Laurea Magistrale (Second cycle degree/Two year Master - 120 ECTS) in Work, market, environment,social policies and social work

The interclass second cycle degree programme in “Employment, markets, environment, social policies and social service” aims to train qualified Specialist Sociologists and Specialist Social Workers.
On the basis of the experience gained with the application of the reform of Ministerial Decree 509/99, and considering the affinity between the second cycle degree programmes class 87 in “Social service and social policies” and class 88 in “Sociology and social research”, and in view of the educational experience developed in the Faculty of Social Policies of Bologna in the sociology, social policy and social work fields, we felt it was important to establish an interclass second cycle degree class that offered students the possibility to choose in which class to graduate.
This type of programme, considering the affinity between the subject areas of the two classes, increases the synergies, rationalising the resources and improving the coherence of the educational offer; the establishment of one programme rather than two separate second cycle degree programmes does not however change in any way the employment opportunities for graduates and the possibility of sitting the state exam for Specialist social workers.
As regards the profession of Specialist Sociologist, the programme forms professionals with the skills to carry out coordination, planning and management functions at executive level in the following sectors: human resources management, communication, information, market analysis, social policies, territorial planning, urban governance and socio-environmental policies. The skills acquired allow graduates to pursue careers in the research field and as Sociologists in public and private establishments and private non-profit facilities. The main working environments include manufacturing and trade union organisations, the information and communication world, land and environment management bodies, welfare organisations (public, private and non-profit) alongside the relevant research bodies.
As regards the profession of Specialist social worker (recognised under section A of the professional register of social workers), the programme forms professionals with the competencies necessary for working with the users requiring social services and also with the following skills: planning, organisation and management of social-health services, management of work groups and coordination of the services provided and of personnel involved in the services offered. These skills are required in sectors related to health, education, family, immigration, social exclusion and alienation where graduates are required to have advanced knowledge of the organisation and operation of social services. Graduates must also have knowledge of the organisational, social and legal framework within which social intervention plans are developed, and be able to refer to said frameworks. In this sense, the ability to interpret the territory, understand and interpret social phenomena and trends is of fundamental importance in order to have the necessary skills for experimenting new programmes and new approach methods not only in relation to social services users but also in relation to latent need situations. The aim is to network existing resources and those that can be activated following innovative routes already adopted in other European Union countries.
The programme respects the prerequisites of both classes and offers common core curriculum course units, however students have the possibility to choose a specialisation from amongst the following: one that focuses on work/organisation, communication/market analysis and territory/environment related themes, one that focuses on social policy themes and another that focuses on social services.
The achievement of the objectives is assessed through intermediate and/or final assessments, written and/or oral, of the subjects and of the integrated activities included in the study programme, as well as through the assessment of the thesis.

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING ABILITY:
Second cycle degree Graduates:

- will have a sound ability to analyse and interpret social phenomena;

- will have advanced knowledge of the economic, historical and political framework in relation to specific sectors including applied sociological analysis, interpretation of local needs and planning of social interventions;

- will have in-depth and advanced knowledge of social research and social work methods and techniques;

- will have methodological, organisational and legal knowledge concerning the social-health systems;

- will have knowledge of the main forms of mental and social distress.

The knowledge and understanding abilities listed-above are achieved and developed through lectures, practical activities, seminars, supervised and independent home study provided for by the course units, in particular by the basic and core curriculum subject areas: sociology and social services, politics, economics, law, psycho-pedagogy.
Learning is assessed mainly through: written and oral exams, papers on topics assigned and oral presentation of the papers.

ABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND TO UNDERSTAND:
Graduates:

- will have advanced methodological competencies for the collection and treatment of social research data;

- will be able to apply theoretical knowledge to the analysis of the operation of complex societies in general and in particular in a particular sector of application;

- will be able to carry out comparative analysis of societies;

- will be able to carry out advanced analysis of the social and cultural effects of globalisation processes;

- will be able to coordinate and plan research in the fields of sociology and social intervention;

- will have knowledge of social work supervision methods and techniques.

The ability to apply the knowledge and understanding is achieved through critical reflection on texts proposed for home study stimulated through classroom activities, study of research cases indicated by the professors, bibliographic and field research, individual and/or group projects provided for in the following core curriculum subject areas: sociology and social work, politics, economics and statistics, psycho-pedagogy and anthropology and during the internship and preparation of the thesis.

Assessments (written and oral exams, essays, and problem solving activities) include specific tasks for assessing the students' command of instruments and methodologies, and their critical autonomy. Internships are assessed through the presentation of an essay by the student and company tutor.

JUDGEMENT SKILLS
Graduates:

- will be able to plan and coordinate research in different social fields: human resources management, marketing and communication, social policies, sustainability and environmental impact, social alienation, deviance and safety in the territory;

- will be able to analyse and interpret social problems with autonomous judgement through the application of the sociological research method or the empirical test of initial hypotheses;

- will be able to plan and coordinate health and social services in a territory and to coordinate social diagnosis projects related to the main areas of distress: family, juvenile, and social;

- will be able to plan information, awareness raising and prevention programmes concerning different forms of mental and social distress.

Judgement skills are developed in particular during seminars, in the preparation of papers (in particular in core curriculum subject areas related to sociology and social work, psycho-pedagogy and anthropology), during traineeship and internship activities and activities assigned by the thesis supervisor in preparation of the thesis.

The acquisition of judgement skills is assessed through the evaluation of the study programme course units and the students' autonomy and capacity to work alone and in group during seminars, the internship and during the preparation of the thesis.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS:
Graduates:

- will have advanced communication and interaction skills suitable for different audiences in the scientific community and work place;

- will have knowledge and ability to apply techniques and instruments for interpersonal and mediated communication, information management including digital information treatment and management processes;

- will have team coordination skills and advanced relationship skills suitable for work that requires the ability to listen.

Written and oral communication skills are developed during seminars and course units that provide for active student participation, through the preparation of essays and written papers and their oral presentation and/or the presentation of texts or papers suggested by the professor. Communication skills are also acquired during traineeship/internship activities (including the presentation of a final report) and the preparation and presentation of the thesis.
Communication skills are assessed through the evaluation of students' argumentation and presentation skills during course units, seminars, traineeship and the thesis as well as through the evaluation of essays and written documents prepared by students for each single course unit.

LEARNING SKILLS:
Graduates:

- will be able to choose, with full autonomy and responsibility, to undertake further studies (2nd level professional Master's degree, PhD programmes or equivalent programmes abroad) or extend their knowledge and skills in professional terms (vocational training or self-learning courses).

Learning skills are developed throughout the overall course programme, in particular during home study, the preparation of individual projects, internship and traineeship, and the activity to prepare the thesis.
Learning skills are continuously assessed during the course units, through the presentation of data collected autonomously, tutoring during individual projects, traineeship and internship and through the evaluation of self-learning skills developed during the activity in preparation of the thesis.