Program Overview

Program Overview

The Social and Public Policy Studies program is designed to provide students with theoretical training and essential research skills in policy studies. This area of Concentration Studies aims to enable students to critically analyze various policy issues in society.

Programme Features

The program features include:

• Aiming to raise students' awareness of public affairs, social justice, and welfare policies
• Giving students opportunities to study public policy cases that impact Hong Kong and nearby regions
• Learning to be administrators in social and public policy through practice of data collection and analysis, and other in-demand social science research skills
• Professional seminars, workshops, visits, and study tours to enrich students' learning experience, develop their critical thinking, and broaden their horizons
• Internship and community service activities to gain first-hand experience in a variety of related settings, including local and international NGOs, government offices, educational institutions, or policy research centers

Career Prospects

Graduates are able to work in different sectors related to social and public policies, such as:

• Government
• Local and international NGOs
• Think tanks
• Policy consultants
• Elected councilors' offices

Curriculum

The curriculum consists of:

Discipline Specific Content (24 Units)

• Concentration Studies (15 Units)
  • Basic Social Research
  • Introduction to Political Science
  • Introduction to Public Administration
  • Introduction to Public Policy
  • Social Policy in Hong Kong
• Elective Studies (9 Units)
  • Students are required to take 3 courses from a list of available electives, including:
    • Contemporary Issues in Hong Kong Studies
    • Essentials of Sociology
    • Transformations of the Hong Kong Economy
    • Corporate and Media Communication in Chinese
    • Creative and Social Media
    • Essentials of Financial Technology
    • Introduction to Education
    • Event Management
    • Food Safety and Public Health Management
    • Graphic Design and Visual Communication
    • Human Physiology
    • Introduction to Media and Communication
    • Introduction to Philosophy
    • Marketing Principles
    • Popular Culture in Contemporary China
    • Principles of Microeconomics
    • Text and Image: A Critical Analysis

Generic Content (38 Units)

• Core Courses (16 units, including three English Language Courses)
  • English Academic Writing I & II
  • Written and Spoken Modern Chinese / Elementary Chinese
  • Healthy Lifestyle
  • The Art of Persuasion
  • English for Professional Communication / Literary Appreciation / Reading Contemporary Worlds (select one course)
• General Education Foundational Courses (9 units)
  • Select one course from each category:
    • History and Civilization
    • Values and the Meaning of Life
    • Quantitative Reasoning
• Interdisciplinary Thematic Courses (6 units)
  • Select two courses from any one or two themes:
    • Science, Technology and Society
    • Sustainable Communities
    • Culture, Creativity and Innovation
• Free Electives (7 units)
  • Complete a total of 7 units from a diversified range of disciplines, such as:
    • Applied Science
    • Arts and Languages
    • Business
    • Communication
    • Social Sciences

Articulation Track Records

The program has articulation track records with various UGC-funded universities, including:

• Hong Kong Baptist University
• The University of Hong Kong
• The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• City University of Hong Kong
• The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
• The Education University of Hong Kong
• Lingnan University
• Hong Kong Shue Yan University

College Life

The college life at CIE is vibrant and fruitful, with various activities and events, such as:

• Scholar sharing insights on the current political atmosphere
• CIE students guiding secondary school students to visit the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute

Alumni Sharing

Alumni have shared their positive experiences and memories of campus life, including:

• Meeting new classmates and friends
• Enthusiastic and guiding lecturers
• Vibrant and fruitful campus life