The MA in Social Policy and Social Development Programme aims to prepare students to develop the necessary core professional and personal competence required to work in the field of social policy and to engage in professional practices in social development. This involves gaining critical knowledge and skills in analysing and appreciating local and global policy issues and the ability to formulate and assess policy options that ensure effective, appropriate and sustainable outcomes, uphold social justice and improve social well-being. To these ends, the programme is designed to bring together theory and practice that enables participants in the programme to meet challenges in social development ethically and imaginatively.
Unlike most other postgraduate programmes in social policy, this MASPSD is designed for those who are either to embark on a career in Social Policy and Social Development or those who are already mid-career practitioners seeking to improve their knowledge about public and non-government sectors specialising in social policy and planning for social development. It is structured to offer rigorous, interdisciplinary and hands-on training across a number of academic, managerial and professional disciplines that prepare participants to transfer knowledge into action to bring about social development, especially through responsible policy analysis, formulation, impact assessment and evaluation.
The programme provides students with a solid foundation in social policy analysis that can be adapted and applied in many fields of human service provision and practice in social development. Graduates are expected to gain the competence necessary to participate effectively in social policy processes, conduct needs assessments, evaluate policy impacts and develop appropriate and relevant policy options that respond responsibly to new challenges in social development.
MA : to be eligible for the award, students are required to take 30 credits (6 Required Subjects including the Integrative Project and 4 Elective Subjects).
PgD : Students who have successfully completed 21 credits (5 Required Subjects and 2 Elective Subjects) can exit that programme with a Postgraduate Diploma.
PgC : Students who have successfully completed 12 credits (2 Required Subjects and 2 Elective Subjects) can exit the programme with a Postgraduate Certificate.
Graduates of this programme may apply for membership of the International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA).
Required Subjects
Elective Subjects
The MSc in Social Policy and Social Research encompasses both a theoretical understanding of the policy process with advanced research methods training, providing students with the knowledge and skills needed to work in complex and challenging policy contexts. This degree has ESRC 1+3 training recognition, meaning it stands alone as an MSc but will also prepare students for doctoral research.
Students are equipped with the conceptual tools and empirical evidence necessary for investigating social policy and policy-making, including critical assessment of the role of research evidence in policy development and implementation. Graduates will be able to apply this knowledge and understanding and analytical and methodological skills to conduct social research in different policy contexts.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of three core modules (60 credits), optional modules (60 credits) and a dissertation (60 credits).
Core modules
Optional modules
Students select optional modules from the following list.
Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 12,000 words. Workshops and online resources help prepare students for the dissertation.
Teaching and learning
A rich variety of teaching of methods are used, including lectures combined with seminars. In some modules, students are given the opportunity to develop presentational skills through group projects. The programme includes both face-to-face and online components. Assessment is through coursework assignments and a 12,000-word dissertation.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Social Policy and Social Research MSc
For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.
Graduates of this programme may find work in a broad range of areas, including as social policy researchers and advisers in government, NGO personnel, or as university and college lecturers and researchers.
Employability
Graduates from this MSc gain sought-after skills that allow them to pursue professional careers in academia and/or policy research, policy analysis, policy development and implementation, programme management, and policy advocacy within the public, private, or non-profit sectors.
The programme offers a unique opportunity to study social policy and the ways in which research, along with other forms of evidence and knowledge, connects with and impacts on policy-making and professional practice. Training is also provided in social research methods relevant to people working in a policy or academic context. It is structured to allow students to customise their degree according to their preferred area of study and future career plans.
The programme is located within the Department of Social Science, a research-intensive department with an outstanding international reputation. It is taught by an interdisciplinary team, all with specialist expertise across a wide range of policy areas.
Our central London location and network of partners and alumni gives us access to nationally and internationally prominent guest speakers who give insight into policy as it is formed.
At the local, national and global level, we are witnessing an intense period of social transformation and fragmentation. Within this context, there is growing political and policy recognition of the need to better understand and thereby address social inequalities. The social sciences have an important role to play in mapping and understanding how inequalities arise and in tackling their causes and consequences. Innovative developments in the social sciences are offering new methodological, theoretical and empirical insights into entrenched and emerging inequalities of status, resource, outcome and opportunity. This has inspired us to create an interdisciplinary programme focusing on inequality in all its forms and its social, political and economic implications.
