Certificate in Higher Education in Social Sciences

You’ll also discover the ways in which social scientists understand and explain and how people, groups and institutions respond to change, exercise power and make decisions.

Key features of the Certificate in Higher Education in Social Sciences at The Open University

– Incorporates ideas from criminology, economics, geography, politics, psychology, and sociology.
– Gives you the option of studying psychology or the social world in more detail
– Builds a solid foundation for further study
– Develops a range of skills focusing on the effective use of analysis and written argument
Skills for career development

Employers in all fields place a high value on people who can select from and analyse a large amount of complex information, and then make logical and concise use of it. Many of the transferable skills you will acquire by studying this certificate translate well into the workplace. These include:

– clarity of written communication
– critical thinking and analysis
– concise presentation of arguments
– understanding the connection between theories and evidence
– problem solving; time management
– self-motivation
– use of critical feedback to improve work
– basic numerical skills.
Career relevance

This course opens up employment opportunities across a whole range of occupations in the public, private and voluntary sectors. These include national and local government, health and social welfare, police, education, charitable organisations, public relations, media, planning and environmental management, the criminal justice system, market research, law, business and commerce. The Certificate of Higher Education in Combined Social Sciences is equivalent to the first year of a full-time degree.

It’s a valuable qualification in its own right, but if you’d like to continue studying, you’ll have a sound foundation on which to build. For example, you could progress to the Diploma of Higher Education in Social Sciences (W68) and then to the BA (Hons) Social Sciences (R23), or another of our social sciences degrees.

Exploring your options

Once you register with us (and for up to three years after you finish your studies), you’ll have full access to our careers service for a wide range of information and advice. This includes online forums, website, interview simulation, vacancy service as well as the option to email or speak to a careers adviser.