School of Social and Political Science

Content

The School of Social and Political Science is an internationally leading hub for social sciences across a broad spectrum of teaching, research and engagement. Our work addresses key societal challenges, including issues of global governance and public policy; international development, security and conflict; inequalities and identities, notably in areas of race, ethnicity and gender; diverse aspects of health, mental health and well-being; and the social dimensions of innovation in areas such as AI and digital, energy and environmental sustainability. Straddling these areas is a strong focus on rigorous methods and disciplinary training, as well as deep regional specialisation, including in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and South Asia.

We apply our knowledge in partnership with a wide range of communities, civil society, governments and public sector bodies in Scotland and across the world, to shape better lives, co-develop solutions, and build equitable and sustainable futures.

We currently organise our teaching and research through seven Subject Areas, which operate in conjunction with interdisciplinary research centres. To sustain our breadth of coverage and societal contributions into the future, we have taken the decision to reconfigure our Subject Area groupings, bringing together Social Policy with Social Work; Sociology with Science, Technology and Innovation Studies; Social Anthropology with the Centre of African Studies; with Politics and International Relations remaining a single group.

These new groupings reflect well established patterns of collaboration in teaching and research, and align with our integrated submissions to the Research Excellence Framework. Bringing them together in this way will give each grouping a strong and balanced portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, support sustainability, create more even distributions of teaching and staffing, and allow us to maintain the diverse range of programmes and courses we offer. It will also open new opportunities for development across the breadth of our expertise. 

Key specialist areas will continue to flourish within the new structure. For example, Science, Technology and Innovation Studies remains a strategic priority for the School, with its institutes and centres continuing to play a leading role in research, teaching and impact. We will continue to support the world-renowned Centre of African Studies, and its closer collaboration with Social Anthropology will build on our successful teaching in International Development and related areas. Social Work will maintain its outstanding track record in both research and its delivery of accredited programmes, meeting all relevant professional requirements and standards, and will work alongside Social Policy within the new grouping.

With these new Subject Area groupings now confirmed, over the coming year we will work with colleagues across the School to collectively design how each will work in practice, in a way that ensures the continued flourishing of all of our disciplines and areas of focus; which maintains excellence in teaching and research; and which enables our ongoing contributions to policy and practice locally, nationally and at global level. The new structure will be implemented in the 2027/28 academic year, following a year of collaborative design and detailed planning with colleagues across the School.