21 December 2023

With its new master's programme Ethics, Science and Policy, Linköping University wants to make a difference in the world by teaching students to drive change, influence politics and thus improve society.

Young woman with dark hair in a ponytail and a pen in her hand talks to three young men in front of a glass wall with post-it notes Photographer: Maskot Bildbyrå AB

The programme is international and aims to bring together students from different backgrounds and from different subject areas to create important meetings and discussions about current societal issues. These issues may, for example, concern education, healthcare, risk management, taxes or research. Students can look forward to learn how to evaluate, develop and design policies by studying science, politics and applied ethics, with a focus on policy design. They will also learn how to write policies, in different ways for different recipients.

Unique programme

A programme with this focus on a more philosophically analytical perspective occupies a unique position among Swedish master’s programmes, according to Lars Lindblom, programme director.

Lars Lindblom, programme director
Photo credit
Charlotte Perhammar
“We find it interesting to think about what to do with important things. What to do about healthcare, who gets what care under what circumstances? How do we think about risk management methods? How do we consider fairness?” says Lars Lindblom.

Policy issues are important

The programme is aimed at students who want to acquire the practical tools needed to work in the field of policies.

“We believe that these questions are important because we think they are interesting in themselves, but also that they are important for how we live together, for how society develops and for making the world a better place if we can,” Lars Lindblom continues.

Today, policy issues are now important in most large organisations and companies. This is where the labour market is found, especially in planning, development, management and evaluation work, both nationally and internationally.

During the course of the programme, the students will meet representatives of various potential employers who will present case studies, for example from disaster medicine, municipalities and government agencies. Examples of other organisations where this profile is in demand are in the public sector and trade unions.

Contact

Read more about the programme

Latest news from LiU

A man is standing outdoors on a bridge, speaking to several people.

Tomorrow’s urban planners solve real challenges

Students on master’s programme in Strategic Urban and Regional Planning do more than study how cities develop. They step straight into reality. By working on real cases in Norrköping, their ideas could help shape the city’s future.

EU-flagga

Roadmap to strengthen LiU:s role in Europe

LiU is increasing international presence by launching the Roadmap to Europe initiative. The aim is to deepen the university’s collaboration within Europe so as to strengthen education, research and collaboration with various stakeholders.

Porträtt av Fredrik Heintz som sitter i en trappa

National initiative to protect AI systems from cyberattacks

LiU will host a new national centre aimed at developing resilient AI systems. The funding of SEK 60 million comes from the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research and its director will be LiU Professor Fredrik Heintz.