Welfare states everywhere face enormous challenges from population ageing, changes in family life and work-patterns, migration and the economic crisis. In a globalised and interdependent world, these issues can only be understood from an international perspective which accounts for these common pressures and processes, but which also recognises and engages with the diversity of national traditions and institutions for delivering welfare.
The International Social Policy programme takes a policy analytic approach to provide you with an advanced understanding of current debates, theories and concepts relevant to international social policy. You learn about the common features of social policy arrangements internationally and the variety and differences that characterise welfare across the countries and regions of the world. Drawing on the research-based expertise available at SSPSSR which relates to countries ranging from China, South Korea and Singapore in South East Asia to the UK, Germany and Sweden in Western Europe, you are equipped to understand how national and global forces interact to shape trajectories of welfare system development.
The programme enables you to apply theories and methods of social policy in exploring enduring cross cutting themes in social policy, including the prioritisation of equality and capabilities, as well as to drill down to how and why policy unfolds in key welfare fields. You develop policy analytic skills in relation to such areas as health, migration, pensions, education, social care, and children & family related policy. You acquire expertise in the use of primary and secondary data collection in areas pertaining to all these aspects of social policy, and are thus equipped to think critically about the development of social welfare systems in a global age across the full range of national contexts and policy situations.
We place considerable emphasis on structured, interactive seminars with a high degree of student participation. You also join the staff/graduate seminars which allow MA and research students to become involved in a professional research culture.
The programme gives you a clear and confident grasp of social policy in developed and developing countries. You gain an advanced understanding of the relevant debates, theories and concepts of international issues alongside skills in research design and data collection.
You will take compulsory modules alongside optional modules of your choice so that can customise your degree and explore other subject areas that interest you. Modules may include:
https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/118/international-social-policy#structure
This programme aims to:
Building on Kent’s success as the region’s leading institution for student employability, we place considerable emphasis on you gaining specialist knowledge in your chosen subject alongside core transferable skills. We ensure that you develop the skills and competences that employers are looking for including: research and analysis; policy development and interpretation; independent thought; writing and presentation, as well as time management and leadership skills. You also become fully involved in the professional research culture of the School. A postgraduate degree in the area of social and public policy is a particularly flexible and valuable qualification that can lead to many exciting opportunities and professions.
Our graduates obtain a range of transferable skills and report high levels of being in employment or further study within six months of graduation across all of our degree programmes.
Over 98% of Kent's postgraduate students who graduated in 2016 were in work or further study within six months. Recent graduates from our School have pursued careers in academia, journalism, local and central government, charities and NGOs.
How to apply: https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/apply/
We offer inspirational teaching and supervision alongside first-class library and IT facilities. You also benefit from our high-impact research in all subjects. Whatever you are looking to study, Kent provides a dynamic and challenging environment for your postgraduate studies.
* of 122 universities, not including specialist institutions
Climate Change is a growing issue for environmental policy makers at the international, national and sub-national levels, as well as for environmental managers and experts in public, private and non-profit making organisations.
This course provides you with a unique combination of training on the physical, social and policy aspects of climate change and on broader environmental policy and governance.
You’ll receive a solid foundation in the physical and social science of climate change and its impacts, including adaptation to, and mitigation of, climate change.
You’ll develop a critical understanding of the policy tools available to promote environmental protection.
This Masters combines modules taught at the School of Earth and Environment, with optional modules from the School of Geography and the School of Politics and International Studies.
Our teaching draws on the latest cutting-edge research and is delivered by experts and world’s leading researchers on climate change policy (e.g. IPCC lead authors, and a DEFRA UK lead advisor) to give you in-depth knowledge and guidance.
No other UK university can offer the same level and breadth of expert teaching in climate change and environmental policy.
Course highlights:
Be taught by three lead authors of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which advises world governments on the evolving and complex issue of climate change, and a lead advisor to the UK's Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA). All academics have won teaching awards.
Engage with some of the world's leading researchers from the Priestley International Centre for Climate (PICC), the ESRC-funded Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP) and the RCUK-funded UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC). They have published high profile papers with past students.
Attend excellent seminars and talks run by the School and its research centres, where you will access the latest, cutting-edge research delivered by leading climate policy makers and advisors. Plus, attend other seminars run by the School of Geography and School of Politics and International Studies. Ideal if you want to build, or extend your network to enhance your career.
In addition to a free field course to East Yorkshire, choose an optional overseas field course to Tanzania, which provides an opportunity for you to gain practical experience and apply classroom-based learning first-hand in a developing country context. Ideal if you are considering working in an international capacity in this field.
