Postgraduate MA
International Public Policy
Gain an advanced understanding of social policy in developed and developing countries.
Gain an advanced understanding of social policy in developed and developing countries.
The course takes a critical approach to the study of International Social Policy to provide an advanced understanding of current debates, theories and concepts in a vibrant area of study and research. Drawing on world leading research expertise, you learn to analyse how national and global forces interact to shape the trajectories of welfare system development.
You'll be involved in critical discussions of how welfare states meet human needs and will delve into the enormous challenges posed by social changes. You explore key fields of policy including health, migration, social care and labour market related policy. Methodological training is central to the programme, covering critical thinking and applied qualitative and quantitative technical skills.
A first or second class honours degree or higher university degree in a social science or related discipline.
All applicants are considered on an individual basis and additional qualifications, professional qualifications and relevant experience may also be taken into account when considering applications.
Please see our International Student website for entry requirements by country and other relevant information. Due to visa restrictions, students who require a student visa to study cannot study part-time unless undertaking a distance or blended-learning programme with no on-campus provision.
This course requires a Very Good level of English language, equivalent to a high B2 on CEFR.
Details on how to meet this requirement can be found on our English Language requirements webpage.
Examples:
IELTS 6.5 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component
PTE Academic 67 with a minimum of 59 in each sub-test
A degree from the UK
A degree from a Majority English Speaking Country
Please note that if you are required to meet an English language condition, we offer a number of pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes through Kent International Pathways.
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The following modules are what students will typically study, but this may change year to year in response to new developments and innovations.
You take all compulsory modules and select one optional module. Your degree ends with a Dissertation, which is a fantastic way for you to show off the skills and knowledge you have developed.
This course provides students with the understanding and skills necessary to use research, whether within a research career or outside of it. Building on other training in the details of specific methods, it focuses on two sets of broader questions. First, it critically analyses central concepts such as truth, power, ethics, and uncertainty in social research. When addressing these issues, the module engages with how they are dealt with and approached in qualitative and quantitative research. In the module, students will engage actively with these issues and critically reflect upon their own views and how they apply them in their own research projects. We particularly discuss the difficulties of causal inference and generalisation, coming to conclusions from research reviews, and philosophical issues around ‘truth’ and values. Second, it looks at the link between research and action. In doing this, it goes from the very practical (how to ensure that your research is used by policymakers and/or practitioners, and to deal with the political pressures on researchers) to the conceptual (in what ways does evidence get used by wider society?) to the normative (should researchers be ‘critical’, and if so, what are their ethical obligations in doing this?).
On this course, you will take a deep dive into the world of comparative public policy where students develop tools allowing them to critically analyse the pressing challenges of our day and how they influence the policy landscape, including globalisation, populism, the intersection of labour markets with society, and the evolving dynamics between welfare systems, social structures, and economic trends. On the module, you will develop a comprehensive understanding of comparative public policy theories and methods, and an in-depth understanding of what approaches to use in what circumstances. You will learn about the theoretical frameworks that shape the field, illustrated by captivating examples from diverse national, regional, and international perspectives. You will also get an understanding of how comparative public policy is shaped, by which institutions at these different governance levels, in other words, analysing organisations such as the EU and the UN. Overall, the module will equip you with the theoretical, methodological, and analytical tools needed to analyse comparative public policy issues. You will gain an in-depth understanding of policy developments, drivers, constraints, and responses to key challenges within and across countries and over time.
Asking questions about society is primary to the work of a social scientist. However, how we go about asking those questions is not straightforward. When planning reliable and generalisable research, many steps need to be taken to ensure robust results. This course provides students with the tools to do just that. The course introduces students to the logic and methods of social research, including the central topics in research design, understanding the methodological choices necessary when designing social research, and the realities of ensuring ethical research from the start. Throughout this process, students will be introduced to both the positivist and critical/interpretive debates behind social research. Additionally, both qualitative and quantitative methods will be covered. This will prepare students to design a research proposal, including selecting appropriate methods, formulating a research plan which covers data collection and analysis, and ultimately allowing them to successfully conduct their own research.
Globally, we are seeing a wide range of pressures and challenges to national, regional, and international public policies, including rising social and economic inequalities and climate change. This course delves into the critical challenges faced in international public policy by systematically examining and differentiating key areas and issues. It does so by taking a deep dive into key policy areas of contemporary international public policy through critical discussions of empirical examples.
The module engages empirically and theoretically with contemporary international public policies, equipping students with skills the enable them to apply their knowledge on ‘real life’ public policy issues. You will get a structured overview and critical discussion of the primary domains where international and national public policy agendas intersect and evolve and critically analysis variations in international policy responses. Specific areas of public policy covered include climate change and environmental issues, demographic changes including ageing societies, health, social security, migration policy, social and political exclusion and urban versus rural policies.
On the module you will enhance your employability by gaining knowledge about how various policy sectors grapple with transformative political, environmental and socio-economic processes their responses to these challenges will differ based on a range of internal and external socio-economic and political factors.
Understanding what works, why, where and for whom remains a fundamental inquiry across diverse organizations and financial sectors, especially in the realm of designing and implementing policies with far-reaching impacts across populations, locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally.
