Social Research

The Social Research program from University of Liverpoolwill provide advanced theoretical and practical training in postgraduate research. You'll learn from internationally recognised Sociology experts in the sophisticated research environment of a long-established and influential Department.

Whether economic or cultural inequalities, the dangers of our online lifestyles, the definitions and consequences of crime or the social dimensions associated with problems such as health, we aim to give our students an exciting study experience to understand better what it means to be social, where society might be heading and what we can do to contribute to all our social future.

Key Features

• The teaching draws upon the expertise of the Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology, where the academic environment and approachable staff create an atmosphere of mutual knowledge exchange between staff and students.
• The Social Research program from University of Liverpool willintroduce you to the politics and practice of social research. You’ll explore the following aspects of the research process: the context of the modern university; the role of the social scientist; power, critique and reflexivity in the social sciences; the constraints, benefits and limitations of social science.

Career prospects

• You will develop a range of social scientific, analytic and communication skills and a variety of transferable skills valued by many employers in a range of industries (e.g. media organisations, charitable organisations, and commercial and financial service sectors).
• An MRes in Social Research offers a broad spectrum of career opportunities and will provide you with a solid basis for pursuing a researcher-related career in various sociological-related fields and sectors, including policy development and research in the public and third sectors.

The graduates have gone onto successful careers in both the public and private sectors:

• Criminal justice agencies
• Police
• Social welfare
• Local government
• Non-governmental organisations (e.g. working with organisations supporting homeless people and refugees)

Many students pursue an academic career or a university research career in the Social Sciences (Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology) or in a related discipline.

Courses include:

• The Politics and Practices of Social Research

• Philosophy of Social Science

• Doing Ethical Research

• Understanding Society Using Quantitative Methods
• Visual Data, Visual Analysis

• Focus Groups