When completed on a full-time basis, this 12 month Masters is split into 3 semesters.
In your semester 1, you’ll develop a grounding in the physical and social sciences – important for understanding climate mitigation and adaptation.
You’ll also examine the multiple pathways through which human-environment interaction is governed.
You’ll become familiar with appropriate research methods and gain the research skills relevant to your dissertation project.
In semester 2, your studies will give you an overview of climate change impact assessment and predictions, along with key concerns and strategies of adaptation to climate change.
You’ll explore the relative significance of main sources of greenhouse gases and the potential, technologies and strategies for reducing them.
You’ll develop an understanding of the key challenges for controlling greenhouse gas emissions, alongside the critical political issues related to mitigation.
During semester 3, you’ll propose and undertake an extended research project leading to the submission of a 12,000-word dissertation in August.
This dissertation gives you the opportunity to examine the detail of an issue of your choice.
When completed on a part-time basis, the course runs for 24 months, with each year split into 3 semesters. You will take complusory and optional modules in each semester, followed by an extended research project leading to the submission of a 12,000-word dissertation in semester 3 of your final year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
You will learn through a variety of teaching methods to help you develop both generic and subject-specific skills.
This includes lectures, practical workshops, field trips (UK and overseas), computer lab sessions, research seminars and project work (individual and groupwork).
Practical exercises focus around real-world scenarios and case studies to produce optimal solutions including familiarisation with state-of-the-art technical approaches, software and the regulatory regimes that companies and public sector organisations operate within.
The research-intensive environment of the School ensures that your course material is both up-to-date and research led.
You'll also learn the scientific and rational principles lying behind the practical approaches used in the world outside academia, so that your skills keep pace with changes in technology or the regulatory environment.
You also have access to the excellent research seminars and talks run by the School of Earth and Environment and its research centres, plus those organised by School of Geography and School of Politics and International Studies.
Facilities
The School of Earth and Environment’s £23m building gives you access to world-class research, teaching and facilities.
You will be assessed through a variety of ways including both written and oral assignments, exams and poster presentations.
Sustainable economic development and environmental management are two key challenges facing the world today.
You will be provided with high-quality interdisciplinary training to help you understand the many perspectives on these issues. This Masters is led by the Sustainability Research Institute and brings together a wide range of academic expertise from the School of Earth and Environment, the School of Politics and International Studies, and from the practitioner community.
Investigate the issues associated with achieving development that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable and contribute towards achieving solutions in this topical, fast-growing field.
And gain the knowledge, skills and practical experience, employers require to focus on the issues where the need for sustainable economic development and environmental conservation meet.
The course is ideal if you would like to develop or continue a career in environment and/or development practice, policy, training or research, and/or if you are thinking of working in an international capacity. The Masters will prepare you for work in both the public and private sectors, and within local, national and international institutions. Alternatively, you could pursue a research career or go on to a PhD.
You may also be interested in our <a href="http://courses.leeds.ac.uk/site/scripts/course.php?courseID=25225" target="_blank">Environment and Development with Integrated Fieldwork MSc.
Course highlights:
You have a large degree of flexibility – choose the modules you take and develop your degree in line with your interests and ambitions.
Carry out a wide range of fieldwork, from a free field course to East Yorkshire, to an overseas trip to Tanzania.
Learn from experts in the field – our teaching draws on specialist knowledge from practitioner and research communities covering both the natural and social sciences.
Attend the excellent research seminar series run by the School of Earth and Environment, School of Politics and International Studies, plus those organised in Leeds’ Biology and Geography departments.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork forms an integral part of the course, which develops your on-the-ground understanding of how the tools and skills you learn in lectures can be applied.
In the first semester, you'll visit East Yorkshire for 2 days. Learn about issues affecting sustainable economic development and environmental management in a developed world context.
In the second semester, you have preferential access (at an additional cost) to the long-established field course in Tanzania. Gain first-hand practical experience and apply classroom-based learning in a developing country context.
Choose to carry-out fieldwork as part of your final dissertation.
When completed on a full-time basis, this 12 month Masters is split into 3 semesters. In the first 2 semesters you will take lectures and seminars, followed by approximately 4 months of individual work leading to the submission of a dissertation in late August
When completed on a part-time basis, the course runs for 24 months, with each year split into 3 semesters. You will take 2 modules in each semester, followed by individual work leading to the submission of a dissertation in semester 3 of your final year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
You will learn through a variety of teaching methods to help you develop both generic and subject-specific skills.
This includes lectures, practical workshops, field trips (UK and overseas), computer lab sessions, research seminars and project work (individual and groupwork).
