Master of Science in Applied Social Research

at University of Stirling United Kingdom

This intensive Masters Psychology conversion course is aimed at students who have a degree in another subject and would like to 'convert' to Psychology.

Our course is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and sits at the cutting edge of inter-disciplinary scientific research. After introducing Psychology to you as a biological and social science, we will cover topics as diverse as brain functioning, child development, and social behaviour. You will also develop your research skills with our specifically designed modules in research methods. You will get hands-on experience designing and conducting experiments, working in high-end specialist labs and in our on-site kindergarten, the only such facility in the UK. You will develop a deep knowledge and understanding of mind and behaviour, coupled with excellent practical and transferable skills, all of which will offer you a wide and diverse choice of careers.

The course is delivered by what the British Psychological Society (BPS) commended as a proactive, approachable, and engaged programme team. The BPS also recognised not only our approach to teaching, which help students’ personal and professional development, but also our personalised system of student support and feedback, which helps to nurture a close-knit academic community.

Are you fascinated by the creative possibilities of technology and software? Do you love solving complex problems as part of a team? If yes, software engineering could be the career for you. You’ll be in high demand for developing the systems that are the foundation and glue of our modern world, and that transform our experiences in communications, business, entertainment, gaming and healthcare.

Our degree will teach you creativity, logical analysis, problem-solving and how teamwork builds complex systems. You’ll study practice and techniques for real-world software design and associated programming technologies, gaining practical experience in software development.

According to the 2020 ScotlandIS Scottish Technology Industry survey, about 100,000 people are working in digital technologies professions. This is a growth of 9% since 2016. The growth has been strongest in web design and development, IT business analysts, architects and systems designers, programmers and software development professionals. Our graduates are highly sought-after. To help you build strong links with industry, we offer three-month summer placements and one-year placements with local SMEs and large corporates. Students also have the opportunity to engage with an international teaching environment through our exchange programmes.

The University of Stirling Management School is the perfect place to sharpen your leadership skills and gain insight into today’s business landscape.

Our expert staff have a track record of preparing graduates for roles at some of the world’s best-known companies, and everything we do is designed to equip you with the practical knowledge you need to become an effective manager. You’ll learn how to solve complex problems through analytical decision-making, explore organisational structures, and develop personal skills in critical thinking, teamwork and leadership.

We'll teach you how to apply behavioural science in practice. Our recent students have worked on projects with Siemens, Tesco, Keep Scotland Beautiful, Volunteer Scotland, and Iceland’s Cancer Detection Clinic.
 
Our course motivates you to apply behavioural science to answer some of the biggest questions facing society – for example, ‘how can we improve people’s wellbeing?’, ‘how can we help people save more for the future?’, and ‘how can we foster more effective environmental behaviours?’. In addition, each year we award the Keep Scotland Beautiful Prize for Best Research in Behavioural Science relating to the Environment.
 
We have a regular series of seminars and events where students have an opportunity to chat to leading practitioners and researchers. Each year we host a conference focusing on an aspect of Behavioural Science. In the past these have focused on the ethics of behavioural science, behavioural science and health, and behavioural science in workplace.

Our Masters degree in Gender Studies examines the history, context and development of key debates around gender, sexuality and identity, exploring commonalities and differences in the ways they have played out in a range of contemporary, historical and global cultures.

Developed by specialists who are passionately engaged with gender, feminist and queer issues, the strength of our programme lies in its interdisciplinary curriculum which branches across multiple fields ranging from: film, media and literary studies, sociology, history, philosophy, curation and politics.  

Through core modules like Understanding Gender, Researching Gender and Key Feminist Thinkers, you’ll explore a range of theoretical and methodological approaches for studying gender. You’ll also delve into the ways in which academic debate informs, is shaped by and is at times distanced from how gender actually ‘works’ in true situations.

The course places the application of learning to real-world contexts at the heart of its teaching. You’ll have the opportunity to apply your learning on a research placement. The course team has established links with potential placement providers from the third sector, as well as with a number of organisations who are committed to gender equality as part of their work in arts, culture and sport.

Delivered by our experienced practitioners and leading scholars, our Masters degree in International Conflict and Cooperation prepares you to address a variety of challenges facing states and international organisations today. This course looks at the dynamics of international conflict and cooperation in light of major events such as the end of the Cold War, the 9/11 terror attacks, the Arab Spring and the COVID-19 pandemic.

We take a thematic approach to conflict resolution and the role of international organisations in order to focus on conflict prevention and management in specific geographical areas. The course also explores the development and regulation of conflict in relation to factors like natural resources and migration.

Contemporary dilemmas surrounding the politics of climate change negotiations, environmental and resource conflicts, civil war and ethnic tensions, human rights, international terrorism and humanitarian intervention provide some of the raw material for this MSc, which are studied in-depth over the course of the academic year.

Our postgraduate Human Resource Management (HRM) course builds on core human resource management theory and practice to examine the range of people management challenges which organisations face. The course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

To study with us you don't need to have previous work or study experience in the field of Human Resource Management. As part of the course we deliver teaching in the key concepts and practices of HRM, alongside developing the practical skills you need to become a successful HRM professional. In your final semester you'll also have the opportunity to do a consultancy case study, acting as a HR consultant to fictional companies, while solving realistic HR problems.

We teach you the need for thoughtful and ethical management practice, and this course is no exception. Ethics and considerate practice should be the focus of organisations and is the foundation for our course.

We have a number of internationally recognised academics teaching on this course and available to help you during your studies. We offer a collaborative learning process and encourage you to talk about your work experiences, about what you believe good people management to involve, and where work practices need to be legislated.

Our BSc (Hons) Data Science will give you an in-depth awareness and appreciation of the underlying computing and algorithmic principles driving data science technologies. It is a practical degree focusing on the analytical and data processing skills needed to begin a career as a data scientist or analyst.

You will study modules chosen from across Computing Science and Mathematics and will be introduced to both data science theory and applications. You'll study subjects at the core of data science including machine learning, artificial intelligence and statistics. This Data Science degree will introduce you to relational and non-relational database principles and learn cutting edge technology such as computer vision and natural language processing. You'll learn how to collect, manage and analyse highly dynamic Big Data for science or commerce.

You’ll discover how to assess the issues surrounding crime and social problems. We’ll help you answer questions such as: how does society work, how are crime and other social problems situated in society, and how do different cultures understand these problems? What can we learn from the success of social policies in other countries?

Our BA (Hons) Criminology and Social Policy degree provides an international approach to help you understand a wide range of social issues, including crime and criminal justice, inequality and welfare, race, immigration, disability, addictions, youth and ageing. We’ll give you the skills to research, analyse and assess the key issues for yourself. You’ll also benefit from our strong research links with on-campus organisations such as the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research, the Scottish Institute for Policing Research, the Salvation Army Centre for Addiction Services and Research, and the Dementia Centre.

The course provides a thorough grounding in the latest theory and analytical techniques used by finance professionals, allowing you to understand how money influences the world we live in.

You’ll gain hands-on experience of the process of financial decision-making and practical knowledge of the workings and role of financial markets in the allocation of capital. The course also gives you an understanding of the qualitative and quantitative techniques needed to interpret market reactions to geopolitical events such as Coronavirus, Brexit, oil-price shocks and financial crises.