This Masters programme equips students with the necessary knowledge and skills to engage in and contribute towards work that tackles the realities and effects of social inequality. Capitalising on academic and applied expertise in the School of Sociology and Social Policy and the Leeds Inequalities Research Network, this programme harnesses leading analytical approaches combining qualitative, quantitative and data analytic methods (in close collaboration with the School of Geography).
In addition to offering an advanced understanding of rising material inequality, the programme encourages an intersectional approach to understanding socio-economic stratification and how this links with physical (dis) ability, race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexuality, class and age. It provides a stimulating intellectual environment and cutting edge methodological approaches to comparing and contrasting the formation and consequences of inequalities across a range of national and international contexts. Through an examination of geopolitical and socioeconomic shifts, such as urbanisation and globalisation, students are actively supported to critically interrogate the contemporary character and extent of social inequality.
Research insight
Whilst undertaking this programme, students will join a vibrant and dynamic research led teaching and learning environment in the School of Sociology and Social Policy. You will benefit from the interdisciplinary expertise and extra-curricular activities hosted by the School and its research centres including those in Disability Studies, Ethnicity and Racism Studies, Interdisciplinary Gender Studies and Research into Families, the Life Course and Generations. You will also access events through the Leeds Social Sciences Institute (LSSI), which fosters cross-departmental collaboration, learning and impact, Students will also benefit from workshops on global inequalities by academic leaders from across campus and research seminars with external speakers; along with career development opportunities and events. As such, students can take advantage of academic and applied expertise both within and beyond the University whilst also developing specialist knowledge and transferable skills for their future career development in the public, private or third sector.
The programme bridges disciplinary divides to provide a detailed understanding of the ways in which social inequality manifests across diverse communities and contexts at the national and international level. It offers insight into the character, causes and consequences of social inequality, as well as forms of resistance and policy responses. It has a strong and innovative methodological focus, including traditional qualitative and quantitative approaches to the social analysis of inequality, as well as new approaches to data visualisation and analytics from across the social sciences. The programme uses a range of teaching methods, including lectures, seminars and workshops, complemented by a range of co-curricular activities partly facilitated through the Leeds Inequalities Research Network.
The core modules of the programme introduce students to contemporary research on global inequalities of social difference and disadvantage, emphasizing a diversity of theoretical and research design strategies, including international evidence surrounding the shifting nature and extent of inequality. Students are able to tailor the programme according to their interests and needs by choosing from a specially selected range of optional modules, which address major social and economic inequalities across diverse social science subjects and substantive issues. As such, students can choose to develop in-depth specialist knowledge on a particular area and/or focus more generally on the social processes and arrangements that give rise to inequalities.
Compulsory modules
PLUS TWO OF THE BELOW:
We use a range of teaching and learning methods including presentations, seminars, workshops, tutorials and lectures. 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. This is particularly the case for the dissertation/applied project module of this programme.
Supported through workshops and supervision, students develop their research dissertation or an applied project in partnership with external organisations. This offers students an exciting opportunity to gain experience of applying their knowledge and skills to policy and practice.
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.
This programme prepares students for policy, research and applied careers across the private, public and third sectors. The interdisciplinary and dynamic nature of the programme equips students with the critical, analytical and methodological skills to deploy their specialist expertise in a clear, efficient and effective manner. You will develop transferable skills in research, analysis and communication, as well as in-depth knowledge that can be applied across a range of domains and contexts.
Due to the rigorous and applied nature of our teaching, graduates might pursue careers across a diverse range of organisational settings such as in government, NGOS, charities, think tanks, social enterprises and business. The programme also offers excellent development opportunities to pursue a career in social research or undertake research at PhD level.
Irrespective of your future career intentions, we offer tailored guidance and support through ESSL Faculty staff and the Leeds Careers Centre.
The Social Justice and Education MA will help students to identify, examine and understand key sociological and philosophical perspectives on social justice, including issues of race, class, gender and sexuality, and education. Participants will explore the personal and political dimensions of social justice concerns and develop their professional, practical and research skills in this area.