Practical exercises focus around real-world scenarios and case studies to produce optimal solutions including familiarisation with state-of-the-art technical approaches, software and the regulatory regimes that companies and public sector organisations operate within.
The research-intensive environment of the School ensures that course material is both up-to-date and research led.
You'll also learn the scientific and rational principles lying behind the practical approaches used in the world outside academia, so that your skills keep pace with changes in technology or the regulatory environment.
Facilities
The School of Earth and Environment’s £23m building gives you access to world-class research, teaching and facilities.
You will be assessed through a variety of ways including both written and oral assignments and exams.
This course is ideal if you want to continue your undergraduate studies, you are looking for a career change, or if you are looking to increase your skill set to progress in your career (amongst many others reasons).
We typically find that graduates assume, or continue careers, in sustainability, environmental management or development practice. Our alumni work in the research, public and private sectors and within local, national and international institutions.
Possible career paths you can take:
This refreshed programme explores issues, concepts, and debates in social and public policy research to gain an insight into policy making and its social impacts on individuals and communities.
Core modules will explore social theories, issues and research methods relevant to social policy and welfare. You will also develop core skills in critical policy analysis and policy evaluation. There will be opportunities to study and debate current policy issues, such as work and welfare, child and family policy or the challenges of ageing populations, with a focus on real-life examples.
Supported by our well-known research centres and taught by expert tutors, you’ll tailor the programme to suit your own interests and career aspirations. With a range of optional modules to choose from, you could pursue further advanced research skills or study complementary social topics such as disability studies, gender studies, racism and ethnicity studies, or globalisation.
You’ll gain an insight into some of the most sensitive and complex social issues affecting governments worldwide.
Research insight
You’ll learn in a research-intensive, stimulating environment. As well as the Leeds Social Sciences Institute which fosters collaboration, you’ll benefit from the interdisciplinary expertise hosted by the Centre for Disability Studies, Centre for Ethnicity and Racism Studies, Centre for Interdisciplinary Gender Studies and many others. All of these centres run their own calendars of events such as workshops and seminars.
From the start of the programme you’ll study core modules that introduce you to the social contexts and social problems that challenge policy makers, understanding society and social research. As the course develops you will focus more specifically on the welfare state, the process of social policy formation, and the kinds of evidence on which new policies and programmes are founded, and against which their effectiveness is evaluated.
You’ll gain a thorough understanding of research methods, the theoretical assumptions which underpin them and how these affect the way the findings are interpreted. You’ll also focus on specific examples such as welfare reform or employment activation policies.
With this foundation, you’ll choose from optional modules to specialise in topics that suit you. You could study contemporary social thought to contextualise your work, or look at issues such as labour mobility, care, healthcare, disability or ‘race’ and ethnicity. You could study further data analysis and research methods to prepare for future research.
At the end of the programme, you’ll submit your dissertation – an independent piece of research on a related topic of your choice, which allows you to demonstrate and apply the knowledge and skills you’ve acquired during the year.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
We use a range of teaching and learning methods including presentations, seminars, workshops, tutorials and lectures. Optional modules may also use other methods such as online learning. However, independent study is crucial to this degree – it allows you to prepare for taught sessions, develop your research interests and build a range of skills.
Your core modules will be assessed using essays. Optional modules may use other forms of assessment that reflect the diversity of the topics you can study, including presentations, book and literature reviews, research proposals and reports among others.
You’ll gain a wide range of knowledge and skills throughout this programme, including sophisticated skills in research, communication and analysis that will be useful in a variety of careers.
Social and Public Policy graduates have gone on to a wide range of posts across the third-sector public services, government and business. These have included central and local government departments, community bodies, housing and health organisations, research consultancies and advocacy or campaigning.
We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.
The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
Sustainability, Earth and Atmospheric Science Masters Degrees - School of Earth and Environment
Study Innovation, Science & Technology Policy at an internationally recognised Centre of Research
Push the boundaries of your knowledge and learning with a degree in Ocean and Earth Science at the University of Southampton
Department of Life Sciences – a leading international centre for research and training in ecology, evolution, conservation and the environment
Do your learning around your earning - Part-Time and Distance Learning Courses at Northumbria University
Established provider of online distance learning Master’s courses in Environmental Science and Geography
Funding support is available for postgraduate study at the University of the Highlands and Islands
School of Social Sciences- a nationally and internationally recognised centre for the study of engaged social science
Exciting courses in the School of Law, Politics and Sociology at the University of Sussex
Leicester Castle Business School - created by De Montfort University to meet the needs of 21st century business
