How does society shape the world we live in? What influences interactions between people in everyday life? Why is society structured the way it is, and is change possible? By delving into diverse topics such as discrimination and inequality to family life and friendship, this unit introduces the conceptual tools sociologists use to explain the world.

In a rapidly changing world, how do we make sense of current social and political problems effectively? By exploring sociological concepts in creative ways, this unit gives students the tools to analyse, research and respond to real world issues such as globalisation, crime, social justice, community breakdown, and racial, sexual and indigenous inequality.

This unit provides students with an introduction to the understanding of legal ideas, institutions and practices in their social and historical contexts. It will provide an historical overview of legal institutions and forms of law in Australia, the place of the idea of the rule of law in state-formation, liberalism, processes of civilisation and colonialism, law and the public/private distinction, changing conceptions of human rights, as well as outlining the central features of the various fields of law.

This unit provides an understanding of the central themes and issues in social scientific analyses of the operation of law in society. After briefly outlining the various ways in which social life is organised in terms of law, the unit will examine a range of key concerns in the development of legal ideas, institutions and processes today, including the increasing legal regulation of private life, law and science, human rights, the globalisation of law, terrorism, risk and security, law and social inequality and citizenship.

In this unit of study Australian social policy is explored: the legal and administrative framework; relationships between family and the state; employment, unemployment, unpaid work and welfare; the public/private mix; aged care policies, the culture of welfare state provision, indigenous policies, migration, multiculturalism and the formulation and delivery of social welfare services in Australia.

This unit is essentially conceptual and theoretical, emphasising the contested principles of social policy - discourse, theories, ideas and ideologies - around which the contemporary welfare state was, is and continues to be organised, discussed and debated. This unit focuses on the application of concepts and theories in practical social policy arenas. In particular, the emphasis will be on the debated, sometimes contested, nature of concepts and theories in social policy discourses in contemporary societies.

This unit examines how industrialised countries manage social risks and how welfare policies can be meaningfully compared. By exploring theoretical, methodological and practical aspects of social policy, it investigates key principles underpinning social policies in a variety of countries, and how we can best explain differences between them.

This unit explores key features of criminal justice processes and practices, with a critical examination of policing, sentencing, punishment and prison in their historical, social, political and cultural contexts. It considers a range of related concepts and issues, including the expansion of punishment in society and post-release life.

How and why do some ideas about social justice, distribution and inequality get translated into social policy while others do not? This unit explores concepts that feature prominently in the contemporary configuration of welfare states. It examines how key social policy ideas are translated (or not) into policy practice and the conditions under which these ideas become materialised and changed over time. Through the use of case studies, students are given the opportunity to explore the policy dynamics that underpin the emergence, development and demise of social policies.

This unit explores the emergence and the development of welfare systems in East Asia. It interrogates the nature of emerging social risks and the ways in which East Asian countries manage these risks. The unit also evaluates how successful they are and whether there is anything unique about their way of doing social policy.

This unit frames debates about social policy, delivery of public goods, and human wellbeing in relation to processes of globalisation. Drawing on sociological and interdisciplinary perspectives, it focuses on social policy issues and responses, including governance, regulation and service delivery at local, national, regional and global levels.

This unit enables students to acquire skills in a range of quantitative research methods in the social sciences. They learn about censuses and surveys as foundational methods of quantitative research, then move to statistical analyses of quantitative data. No prior university-level mathematical training is assumed, though a basic grasp of simple algebra acquired through upper-level study of maths at high school is expected.

This unit explores different theoretical perspectives on social justice relating to income and wealth distribution, identity, social recognition, law and rights. It applies these to contemporary examples, including income and wealth disparities, race and gender inequality, disability rights, the environment and treatment of non-human animals.