MSc Social and Public Policy
Cardiff, United Kingdom
MSc
DURATION
1 year
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 23,200 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for overseas | for home: £10,450
Key Summary
Study the theoretical, conceptual and analytical tools needed to examine contemporary social and public policies in both national and international contexts. Draw on theories and concepts and interpret a range of forms of evidence in analysing policy developments and their social impacts.
The MSc Social and Public Policy focuses on understanding the causes of, and potential solutions to, a range of important social issues. These include challenges such as poverty, increasing economic and social inequalities, and international development agreements.
This is an ideal course if you want to develop your capacity to analyse social and public policies nationally and internationally. It will enable you to deepen your understanding of the major aspects of social and public policy, including competing conceptions of citizenship and how these inform social policy and the use of theories and research evidence to analyse, evaluate and explain social and public policy change.
The course is suitable for those who have recently completed undergraduate courses of study, as well as those working in the community and voluntary sector, think tanks, as researchers, or at different levels of government. It has been designed to be of value and relevance to students both from the UK and overseas, so interested individuals from all nations are encouraged to apply.
Why Study this Course
Study how policy is designed around the world to meet human needs and increase well-being.
Global Perspectives
Examine contemporary social and public policies in national and international contexts.
Noted Experts
Teaching is informed by our internationally recognised research and expertise.
Interdisciplinary Study
Gain insights from different disciplines in the social sciences.
Independent Research
A dissertation includes a small-scale independent piece of research on a topic of your interest.
We are committed to investing up to a total of £500,000 in this high value competitive scholarship scheme to support UK students who are planning to start an eligible Master’s programme in 2024/25.
Each Scholarship is worth £3,000 and will be awarded a tuition fee discount.
Eligibility
UK students are eligible to apply for the Scholarship. You normally need to have achieved at least a 2.1 or equivalent in your first degree to be eligible. You need to submit an application to study at Cardiff University and be made an offer to study before your fee status can be confirmed.
This is a one-year full-time programme.
The MSc in Social and Public Policy is organised around a sequence of up to three 20-credit specialist modules, two 30-credit modules in social science theory and research methods, and one 60-credit supervised dissertation on a social or public policy topic of your choice.
You will conduct your own analysis and present these in written work and oral presentations. In addition to specialist modules which deepen your understanding of social and public policy analysis, you will undertake modules in social science and research methods. The skills developed in these modules will enable you to complete your own dissertation on a social or public policy topic of your choice.
We currently offer specialist social and public policy 20-credit modules on a range of topics, although these may change from year to year.
In addition to these specialist modules, you will also be required to take two 30-credit modules in social science theory and research methods.
Dissertation
Finally, you will be asked to produce a 60-credit, 20,000-word dissertation on a social or public policy topic of your choice. This dissertation involves a small-scale independent piece of research and enables you to develop your interests in a substantive area related to the programme and to put into practice the knowledge and skills developed through participation in the taught modules. You will be allocated a personal dissertation supervisor to assist in planning, conducting and writing up the research project.
Core Modules for Year One
- Research Design For Masters Students
- Citizenship and Social Policy
- International and Comparative Social and Public Policy
- Evaluation: Developing and Evaluating Interventions in Complex Social Systems
- Research Methods for Social Policy Analysis
- Critical Perspectives in Social Science
- Dissertation
How Will I Be Assessed?
Modules are assessed by a combination of essays, reports, reviews and presentations.
What Skills Will I Practise and Develop?
On successfully completing the MSc in Social and Public Policy, you will have significantly enhanced your ability to:
- Critically analyse social and public policies in a range of thematic areas and geographical settings
- Assess theories of policy change and concepts which underpin policy formation, drawing on a variety of forms of research evidence
- Analyse and situate local, national and international social and public policies within their broader global, historical and ideological contexts
- Collect, analyse and interpret a range of social science data and appreciate the complexities of various forms of data
- Communicate and present ideas and research findings effectively in both spoken and written form
- Conduct your own research in the field of social and public policy
The programme is designed to be of particular interest to individuals who have experience working with, or an interest in working for, social or academic research organisations, departments at different levels of government (e.g. local, Welsh, UK-wide, European), international organisations (e.g. UNICEF), or at community and voluntary sector organisations. It is also relevant for students who seek to pursue other avenues but who wish to deepen their understanding of social and public policy in Wales, the UK and internationally.
How Will I Be Taught?
You will be expected to attend lectures, seminars and tutorials as set out in the timetable for MSc students. These sometimes sit outside the regular pattern of university attendance and may include day, evening and weekend study and on occasion may fall outside the standard semester dates. You will also be expected to undertake independent study in preparation for lectures, seminars and assessments. A 20-credit module comprises 200 hours of study, including about 30 hours of contact time, and the MSc as a whole, 1800 hours of study.
Modules employ a diverse range of teaching including lectures, seminars, group and individual tutorials, and independent guided study.
The programme benefits from being located in an interdisciplinary environment so that in parts of the course, you will come into contact with staff and students from other subject areas and, in other parts of the course, with staff and students in the same substantive area.