Socio-Legal Studies
The Socio-Legal Studies program is administered by the department of Sociology and Social Policy. The department of Sociology and Social Policy is part of the School of Social and Political Sciences (SSPS).
Program structure and content
The major in Socio-Legal Studies is designed for students who are interested in studying and understanding legal ideas, institutions and practices from the perspectives of the humanities and social sciences. It provides students with an opportunity to engage with the ever-changing relationship between law and society using the methods of a broad range of humanities and social science disciplines, including history, philosophy, political science, sociology, social policy, performance studies, literary studies, and economics. Whether your interest is participating in the many exciting fields of research studying legal ideas and institutions in their historical, cultural and social contexts, or working in the fields of professional practice that link an understanding of law with other forms of knowledge, the major in Socio-Legal Studies will provide you with the skills and capacities you need. As well as giving you a solid starting point for further study in socio-legal arenas, the major will provide the foundation for a wide variety of professional fields which lie outside the legal profession itself, but articulate closely with it: social policy, government and business administration and management, non-government organisations, criminology, public advocacy, etc.
Requirements for a major
For a major in Socio-Legal Studies, students must complete the following:
- 12 credit points of compulsory junior units in Socio-Legal Studies
- 24 credit points of compulsory senior units in Socio-Legal Studies
- At least 2 units of study (12 credit points) of senior elective units of study selected from the units offered.
Students are encouraged to choose complementary sets of elective units of study, focusing, for example, on criminology or human rights.
Honours
Students intending to proceed to Socio-Legal Studies IV honours must meet the requirement for the pass degree with a credit average in 48 senior credit points across their senior Socio-Legal units.
Further information and advice
Department website: sydney.edu.au/arts/sociology_social_policy
Professor Robert van Krieken
Email