COURSE CURRICULUM

The MA in Social Policy at Bangor University offers a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach to understanding contemporary social issues and policy responses. The Key Issues in Social Policy module examines the theoretical and empirical foundations of welfare and social policy, exploring debates on equality, discrimination, risk, citizenship, and the role of the state, while considering the impact of devolution and comparing national and international welfare systems. The Research Process and Meaning module provides advanced training in qualitative and mixed-method research, enabling students to conduct fieldwork, analyze data, and understand the link between theory and research design. The Health Policies module takes a comparative approach to examine health systems, including the politics of healthcare, professional-patient dynamics, and the effects of organizational change, marketisation, and devolution on services such as the NHS. The Dissertation module allows students to undertake an independent research project, developing skills in research design, data collection, analysis, and presentation under supervision. The Theorizing Society and Politics module encourages critical engagement with key social and political theories, including Critical Theory, post-structuralism, and feminist perspectives, linking theory to social action and contemporary issues. Modules in Comparative and International Criminal Justice and Transnational Crime explore national and global criminal justice systems, crime, and deviance, examining methodology, ethics, and the dynamics of transnational criminality.