Overview

The Higher Diploma in Social Policy (Online) is directed at graduates without a background in the social policy, who are seeking a conversion course to gain access to an array of professional courses for which social policy is a requirement.

The programme is delivered online and can be taken over the course of one year (full-time) or two years (part-time). The Higher Diploma in Social Policy (Online) is designed to be flexible, to attend to students' employment and care responsibilities.

The programme involves a series of modules designed around short lectures. The short lectures are approximately 8 to 12 minutes in length and will engage students with theory, practice, and research, at the heart of social policy. Core readings and rich media resources will complement the short lecture series. All academic work conducted on the programme is desk-based involving analysis of literature, society, policy, and reports.

Students take 60 credits. To avoid workload imbalance, students can take up to and no more than 35 credits in either semester.

Programme Requirements

For information about modules, module choice, options and credit weightings, please go to Programme Requirements. 

Programme Requirements

Module List

Code	Title	Credits
Part I
Students take 60 credits as follows - all listed core modules (30 credits) and 15 credits of elective modules in Part I and a research report (15 credits) in Part II:
Core Modules
SS5101	Social Policy and Social Theory (online)	10
SS5102	Contemporary Social Policy Analysis (online)	10
SS5106	Housing and Homelessness (online)	5
SS5108	Poverty and Social Exclusion (online)	5
Elective Modules
Students take modules to the value of 15 credits from the following:		15
SS5105	Social Professions and Social Practice IV (online) (5)
SS5107	Education and Welfare (online) (5)
SS5109	The Politics of Racism (online) (5)
SS5110	Social Policy and Social Work (online) (5)
SS5111	Critical Social Policy and Environmental Crisis (5)
Part II
Students take 15 credits as follows:
Core Modules
SS5104	Social Research Report (online)	15
Total Credits		60

Examinations

Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards Book and for each module in the Book of Modules.

Programme Learning Outcomes

Programme Learning Outcomes for Higher Diploma in Social Policy (NFQ Level 8, Major Award)
(Online)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Exhibit skills required in writing a graduate research report;
  
• Demonstrate a knowledge of key concepts, frameworks and theories in social policy;
  
• Demonstrate the capacity to pursue comparative research in applied social studies;
  
• Recognise the relation of social policy to the various disciplines in the social sciences;
  
• Apply social policy concepts and theory to understand and evaluate changes in the contemporary welfare state;
  
• Exhibit digital skills, knowledge, and literacies.