MSP Program Offers New Short Intensive Courses in 2021

Global; Policy; Students
Photo of the White House across green lawn on a sunny day; fountain on the left.

The Masters of Social Policy program at the Brown School is expanding course offerings in 2021 with a series of classes crafted to pack a punch.

The dual-degree program helps students develop critical thinking knowledge and skills to advance equity through policy work, no matter their career track. In 2021, MSP students will be able to choose up to four credits from the short intensive classes to their studies. Course subjects cover a wide range of topics, from analysis to advocacy:

  • Authentic Advocacy: Relationships, Environment and Self (Ian Forber-Pratt, chief executive officer, The Institute for Child Welfare Innovation)
  • Comparative Governance and Politics (Sarah Moreland-Russell, associate professor of practice)
  • Creating an Accessible Community for People with Disabilities (Steven Foelsch, director of Disability Studies, Starkloff Institute)
  • Hands-on Meta-Analysis: From Beginning to Advanced (Ruopeng An, associate professor)
  • Practical Statistics and Causal Methods for Social Policy (Derek Brown, associate professor)
  • Social Entrepreneurship Policy in Asia (Heather Cameron, Michael B. Kaufman Professor of Practice in Social Entrepreneurship)

“Alongside new semester-long policy courses in public administration and applied economics, the intensive courses continue our commitment to help students acquire new knowledge and skills that our graduates have put to use in significant opportunities for policy analysis, implementation and practice,” said Dan Ferris, assistant dean for policy initiatives. “It is a critical time for developing policy leadership and these courses are one of many ways Brown School students are preparing for impact.”

The short, intensive courses and MSP program dovetail with other policy opportunities on campus. One example is the Graduate Policy Scholars program, created by the Clark-Fox Policy Institute and co-led with the Social Policy Institute. The year-long experiential  and extracurricular learning program introduces students to policy practice and analysis. Another example is the Inclusive Voting: Key to Democracy project, part of the voter access and engagement work done by the  Center for Social Development. In fall 2020, students volunteered with staff and faculty at polls across the St. Louis region.  

Want to know more? Watch the replay of Policy Forward: Overview of the Master of Social Policy.