Law/Social & Public Policy

The relationship between law and social policy is foundational to how modern societies are organised. Law provides the framework of rights, obligations and procedures within which social and public policy operates; social and public policy in turn shapes the legislative and regulatory landscape that law must interpret and apply. Studying both together produces a perspective that is at once analytically rigorous and practically grounded, capable of engaging with questions of legal doctrine and questions of institutional design, social inequality and political authority in the same breath.

At the University of Glasgow this four-year programme combines a thorough grounding in Scots and comparative law with the interdisciplinary tools of social policy, drawing on sociology, economics, political science and public administration. You will study the structure and sources of law, key areas of substantive doctrine, and the critical and comparative approaches that allow you to evaluate legal systems as products of history and politics. The social and public policy component introduces you to welfare state theory, public management, social inequality and the processes through which policy is made and evaluated.

The programme includes a year abroad, giving you the opportunity to study law and policy in a different national context and to build an international frame of reference that is increasingly essential in both fields. Glasgow's strong research culture and its connections with civic institutions in Scotland provide a distinctive and stimulating environment for this kind of work.

Graduates go on to careers in law, public policy, government, social research, the voluntary sector, international organisations and academic study. Some pursue postgraduate professional qualifications in law, others move directly into policy roles. The combined degree is particularly well regarded by employers who want people who can think about social problems from multiple angles.