Social Sciences: Your doorway to a successful career

Universities and institutions are aware that conducting social studies is vital to the development of countries, that is why they are training the next generation of social scientists to come up with new findings and methods that would address social, economic and political issues.

What are Social Sciences?

Social sciences are a group of academic disciplines that study society and the relationships among individuals within a society. This branch of science studies how people interact with each other, behave, develop as a culture, and influence the world. Social sciences generally include anthropology, psychology, sociology, criminology and others.

The importance of studying social sciences lies in learning how society works. Professionals of this domain explore everything related to people, from the causes of unemployment to what makes people happy. This operation is essential to help explain human beings and therefore, discover how societies as a whole function to solve several social problems.

Specializing in Social Sciences

Of course, social sciences cover a wide range of disciplines. Each university offers a variety of different courses in its department of social sciences. Some of the most famous social sciences branches are Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, Politics, Economics and Archaeology. Other universities might offer other disciplines in their social sciences faculty, such as Linguistics, Geography, Law, History, Demographics and many others.

UK universities and many other European universities are among the best universities excelling in social sciences, including Durham University, University of Leeds and the University of Lancaster, which are classified among the top 150 universities in the world.

What can I do with a Social Science Degree?

Social sciences are one of the fastest-growing fields of the moment. Many career paths are guaranteed thanks to a social sciences degree, including working as a psychologist, sociologist, economist, linguist, in the public or private sectors.

Professor James Wilsdon, an interdisciplinary social scientist at the University of Sheffield, said “The UK is a world leader in social science, and it's vital that we maintain this capacity. Teaching and training the next generation of social scientists is an investment that will repay itself many times over."

Some of the most-wanted jobs that social science graduates can hold in the UK and other worldwide destinations include:

• Economist, with an annual salary of up to £51,000, and £103,000 (Payscale);
• Psychologist, with an annual salary that varies between £55,000 and £97,000 (Payscale);
• Anthropologist, with a salary that can range from £32,000 and £73,000 per year (Payscale);
• Political scientist, with a salary ranging from £38,000 to £65,000 per year (Payscale).