This specialisation provides students with deep and comprehensive understanding of the nature and challenges of social policy within nations and globally. Multidisciplinary in nature, this specialisation will provide insight into key theories, principles and approaches, providing a foundation for social policy analysis, development and implementation across a range of contexts. The social policy specialisation equips students with an understanding of the key actors engaged in social policy making – including the growing influence of ‘non-traditional’ actors.?
Through electives, students in this specialisation can explore a wide range of issues relevant to social policy development and implementation, such as the boundaries of social policy; influences on social policy, including demographic and labour force trends; how social policy intersects with other aspects of government policy; and debates about financing of welfare programmes, inequality and income?distribution, wellbeing and social justice, in Australia and internationally.
This specialisation offers opportunities for advanced investigation of the analytical skills, public policies and organisational practices appropriate for advising on social policy and managing program outcomes. It is well-suited for those in social policy development and/or implementation in government and non-government sectors.
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate deep knowledge and understanding of key debates and thinking in the field of social policy, in Australia and globally in order to analyse, synthesise and communicate complex social policy challenges, informed by both theory and case studies.
- Identify and apply appropriate research methods to social policy challenges.
- Understand challenges relating to management, implementation and evaluation of social policies to develop innovative social policy recommendations to complex problems in changing policy environments.
- Engage influentially in developing responses to complex social policy issues.
Other Information
This specialisation is only available to students undertaking the Master of Public Policy
Relevant Degrees
Requirements
This specialisation requires the completion of 24 units, which must consist of:
6 units from completion of the following course:
POGO8084 Principles of Social Policy
18 units from completion of courses from the following list:
POGO8004 Poverty Reduction
POGO8025 Social Policy Analysis
POGO8044 Global Social Policy
POGO8048 Public Finance
POGO8230 Gender Analysis in Public Policy (3 units)
POGO8239 Contemporary Challenges in Indigenous Policy (3 units)
DEMO8024 Population and Society: Theory and Empirical Perspectives
SOCR8202 Using Data to Answer Policy Questions and Evaluate Policy
SOCR8204 Advanced Social Science Approaches to Inform Policy Development and Service Delivery
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