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Studies & Degrees in Social Studies

Social studies is an umbrella name for programmes that look at how societies are organised and how people live in them. It draws on the social sciences, which the UK's Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) defines as, in the broadest sense, the study of society and the manner in which people behave and influence the world around us. A social studies programme usually combines several of these disciplines instead of specialising in one from the first day.

The disciplines the ESRC lists include sociology, social anthropology, politics and international studies, economics, human geography, demography, social policy, social work, psychology and education. Students learn two families of research methods. Qualitative methods, such as in-depth interviews and participant observation, look at how individuals think and behave in particular situations. Quantitative methods use surveys, records and censuses to measure and describe whole societies or groups.

Qualifications and levels

  • United States. Social sciences are part of general education and are also offered as majors inside a four-year bachelor's degree. At The University of Chicago, year-long social sciences sequences have been a permanent feature of the undergraduate core since the 1940s. The sociology degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the interdisciplinary B.S. in Social Data Analytics at The Pennsylvania State University each require a minimum of 120 credits.
  • United Kingdom. Bachelor's degrees in a single social science normally take three years in England; the BA in Sociology at the University of Sussex, for example, lasts three years full time and may include work placements, field trips and study abroad.
  • Spain. Official bachelor's degrees (grados) have 240 ECTS credits and official master's degrees 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. Spanish regulations group these studies in a field of knowledge that covers social sciences, social work, labour relations and human resources, sociology, political science and international relations. At master's level, the Escola de l'IGOP of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona teaches an official master's degree in social policy and community action in Barcelona.
  • Short programmes. Summer universities let visiting students take social science seminars for credit. The Hessen International Summer Universities in Germany run for four weeks and award 3 ECTS credits for each seminar and for the German language course.

In the United States, "social studies" is also the name of the school subject that combines history, geography, civics and economics. Students who want to teach it follow a teacher education route, and teachers in public schools need a state-issued certification or licence.

Where to study social studies

SpainExchange lists 115 active schools for social studies. The United States has the most (41), followed by Spain (6), the United Kingdom (5), Germany (5) and Canada (3). Vietnam, Argentina, Costa Rica, China, Finland, Denmark and Puerto Rico have two each. Schools on the list include Yale University, Purdue University and Fort Lewis College in the United States, the University of Sussex in England, Fudan University in Shanghai, Makerere University in Kampala, the Universidad de Valparaíso in Chile and Universidad Champagnat in Argentina.

Programmes are normally taught in the language of the country, so the language requirement is part of admission. The University of Sussex asks international applicants to its sociology degree for an IELTS (Academic) score of 6.0 overall, with at least 5.5 in each component. Classes at the Hessen International Summer Universities are taught in English, German or both. When comparing schools, look at which disciplines can be combined, how much training in research methods and statistics is included, and whether a placement or a period abroad is part of the programme.

Careers

Graduates work in public administration, social services, non-governmental organisations, market and opinion research, education and the media; the degree gives analytical and research skills more than a single profession. Research posts usually require postgraduate study. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, sociologists and political scientists typically need a master's degree to enter the occupation.

The same source projects that overall employment in life, physical and social science occupations in the United States will grow much faster than the average for all occupations from 2025 to 2035. The picture differs by occupation: employment of sociologists is projected to grow 4 percent over that period, while employment of political scientists is projected to decline 2 percent and employment of high school teachers to show little or no change.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between social studies and social sciences?

Social sciences are the individual disciplines that study society, such as sociology, economics or political science. Social studies is a broader label for programmes that combine several of them, and in the United States it is also the name of a school subject.

How long does a degree in this area take?

A bachelor's degree takes four years in the United States (at least 120 credits at the universities cited here) and in Spain (240 ECTS credits), and normally three years in England.

Do I need mathematics?

Some. Quantitative research based on surveys, records and censuses is one of the two main families of methods in the social sciences, so most programmes include statistics courses.

Do I need a master's degree to work as a social scientist?

For research occupations, usually yes: the US Bureau of Labor Statistics states that sociologists typically need at least a master's degree. Many graduates with a bachelor's degree work in related fields such as administration, social services or education.