Entry requirements

Academic requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university.

Also required is 90 credits in the humanities or social sciences and documented written independent academic work (i.e. one or several academic essays or papers). The essays should be written in either Swedish, English, French, Norwegian or Danish or translated to one of these languages.

Language requirements

Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries. Detailed instructions on how to provide evidence of your English proficiency are available at universityadmissions.se.

Aims

Students admitted to the programme are expected to acquire a thorough understanding of the most important issues in Sociology of Education in order to be able to critically examine, assess and analyse, in a scholarly manner, education in international and in different national contexts. Students are further expected to deepen their knowledge of the discipline as well as to acquire advanced skills in carrying out assessments and solving problems independently. Students are also expected to keep up to date with current research within the discipline. The programme will prepare students for professions that require knowledge of education, such as research, teaching, administration, planning of education, development of courses, evaluation or analyses.

Learning outcomes

After completion of the courses within the programme the student is expected to

• have acquired both broad and specialised knowledge and understanding of the main field of study
• have acquired fundamental methodological skills in the main field of study
• be able to critically and systematically integrate various pieces of information and knowledge within the discipline and be able to analyse, assess and work with complex problems and questions even if access to information is limited
• have gained a deep understanding of the traditions in social sciences that are relevant to Sociology of Education; this includes knowledge about the most important problems in these traditions, theoretical perspectives and terms and central methods
• be able to apply central methods, qualitative as well as quantitative, to collect, process and analyse data in Sociology of Education
• be knowledgeable about and be able to apply principles and methods to source evaluation
• be able to critically and independently identify and formulate research questions, to plan and carry out advanced assignments with appropriate methods within a given time period as well as evaluate these assignments and thus contribute to the development of the discipline
• be able to critically examine and assess scientific and other studies within the discipline of Sociology of Education and to be able to present a survey of these studies, to a great extent independently
• be able to carry out evaluations that take into account relevant scientific, societal and ethical aspects and that show an awareness about ethical issues in research and development
• to see possibilities and limitations of science, its importance to society and that it should be used responsibly
• be able to identify his or her need to acquire more knowledge through study and to be able to further develop it
• be able to present both verbally and in written form conclusions in different national and international contexts in dialogue with others, as well as to be able to discuss these conclusions and to present the arguments and sources that the conclusions are based on
• have acquired skills that are required for projects in research and development or in other activities

Layout of the programme

The programme is taught in English and includes at least four core courses in Sociology of Education equivalent to 30 credits; at least one of these courses must be in: theory (7.5 credits), methodology (7.5 credits) the History of Educational Systems (7.5 credits); a Master’s thesis (30 credits) is also required. An additional course in methodology (7.5 credits) and other courses that are offered in Sociology of Education or in other subjects may be selected.

The Master’s thesis will be written during term 3 and 4. Field studies or internships must be undertaken during term 3 if they are part of a student’s programme studies.

Degree

Degree

The programme leads to a Master of Arts (120 credits), with Sociology of Education as the main field of study. After one year of study it may also be possible to obtain a Master of Arts (60 credits).

A Master of Arts (120 credits) can be obtained after successfully completing 120 credits, 60 of which, including a Master’s thesis (30 credits), must be within the main field of study. In addition, one of the following degrees is required: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Education, Professional Qualification equivalent to 180 credits, or equivalent foreign degree.

A Master of Arts (60 credits) can be obtained after successfully completing 60 credits, 30 of which, including a Master’s thesis (15 credits), must be within the main field of study. In addition, one of the following degrees is required: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Education, Professional Qualification equivalent to 180 credits, or equivalent foreign degree.

Other directives

Other Directives

Admission to courses within the programme occurs after application each term. Special eligibility for these courses will be assessed in connection with the processing of the application. Course syllabi and the faculty’s instructions for application to courses provide information about the course requirements. Transfer from another university to Uppsala University or the admission to the programme at a later time is only possible if there are study places available and if the applicant meets the requirements and the special eligibility for the course/s and the programme. In addition, a transfer of credits is only possible if the applicant has completed equivalent university studies. Students who want to defer their studies must apply for this in time. Students can apply for a deferment for a maximum of two terms at a time and students whose application for deferment has been approved because of social, medical or other reasons have the right to continue their programme study after the deferment. This applies also to students who, during their study, apply for deferment in order to complement their upper-secondary school education. For information about the application to the programme, its courses and rules of admission, please visit:

For more information about the programme and study counselling please visit:

http://www.uu.se/en/admissions/master/ and http://www.uu.se/en/admissions/master/Master programmes/