the full amount of funds available to cover these expenses at the time of their visa application. This totals approximately U.S. $35,563. Please refer to this sample budget (LL.M. Students – Attending Summer Experience). These costs are significantly less for those residing with family in the Washington, DC area. Candidates still must show at least $10,000 for living expenses. For the summer internship portion following graduation, students are required to demonstrate a monthly stipend of about $2,500 for the 2- to 3-month internship period.
Candidates are encouraged to apply for individual funding or seek support from their employers. The LAWA Program cannot assist with these efforts.
1. You must be a human rights lawyer focusing on women’s rights to be considered. You must hold an LL.B. or other law degree. A preference is given to candidates who:
a. are currently living and working in Africa, and
b. do not already have a Master’s Degree.
2. The strongest applicants tend to be about five to ten years out of law school, but those with less or more experience will be considered. Candidates with no work experience applying directly from an LL.B. degree or other law school will not be considered.
3. All people committed to women’s rights are strongly encouraged to apply, regardless of gender identity.
4. As a requirement of participation in the LAWA Program, all applicants must commit to return home to their own countries upon completion of the Fellowship, and to use their best professional efforts to advance women’s human rights throughout their careers.
5. You must have strong English language skills, both written and oral. Language problems have been the primary barrier to success for LAWA Fellows.
6. The LAWA Program requires candidates to become proficient in using computers for drafting papers and conducting research. Candidates are strongly encouraged to learn basic computer skills before arrival to make this transition easier. At the very minimum, candidates should work to improve their typing speed.
7. Candidates must be prepared to enter a very demanding course of study. LAWA Fellows take one required course and several more elective courses over the two academic semesters. Each class requires reading hundreds of pages in preparation. Fellows are required to produce a thesis of publishable quality totaling no fewer than 40 pages. This entails multiple drafts with intense research, writing, and editing. Successful completion of the program requires exceptional focus and painstaking work. Please do not apply if you are not prepared at this time to make a serious academic commitment.
For more information and application.