109 Full-time PhD programmes in Social Policy

By choosing this Social Justice programme at University of Hull, you'll focus on creating a positive impact on the real-life conditions and experiences of individuals and communities, at a local, national and global level.

Politics is inextricable from human society and our teaching in this Social and Political Thought programme at the University of Sussex reflects this.

Research in Social Policy at Keele University extends across the life course, from early childhood to older age. 

The Social Policy and Criminology discipline at The Open University UK has longstanding interests in critical interdisciplinary scholarship in Genders, Sexualities, Relationships, Intimacies.

Study for a PhD in Housing Studies at the University of Stirling and you’ll be part of a research environment with an outstanding international reputation.

The International Doctorate Programme in Business and Human Rights - Governance Challenges in a Complex World at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) establishes an inter- and transdisciplinary research forum for excellent doctoral projects addressing practically relevant problems and theoretically grounded questions in the field of business and human rights.

The Social and Economic Sciences doctoral programme at Vienna University of Technology is assessed in the viva voce, a general examination by a committee involving defence of the dissertation by the candidate. 

The Department of Social Policy and Intervention at University of Oxford offers an interdisciplinary DPhil in Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation and welcomes students from across the world.

The Wellbeing of Children, Youth and Families Research Group in the School of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care from The Open University UK brings together academics and research students conducting social, sociological and critical psychological research into children's and young people's lives and policy/practice applications.

The Sociology and Social Policy and Social Work PhD from University of Brighton brings you to an established research environment rich in achievement and ambition with impactful social change at the heart of the knowledge exchange agenda.

The Welfare Law programme offered by Linköping University develops advanced research expertise in legal frameworks shaping welfare systems, social rights, and institutional practices.

The PhD in Social Policy from University of Essex offers you a unique opportunity to undertake research in a variety of social contexts.

The joint PhD Programs in Social Policy at Harvard University combine the disciplinary depth of a PhD in political science or sociology with multidisciplinary perspectives and problem-driven research on questions of social policy.

The PhD in Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice at University of British Columbia is an interdisciplinary program which allows students to explore their interests in diverse areas while employing feminist, intersectional, and decolonizing methodologies. 

Students in Public Health and Health Policy programme at University of Strathclyde are expected to undertake research that results in a thesis which contributes to the wider literature in the field, thereby making an original contribution to current knowledge.

The Social Policy programme at University College Dublin has commencement dates in January, May and September annually.

The Doctor of Philosophy (Hosted by Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice Faculty) program from Queensland University of Technology offers the opportunity to work with an experienced supervisory research team to make a significant and original contribution to disciplinary knowledge.

Economic inequality shapes our times. The research training group in The Macroeconomics of Inequality provides a unique research environment that brings together ambitious doctoral students, expert members of the University of Bonn economics faculty, and external academics.

Studying for the Social Policy program at Swansea University gives you the opportunity to pursue in-depth your own personal or professional research interests in this wide-ranging field, which encompasses such diverse policy areas as health, education, housing, disability, crime, poverty, and the family.

At the University of Liverpool, we offer our graduate students a phd programme in Sociology and Social Policy.