TRANSLATE CURIOSITY INTO CAPACITY
Students in the UCLA Master of Social Science program are trained to use multiple disciplinary perspectives, theoretical frameworks, and analytic approaches to understand the social world.
CORE COURSES
Courses in the MaSS core curriculum are taught seminar-style by distinguished members of the UCLA faculty. Each course is assisted by an advanced graduate student preceptor to provide additional support and guidance. In addition to the core courses, MaSS students select two electives from the extensive graduate course offerings available at UCLA.
Sample core courses:
SOC SC 400: Social Science Research and Perspectives
This course introduces students to research paradigms, interpretive approaches, and key concepts in social science inquiry.
SOC SC 401: Qualitative Social Science Research Methods
This course introduces students to key concepts and approaches to qualitative research and provides hands-on experience with qualitative research methods.
SOC SC 402: Quantitative Data Analysis in Social Sciences
This course introduces students to the fundamentals of data analysis and statistics, focusing on the application of statistical methods in social problems research. Students learn and use R software in this course.
SOC SC 403: Quantitative Evidence and Analysis in Social Sciences
This course provides advanced training in data analysis and statistics. Students will process data from the real-world to explore variation in data, develop multivariate models, and evaluate these models. Students expand their knowledge of R and Jupyter notebooks to produce visualizations, conduct analyses, and write results.
SOC SC 404: Quantitative Research Design in Social Science
This course provides students with an overview of social science research methods with an emphasis on quantitative methodologies and experiments. Students will design research projects and collect data, analyze, and report their findings.
SOC SC 410: Engaged Social Science
This course introduces students to the theory and practice of “engaged social science” as an emerging orientation to transformative research.
SOC SC 420: Research Analysis and Writing
This course guides students toward completion of the capstone paper in which they demonstrate how social science research can be used to address a social problem.
WORKSHOPS
Each quarter, MaSS students participate in a number of intensive workshops that emphasize practical skills, in addition to accessing workshops and resources on campus. Past MaSS workshops include:
Careers after Graduation: Meeting employers and learning about jobs in which you can apply MaSS training in the private, public and non-profit sectors
Preparing to Pursue a Ph.D.: Crafting a strong application, writing your research statement, selecting the right programs
Professional Development: Perfecting your resume and interview skills, learning to network, and maximizing your use of LinkedIn
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