Medicine, Science & Society

MSc Medicine, Science & Society addresses the nature and implications of developments in health and medicine in an international context and from a social science perspective. It examines the social, economic, political, legal and ethical implications of recent developments in advanced biomedicine and biotechnology.

KEY BENEFITS

• Taught within a world class department that focuses on social scientific approaches to health and medicine, and conducts innovative research thatinfluences national and global health policy.
  • A truly interdisciplinary programme, taught by leading researchers who have trained in a wide range of fields, from anthropology, sociology, and geography to psychology, bioethics, medicine and biology.
  • Opportunities to join a thriving research community, and to participate with active researchers in a range of extra-curricular events, such as reading groups, roundtable discussions, and workshops.
  • Opportunities to engage with worlds of policy-making, non-governmental agencies, and biomedical research.
  • World renowned visiting speakers.
  • A wide range of specialist options.
  • Located in the heart of London.

PURPOSETeaching in the MSc in Medicine, Science & Society focuses on cutting-edge research within social studies of biomedicine, and provides a firm grounding in the knowledge and analytical techniques used within advanced social research. In doing so, it equips students with a set of skills and understandings that are necessary for future careers in sociology or other social sciences, in the fields of policymaking and regulation, in health-related governmental and non-governmental agencies, and in university teaching and research.

DESCRIPTIONThe MSc in Medicine, Science & Society addresses the nature and implications of developments in health and medicine in an international context and from a social science perspective. It examines the social, economic, political, legal and ethical aspects of recent developments in biomedicine and biotechnology, and encourages students to combine rigorous theoretical analysis with concrete, problem-based research. The programme reflects King's commitment to world-leading interdisciplinary scholarship on health and medicine, and to the use of engaged academic research as a means for contributing to the understanding of pressing social and global issues.

Students taking the programme will:

• Examine the social, economic, political, legal and ethical aspects of developments within fields of biomedicine and biotechnology – for example, reproductive and regenerative medicine, stem cells, genomics, neuroscience, synthetic biology and biosecurity.

• Explore the implications of scientific advances for ideas of personhood and identity, for conceptions of social relations, kinship and family life, for political economy, for the organisation and funding of health care, for problems of government and regulation, for medical practice and much more.

• Analyse the role of the international corporations inshaping national and global approaches to medical research and healthcare provision.

EXTRA PROGRAMME INFORMATIONThe MSc in Medicine, Science and Society is a unique and innovative programme that offers advanced interdisciplinary training in social scientific research on contemporary forms of medicine and bioscience, and the social, political and ethical issues associated with them. It attracts students from around the globe who have a diverse range of academic backgrounds, and provides them with the opportunity to learn advanced skills in research and analysisfrom some of the world’s leading social science experts. Students acquire broad knowledge of health-related social research,as well as specialist understandings that result from the pursuit of in-depth research on topics of their own choosing.