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Studying the world around us - social sciences, international affairs & public policy
Postgraduate degrees in the social sciences are particularly popular internationally with students wishing to have a more intellectual engagement with the rapid changes taking place in today's society.
The term social science has come to include a very broad range of subjects – generally those academic disciplines relevant to the changes in and functions of society. To this end, we include such subjects as anthropology, business, communication or media studies, economics, human geography, international affairs, law, political science, public policy, sociology and urban studies. The importance of studying such a range of subjects, or indeed specialising in just one of them, is particularly relevant in our contemporary world.We live in an age of such rapid change – instant international communications, new security concerns, the rise of new styles and beliefs in national and transnational government – that to understand such changes is to make the best of them. The social sciences help us map and analyse these changes.
But in reality, what do we study as a social science? Well, as the list above indicates, the pantheon of subjects is enormous but what emerges as a theme running through all of them is social interaction – how different groups react to one another, be they tribal, corporate or governmental. Postgraduate programmes in this field seek to analyse and examine varying relationships within and between these groups to equip the student with an intellectual and often very practical appreciation of the issues at hand. It is thisapproach that makes social science subjects particularly popular at the moment.
The social sciences are very contemporary in that they keep constant pace with the changing global environment. A survey of universities around the world demonstrates that programmes tackling issues of the day are regularly being founded and reviewed, bringing the issues of the day into the academic arena. New York’s Columbia University, regarded as one of the finest institutions in the world across many academic areas, is leading the way in the field through a very different initiative. Their unique Biosphere 2 Laboratory, located just outside of Tucson Arizona, provides the world's largest controlled environment facility for terrestrial and marine plant growth and experimental climate change science. Hard science surely? Well, in part yes, much of the academic activity is concentrated on issues such as earth science, astronomy, the impact of environmental change and weather forecasting. However, Columbia’s MPA in Environmental Science and Policy combines an understanding of environmental science with an intellectual approach from the social sciences intended to emphasise “integrated thinking and learning” to encourage students to think beyond traditional approaches to coping with environmental problems. As Columbia's PR indicates, “Our goal is to cultivate a new profession that manages earth systems in ways that will
ensure the long-term viability of life on our planet.”
Opportunities to study the social sciences, international affairs and public policy are many and varied. Most universities and colleges all over the world offer postgraduate taught andresearch programmes, with an increasing number of courses being offered by university consortia. Back to Columbia. Their appreciation of the unique global context in which they wish to push the boundaries of the social sciences has created a number of interesting international partnerships with institutions such as the London Business School and theLondon School of Economics, developing joint curricula to train students to lead the way in their particular fields. Dean Lisa Anderson, from Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, see the programme as an opportunity for “students to gain an unrivalled experience in two of the world’s leading cities as well as expert teaching from the internationally renowned faculty of two premier educational institutions.”
The fields of public policy and international affairs are certainly in demand from students. “I already had an MBA and that suited me for my first career in international finance,” says Anuradha Bajaj, a Masters student in the Politics of The World Economy programme at the prestigious London School of Economics & Political Science and former banker for ABN Amro in Mumbai. “But I was interested in moving into the public sector, preferably working with an international organisation like the United Nations or the World Bank, and to do that I had to have a more academic, social science focus, blending aspects of public policy, international relations and an understanding of the role in institutions in the world today.” So starts many students’ interest in the broad field of the social sciences.With careers such as consultancy to business and financial organisations; involvement with lobbying or non-governmental organisations; or broader public sector opportunities widespread, postgraduate students are seeking academic opportunities that blend a grounding in the intellectual approach to the disciplines and a practical understanding relevant to their potential career. In the UK, recent research by pollsters MORI indicates that almost a third of fresh graduates are now looking to the public sector for their career, convinced of the opportunities available in the field to make a positive difference to the lives of others. Nowhere are the social sciences more relevant to today’s society than in the field of international affairs and relations. Since September 11, students of international relations have been quick to seek intellectual and practical resolutions to new security issues affecting us all. The extent to which academic training can help this process is clear. Masters and PhD programmes all over the world are experiencing an enormous increase in interest from existing students and current practitioners alike, seeking engagement with the varied debates underway in the field. Topics covered in international affairs programmes are very varied indeed and most commonly include issues set around international security, conflict analysis and resolution, diplomacy, international political economy, foreign policy decision making and trade. Rather than focusing narrowly on particular specialties, many of these programmes equip students with advanced theoretical and methodological skills to approach international issues with an interdisciplinary view.
