Specialist Certificate in Social Policy (Social Inclusion)

Candidates who successfully complete the Specialist Certificate will gain a critical understanding of processes of social exclusion and inclusion, the concepts of social justice and injustice, and the ways these issues intersect with practical social policy and research issues in Australia and internationally.

Candidates who successfully complete the course will gain the following outcomes:
• An understanding of key theoretical, conceptual and analytical frameworks for engaging with social inclusion and exclusion;
• The capacity to apply such frameworks in professional practice contexts;
• Knowledge and capacity in cutting edge research and policy approaches in the field of social inclusion, applicable in professional workplace and academic contexts

To satisfy the requirements of the Specialist Certificate in Social Policy (Social Inclusion), students need to complete 2, 12.5 credit point subjects.

Core Subjects

1. The Selection Committee will evaluate the applicant’s ability to pursue successfully the course using the following criteria –
• An undergraduate degree with a major area of study related to social policy; OR
• An undergraduate degree, and at least 1 year of full time relevant, professional work experience; OR
• Extensive relevant professional work experience, which demonstrates the capacity to successfully undertake the course.

2. The Selection Committee may conduct interviews and tests and may call for referee reports or employer references to elucidate any of the matters referred to above.

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.
The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

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Completion of the course will enable students to achieve the following University of Melbourne graduate attributes:

• Academically excellent: Through its grounding in cutting edge theory, empirical data and research approaches in social policy contexts around social inclusion, the course provides students with the opportunity to achieve academic excellence. The teaching staff are recognized leaders in the areas of social inclusion and social policy, and through their teaching and research excellence, will promote intellectual integrity and ethically responsible scholarship. They will also promote the research and critical and creative thinking skills of students.

• Knowledgeable across disciplines: Social inclusion and social policy are interdisciplinary areas of research and practice, drawing on knowledge from disciplines including policy studies, sociology, political science, economics, criminology, and other social and political sciences. As such, students taking the course will be exposed to knowledge from a range of disciplines, which they will be able to apply in both academic and workplace contexts.

• Leaders in communities: The Specialist Certificate has been created with the explicit goal of providing students with skills and knowledge that are directly applicable to their workplace contexts and, as such, by taking the course, students will be well placed to contribute meaningfully and as leaders to debates in this crucial domain of social and political practice.

• Attuned to cultural diversity: Social inclusion is inherently an area that is attuned to issues of cultural diversity, and this will be emphasized in the course through the use of teaching materials that engage with social and cultural diversity

• Active global citizens: The purpose of the course is to provide students with the opportunity to become leaders in debates and practice around social inclusion and social policy at the local, national and global levels, and is explicitly built around the need for candidates to accept and promote social and civic responsibilities, and to have a broad global understanding, with a high regard for social justice, human rights, equity and ethics

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