This programme provides students with the opportunity to address, in a unique way, the complex links between social justice and education, focusing on key current policy and political debates about the role of education. They will also be able to develop, extend and reflect on their own professional interests, concerns and practice and how to address pressing issues of social justice in their everyday profesional and personal lives. Through their engagmeent with cutting-edge research in this area they will learn tools for fighting for social justice and transformation in the educational areas relevant for them.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of two core modules (60 credits), two optional modules (60 credits) and a dissertation (60 credits), or a report (30 credits) and a third optional module (30 credits).
Core modules
Optional modules
Students can also choose from a wide range of Master's-level optional modules across the IOE offering.
Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 20,000 words or a report of 10,000 words.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of face-to-face evening sessions and interactive online learning using a variety of teaching and learning styles. Sometimes a conventional lecture-based approach is taken, with the aim of providing an overview of the field. Lectures are usually followed by open discussion or group work. At other times a seminar format is adopted involving, for example, group discussion of set reading, a video or an introductory presentation. Assessment is through coursework essay assignments, plus submission of a report or dissertation.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Social Justice and Education MA
For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.
Graduates of this programme are currently working across a broad range of areas. Some are leaders, managers, teachers and practitioners in the compulsory education sector across international contexts. Many are working as professionals in NGO organisations specialising in social justice across many countries such as Chille, Japan, Canada and the UK. Graduates can also be found working as civil servants and government officials. In addition, many find places in the higher education sector including across a range of professional roles, as researchers, and as university lecturers worldwide.
Employability
Students develop the capacity to:
The Department of Education, Practice and Society at UCL Institute of Education (IOE) is home to an interdisciplinary grouping bringing together high-quality teaching and research in the sociology, philosophy and history of education, international development, post-compulsory and vocational education and higher education.
The Social Justice and Education MA is taught by world-leading sociologists and philosophers within the department who have expertise in theory, research methods, policy analysis and impacting social change. They are experts in issues such as equality and human rights, gender, 'race', sexuality, youth, disability and social class. Those teaching are active researchers and will introduce the latest research and developments in their fields.
This programme explores sociological and philosophical perspectives on social justice and equalities and also explores processes of social transformation and change. Key issues debated include understanding and responding to social and educational disparities in international contexts. The programme equips students with essential theoretical and methodological research skills for critically engaging with social justice issues including understanding power relations from various perspectives. The MA attracts a diversity of both home and international students thus providing excellent educational and professional networking opportunities.
Students gain invaluable opportunities to study with leading scholars and a cohort of internationally diverse students across the IOE MA cluster in sociology, social justice and policy studies in education.
Social Workers are required to intervene in the lives of vulnerable people and people in crisis making decisions which impact directly on individuals, families and society. The emphasis in this course is on the application of skills (practical, critical and intellectual), knowledge and research to social work practice, with the aim of improving opportunity and outcomes for service users and communities.
Modules are offered which are relevant at whatever stage of career you are at – from modules to support you at the outset of your social work career to modules which develop supervision and management skills. All modules have been developed in collaboration with regional stakeholders.
You may enter the course as sponsored student from your employer or may be self-funding.
If you are a newly qualified social worker you will usually come onto the course to undertake Professional Practice (ASYE) and/or Consolidation of Professional Practice and/or Applied Critical Reflection.
If you are more experienced social workers you may wish to access modules individually or you can undertake a number of modules in order to gain a PgCert, PgDip or MSc.
This course has an integrated approach to teaching and learning, focusing on lectures, seminars and tutorials as well as independent learning methods.
Teaching is usually over five weeks, one day per week.
You will be encouraged to critically analyse and reflect upon your own practice experiences.
Teaching modes include:
BY MODULE
Social work at the University of Salford has links with a wide variety of agencies in the Greater Manchester area. We work with local authorities, not-for-profit agencies and the voluntary sector. We work with over 300 agencies and are involved in collaborative training with our local authority partners.
This course and the modules have been designed with the involvement of local employers to support workforce development and the needs of stakeholders.
This online distance learning programme engages critically with major issues in assessment, a highly significant topic for education systems across the world. It develops skills of assessment in relation to individual learners, to classrooms and schools and to local, national and international systems.
