Social Issues Courses

Learn about social issues online with flexible online courses exploring the modern world's most pressing social problems.

Courses
23 Courses

Learn new skills, pursue your interests or advance your career with our short online courses.

University of Leeds

Incarceration: Are prisons a suitable punishment?

4.7 (66 reviews)

Explore life inside UK prisons. Learn whether this type of punishment reduces crime and if rehabilitation can prevent reoffending.

2 weeks

4 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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University of Exeter

Tipping Points: Climate Change and Society

4.5 (59 reviews)

Discover how rapid changes to natural systems may make Earth look very different in the future.

2 weeks

3 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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University of Exeter

Understanding Gender Inequality

4.7 (51 reviews)

Gender inequality is a key challenge in society. Explore its causes and consequences and consider the ways you can overcome it.

4 weeks

3 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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European University Institute (EUI) & GREASE Project Consortium

Religion, Radicalisation, Resilience

Understand religious radicalisation and violence and learn strategies to build resilience in communities and schools.

3 weeks

3 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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European University Institute (EUI)

Migration and Cities

4.6 (12 reviews)

Learn about how migration has shaped cities around the world and the particular issues that migrants face in urban contexts

3 weeks

3 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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UCL (University College London)

Making Babies in the 21st Century

4.8 (17 reviews)

Discover the opportunities provided by reproductive technologies and fertility treatments – and the ethical challenges they pose.

6 weeks

2 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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UCL (University College London) , GIZ & Transforming Urban Mobility Initiative (TUMI)
New

Transforming Urban Mobility: Introduction to Transport Planning for Sustainable Cities

Discover the different dimensions of sustainable urban mobility, including the Avoid-Shift-Improve (ASI) framework.

4 weeks

3 hrs per week

Included in Unlimited

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Samsung
New

Building Human Connection in a Digital World

4.3 (57 reviews)

Discover how technology can be used to reduce social isolation in our communities and enhance our human connections.

2 weeks

2 hrs per week

Free digital upgrade

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Microcredentials
1 Microcredential

Our online microcredentials are designed to upskill you for work in rapidly-growing industries, without the time and cost commitment of a full degree. They can be used as an independent certification, and some even offer academic credit to use towards a degree. Each microcredential also includes a formal online assessment.

The University of Kent

International Relations: Politics in Turbulent Times

Explore key political challenges confronting diplomacy in the 21st century and enhance your knowledge of modern global politics.

3 courses

12 weeks

Postgraduate

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Degrees
3 Degrees

Discover online degrees from leading universities. Develop your knowledge with an undergraduate or postgraduate degree.

The University of Newcastle Australia

Bachelor of Arts

Enrich your mind, diversify your skills and safeguard your future with our new work-ready arts degree at the University of Newcastle (UON).

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The Open University

PgC Global Development Management

Build the skills needed by a development manager and learn to analyse the complex contexts in which development takes place with this postgraduate certificate.

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Browse related topics

Crime & Criminology
Gender & Feminism
Geopolitics
Religion

Explore the social issues that matter, with these online courses from FutureLearn.

You’ll examine some of the most challenging and fascinating issues facing our society right now – from migration to gender to the need for interfaith dialogue.

FutureLearn is designed to make learning easy, fun and flexible. You’ll be able to study big social issues online in little chunks – in your own time, on your own terms. These courses are ideal for anyone wanting to tackle the grand issues society faces, and learn what we can do about them.

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