This module equips you with a comprehensive grasp of qualitative and quantitative tools, and other research methodologies crucial for executing evidence-based evaluations. Thereby it equips you with critical employability skills for anyone working with policies and evaluations across sectors. You will gain invaluable skills in applying evaluation methods, understanding the process of a policy and assessing it.
You will delve into the analysis of policies, examining their design, outcomes, and impacts to determine whether they effectively achieve their intended goals and objectives. Exploring key principles of impact evaluation and experimental design enable you to develop essential skills for understanding and critically assessing the policy process, enhancing your ability to navigate the challenges and political dynamics in policy.
The aims of this module are twofold:
First, to provide students with the opportunity to independently carry out an in-depth inquiry to investigate a research question(s) of their choice, producing a coherent review of the relevant literature, a logical discussion and a clearly communicated set of conclusions in the form of a dissertation.
Second, to prepare students to become ‘research-minded’ practitioners in order that they have the capacity to undertake research in practice settings and/or take a lead role in supervising others in such work.
The resolution of deep-rooted international conflict remains a challenge to the rapidly evolving field of international conflict resolution. This module responds to this challenge by providing students the opportunity to explore international conflict resolution methods such as mediation, negotiation, collaborative problem solving, and alternative dispute resolution. The approach is interdisciplinary and juxtaposes traditional approaches in conflict management with the scientific study of conflict and cooperation. Through a combination of lectures, seminars, role-plays, and practical exercises, students will develop essential negotiation and mediation skills while gaining a deeper understanding of conflict resolution processes. By the end of the course, students will be equipped to navigate complex negotiations and mediate disputes effectively in various professional settings.
Qualitative methods allow us to explore and understand complex phenomena in-depth. They are particularly well-suited for situations where the aim is to gain insights into the meanings, attitudes, beliefs, and experiences of individuals or groups. This module focuses on the theory and practice of qualitative research and will give you a chance to develop and apply state-of-the-art qualitative research methods skills. The module allows you to apply your skills, readying you for using these as a researcher and in future employment. It explores the various aspects of using and collecting qualitative data, how to analyse your findings, and how to present them. The aim of the module is to illustrate a range of practical techniques while considering related problems of evidence and inference in qualitative analyses. Students will be versed in a range of qualitative techniques in an interactive and real-life focused teaching and learning environment, and will have the opportunity to practice some of them, such as:
- the theory and practice of interviewing and different varieties of interview;
- focus groups;
- oral history;
- case study methods;
- ethnographic theory and method;
- action research;
- critical discourse analysis;
- narrative analysis;
- visual methods.
Quantitative research is a vital part of social science. Without understanding quantitative research and quantitative evidence, a substantial fraction of the social scientific literature will be closed to you.
This module will teach you how to conduct quantitative research in the social sciences and how to interpret the findings of quantitative research. You will learn the fundamental principles that lie behind statistics and statistical techniques. You will also learn how to produce descriptive statistics, and how to use statistical techniques to examine relationships between social variables. You will also learn how to use regression methods to answer causal research questions.
By completing this module, you will be equipped both to interpret quantitative research conducted by others, and to carry out your own quantitative studies and describe them in a scientific format. You will also understand the limits of statistical techniques and what different kinds of claims are (and are not) warranted by different kinds of statistical evidence.
Duration: One year full-time, two years part-time
We place considerable emphasis on structured, interactive seminars with a high degree of student participation. You also join the staff/graduate seminars which allow MA and research students to become involved in a professional research culture.
The course gives you a clear and confident grasp of social policy in developed and developing countries. You gain an advanced understanding of the relevant debates, theories and concepts of international issues alongside skills in research design and data collection.
Modules combine various forms of coursework; a research dissertation also acts as a modular component of the course in its own right.
For course aims and learning outcomes please see the course specification.
The atmosphere of the School is informal and friendly and has at its centre a lively and diverse postgraduate community. The weekly staff/postgraduate seminar series is designed to introduce you to the work of major scholars from the UK and abroad, and there is also a wide range of other seminar and workshop series each academic year.
Our postgraduate students have access to dedicated office space within the department and are able to take advantage of excellent library and computing facilities.
Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books. Among others, they have recently contributed to: Journal of Social Policy; Journal of European Social Policy; Voluntas; Social Policy and Administration; and Social Policy and Society.
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme. The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability.
Building on Kent’s success as the region’s leading institution for student employability, we place considerable emphasis on you gaining specialist knowledge in your chosen subject alongside core transferable skills.
We ensure that you develop the skills and competences that employers are looking for including: research and analysis; policy development and interpretation; independent thought; writing and presentation, as well as time management and leadership skills.
You also become fully involved in a professional research culture. A postgraduate degree in the area of social and public policy is a particularly flexible and valuable qualification that can lead to many exciting opportunities and professions..
Recent graduates have pursued careers in academia, journalism, local and central government, charities and NGOs in roles which utilise their wide range of skills and are often found in managerial positions.
The 2025/26 annual tuition fees for this course are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Tuition fees may be increased in the second and subsequent years of your course. Detailed information on possible future increases in tuition fees is contained in the Tuition Fees Increase Policy. If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Tuition fees may be increased in the second and subsequent years of your course. Detailed information on possible future increases in tuition fees is contained in the Tuition Fees Increase Policy. If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
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Next steps
Learn more about the application process or begin your application by clicking on a link below.
You will be able to choose your preferred year of entry once you have started your application. You can also save and return to your application at any time.
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