You will take four core and two optional courses across years 1 and 2. In year 3 you complete a piece of independent research, normally in the form of a dissertation. The programme is fully delivered online utilising innovative technologies within a fully supported and interactive learning environment.
This programme addresses needs recognised as significant for local, national and international students, both teachers and policy makers. It will build a network of graduates who have high-level knowledge, skills, and capabilities in assessment. The knowledge, skills and academic and professional standing gained will enable you to contribute effectively to local and national policy making in your own context. You will also be well equipped to undertake further study through doctoral research.
Kent's MA in Social Work offers you the opportunity to gain a professional qualification in social work alongside a Master’s degree. Successful graduates are eligible for professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), the regulatory body for social work.
Social Work is based at our Medway campus:https://www.kent.ac.uk/locations/medway/
The programme meets the Professional Capabilities Framework as required by the HCPC. You gain the knowledge and skills needed by professional social workers. The programme provides extensive work in practice learning settings that meet Government requirements. The MA is a full-time, two-year programme running from September each year.
The MA invites you to think coherently and systematically about the context, nature and aims of social work in the UK.
The changes taking place in social work nationally make this an exciting and challenging time to join us. Our team includes qualified practitioners with experience in a range of services and management settings who are constantly examining change and its implications on the future of social work.
The programme incorporates critical analysis and practice-based skills. This includes a two-day observational practice learning opportunity and a 70-day practice learning opportunity in Stage 1, with a further 100-day placement in Stage 2.
In addition to assessed work, linked to both taught modules and practice learning, you also complete a dissertation in a specific area of research in your second year.
You study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation:
https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/124/social-work#structure
Social work jobs exist in local authority and health settings (eg social services departments, hospital settings), voluntary organisations (Barnardo's, NSPCC) and private agencies such as private fostering agencies and care homes. Some graduates choose to undertake agency work.
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/124/social-work#overview
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
We have a scholarship fund of over £9 million to support our taught and research students with their tuition fees and living costs. Find out more: https://www.kent.ac.uk/scholarships/postgraduate/
If you need to improve your English before and during your postgraduate studies, Kent offers a range of modules and programmes in English for Academic Purposes (EAP). Find out more here: https://www.kent.ac.uk/international-pathways/
You may already be working in a social funding environment, or wishing to learn more about the world of philanthropy and social investment. The course is suitable for both aims, as a boost to your existing career or to facilitate a change in career direction.
Most of the examples studied on the course are from the UK, but international examples give a broader perspective, meaning your learning is transferable to any culture or jurisdiction.
As a student on this course, you will develop a clear understanding of the principles and practice of philanthropy and grantmaking. And the importance of all aspects of risk assessment, probity of applications, ethical frameworks and relationships with external communities and agencies.
You’ll examine grant-giving and other investment categories such as loans, endowments, contracts, social bonds and impact investing.
The course provides a solid background in the history and theory of philanthropy and grantmaking (with examples both from the UK and abroad). Beyond the theory, you’ll study the application of social investment practice as a business process.
The MSc course is taught on a part-time basis over a period of two years (30 months for those who chose to start with the PgCert in April due to the structure of the timetable).
Students initially enrol on the Postgraduate Diploma with the specialist area of their choice, and confirm their intention to complete the MSc at the end of the first year.
The focus for those starting with the PgCert is on the Specialist modules which is balanced with the sector context provided by the core modules on the PgDip.
The Postgraduate Certificate is offered on a part time basis and is taught over a period of six months. The Certificate consists of five modules: Introduction to Learning Principles and Practices of Grantmaking, Management of Grantmaking and Shadowing/Fieldwork.
The Postgraduate Diploma is offered on a part time basis and is taught over a period of 12 months. The Diploma consists of four core modules, plus three specialist pathway modules. The core modules are shared by all five Centre for Charity Effectiveness postgraduate courses.
Upon successful completion of the diploma, you will be given the option to continue to the MSc. This requires completion of the Research Methods for Managers module.
This can be followed by a further six months of personal, supervised research and the presentation of a 15,000-word dissertation.
Alternatively, you can opt to take a taught Masters which allows you to choose specialist modules from one of the other Charities programmes.
Students are selected on their professional experience, and generally continue working in their full –time role whilst undertaking this course.
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