Faculty of Social Sciences

Tackling our society's challenges through deeper understanding.

Our staff and students collaborate across disciplines to achieve social change for public good.

In the face of deep, urgent societal challenges, social science education and research plays a critical role in helping us to identify key societal issues and find lasting solutions.

York is the world's first Human Rights City and we share its commitment to building a fairer, more sustainable and empowered society. We know that we'll only be able to achieve the greatest change by working together across disciplines. Across the full range of social sciences, we work collaboratively in the exchange of ideas, insights, innovation and inspiration.

Our courses combine industry-informed teaching with focused careers support to create skilled graduates, geared for success in their chosen career paths. Students engage with a range of developmental opportunities during their studies. This includes sessions and workshops with our Departmental Academic and Communication Skills tutors and our York Strengths employability programme.

Our courses also offer a range of opportunities for students to gain practical hands-on experience. From undertaking work placements to collaborating with employers on consultancy projects and even providing free legal advice to the public through the Baroness Hale Legal Clinic. We empower students with the knowledge, tools and collaboration skills needed to understand their strengths and build a fairer and more equitable world.

As a faculty, we are dedicated to championing equality, diversity and inclusion and all of our departments hold either a bronze or silver Athena Swan award. With a human-led approach, we examine today's world to ensure we have the right tools to shape a better tomorrow.

Departments and schools

Our departments and schools offer courses at all study levels: undergraduate, postgraduate taught and postgraduate research.

We also host the following research-only departments:

Research centres

Alongside our departments, we have several interdisciplinary research centres. Some of our centres also offer postgraduate taught and postgraduate research courses.

Find your course

Meet our Faculty of Social Sciences team

We're a robust team made up of heads of academic departments and faculty-aligned staff including, but not limited to:

Professor Karen Rowlingson, Dean of Social Sciences
Professor Nina Caspersen, Associate Dean for Research
Professor Jill Webb, Associate Dean for Education and Students
Professor Mark Freeman, Associate Dean for Partnerships, Engagement and International
Dr Mark Shaw, Director of Faculty Operations

Meet the team

Our research

Our research is purpose-led, active and transformational. We employ rigorous empirical and theoretical approaches to provide social context and achieve social change for public good. Across our research themes of marginalisation and inequality, health and social care, efficient and equitable institutions, and peace, sustainability and justice, our social scientists work with an inclusive, interdisciplinary and enterprising focus to tackle the problems that matter.

We also hold an ESRC Impact Acceleration Account and are members of the White Rose Doctoral Training Partnership.

Explore some of our key research projects and collaborations.

Resetting the relationship between vulnerability and policing

Kate Brown, Co-Director of the ESRC Vulnerability and Policing Futures Research Centre, talks about how the centre investigates the lives of society's most vulnerable.

Combatting child malnutrition in Ghana

We're collaborators on the innovative C-REAL project, which has been awarded two Innovate UK awards.

Is it political to hope?

Professor Indrajit Roy's research explores how people's imaginations shape and are shaped by political structures.

Administrative Fairness Lab

Can fairer processes in frontline public services promote public good?

Protective Fellowships for Human Rights Defenders

Human rights defenders are core to the Centre for Applied Human Rights' protective, training and research activities.

Transforming adult social care around the country

Director of the NIHR School for Social Care Research, Professor Yvonne Birks, is leading a multi-million pound research project to address urgent challenges in social change.

Social Sciences highlights

Here's a glimpse at what it's like to be part of Social Sciences at York.

Partnerships

We engage meaningfully with a diverse set of external partners in the private, public and third sectors, as well as with a variety of general publics.

We collaborate with these different bodies at a local, national and international level to share our knowledge, influence policymaking and accelerate social change. Some of our current partnerships and research programmes include:

Our Social Change Catalyst is a vibrant community of changemakers, bringing together researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and more to collaborate and share ideas. By getting involved, you can help us to catalyse action and create real social change.

Find out more

Explore more faculties

Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Exploring the human experience, past, present and future.

Meet the Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Faculty of Science

Renowned research, excellent teaching and thriving interdisciplinary research culture.

Meet the Faculty of Science