Imagine staying at home and completing free online courses in social science from prestigious universities like the University of London, Michigan University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Colorado, to name a few.
How intriguing would that be? So, if you’re interested in human behavior, history, and culture and want to study more about how people interact in society, a career in social science could be a good fit for you. Working in the social sciences allows you to make a difference in the world by influencing public policy or assisting people while earning a lot of money.
There are many ways to enter the field of social sciences. You can find a variety of social science degrees at numerous colleges and universities, or you can decide to enroll in any of the free online courses in social science from the top universities. Just as we earlier said, there are a lot of websites where you can enroll in free online social science certificate courses.
We know you’d need more information on how you can go about this, so read on to learn about the importance of taking a career in social science and how you can enroll inflexible and free online courses in social science. Before we delve in, it’s important to know what is social science.
What is Social Science?
Social science is the branch of science that deals with studying societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. It is concerned with people, their connections, conduct, development, the resources they utilize, and the various tasks they must carry out in their everyday lives, whether at work, school, home, or government.
Professionals in social science often specialize in fields such as geology, economics, anthropology, sociology, history, linguistics, and law, allowing them to work in various industries, including the government and non-profit organizations.
Social workers operate in several settings, such as child welfare and human service agencies, healthcare providers, and schools. They are in charge of organizing, conducting, and assembling complex research projects.
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Why Should I Pursue a Career in Social Science?
Pursuing a career in social science will allow you to earn a good amount of money, and will also allow you to live a fulfilled life, so read on to find out why you should pursue a career in social science.
1. Increased Demand
The Bureau of Labor Statistics speculates that the demand for social science experts is expected to expand at 12% over the next decade, which is faster than the national average. It also stated that an average of 78,300 openings for social workers are expected over the next ten years. This factor shows that pursuing a career in the social sciences is a lucrative route to take and that demand for social scientists will continue to rise as the years roll by.
Social science jobs are available in a wide range of businesses worldwide due to increasing demand. As a social scientist, you can work as a police officer, psychologist/counselor, researcher, youth worker, and so on for the government or a non-profit organization.
2. Opportunity For Impact
Jack Robinson once said, “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.” Aside from the attractive salary cap associated with social sciences, a career in social science will provide you with the potential to benefit communities and young children by working with NGOs and humanitarian organizations.
3. It’s a Profitable Industry
Typically, we enter a job to make money in addition to making an impact; now, the incomes of social scientists vary depending on experience, employer, skill level, and region. A social scientist’s yearly national average salary is $112,900, making it a lucrative field to pursue a career in.
4. Opportunity for Personal development
A career in Social science will also aid in the development of your analytical, communication, interpersonal, organizational, problem-solving, and research skills, which will also assist you in solving practical problems in your daily life. As a result, while you’re helping people and earning money, you’re also building yourself.
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Why Enroll in an Online Social Science Course?
Social science courses are critical for communities and organizations, and it also enables students to have a better understanding of how other civilizations are managed, structured, and governed. A social science degree can lead to various professional opportunities if you enjoy working with people, so enrolling in any of the free online courses in social science will give you a headstart. Below are reasons why you should enroll in free online courses in social science.
1. Self Paced Learning
In a world where so many things compete for our attention, from work to family to business, it may be challenging to focus on learning by adhering to a specific timetable and general classroom learning methods. As a result, enrolling in any free online courses in social may help alleviate such problems. With these flexible online courses, you can learn from the comfort of your own home at your speed without worrying about missing deadlines.
2. It’s Cost-Effective
How would you feel if you could stay at home and learn social science from prestigious universities like the University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, University of Colorado, and others without spending a dime?
There are numerous free online courses in social science available that are jam-packed with material and may provide you with the fundamentals of political science without going a considerable distance. Online courses in political science are both cost-effective and time-saving.
3. Engaging Instructor
Online social science programs allow you to pick the course instructor that best suits your interests. Because there are tons of courses spread across the web, you can check the reviews of each instructor and view their course outline before enrolling in their class.
With all the benefits that have been highlighted about taking a career in social science, you might be asking what the steps or procedures to take to become an expert in social science are. Before we delve into the free online courses in social science, let’s look at how to become an expert in social science.
How Do I Become a Social Scientist?
Several years of schooling, job training, and skill development are required to become an influential researcher who can perform analytical and ethical research and positively impact the world. To qualify as a social science expert, you must take the following steps:
1. Earn a Bachelor’s Degree
Earning a degree in social science is the first step toward achieving your professional objectives. General education classes, such as English and math, are frequently included in the curriculum. This curriculum focuses on social statistics, qualitative and quantitative social research, scientific research methods, and scientific philosophy.
Students learn how to generate questions, conduct research, evaluate data, present findings, and critique previous studies through their education. A bachelor’s degree in social science takes three to four years to complete.
2. Gain experience by taking part in an Internship
To begin pursuing a career in social science, take advantage of internship opportunities available through your college or organizations you may want to work for. You can also volunteer. Internships provide hands-on experience in your profession and might help you stand out in a competitive job market. Real-world expertise enables you to learn where your strengths and weaknesses are by gaining real-world experience.
3. Pursue License Certifications
Although it is not required for social scientists to obtain licensure certifications, having one will provide you with an advantage over others in the industry. Continuing education keeps you up to date on new research, theories, and advancements.
If your profession necessitates a state license or a professional certification, it’ll become an obligation for you to pursue license certification. Professional organizations frequently offer continuing education classes.
Top Ten Free Online Courses in Social Science With Certificate in 2022
Below are the top ten free online courses in social science:
1. Foundations of Positive Psychology Specialization
The first in our list of best free online courses in social science is Foundations of Positive Psychology Specialization, the course is taught by five different psychology specialists and is offered by the University of Pennsylvania and Dr. Martin E.P. Seligman. In this course, you’ll learn about the scientific foundations of positive psychology, fundamental theories and research in the area, master techniques that help people and organizations thrive, tools and opportunities for application psychology, and how to use them.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Foundations of Positive Psychology Specialization
Duration: 5 Months
Start Date: Self-paced
2. Anti-Racism l
If you’re interested in learning about race/racism in the United States but have never taken a course in the critical race or ethnic studies or related fields, have never read a book about race/racism, or have never attended any race equity or diversity training on the subject. In that case, this introductory course is for you.
In this course, you will learn how to use and comprehend contemporary intersectional terminology using a glossary provided, recognize the concept of White privilege that all White people have whether they want it or not, and distinguish between White supremacy as a systemic concept vs. White supremacists.
Furthermore, by the end of this course, you will be able to describe systemic and institutional racism and differentiate between being racist and not racist.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Anti-Racism l
Duration: 16 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
3. Methods and Statistics in Social Sciences Specialization
This online course will teach you different research approaches, design, and statistical analysis for social science research problems. The University of Amsterdam offers the course. In the final Capstone Project, you will apply the skills you learned by developing your research question, gathering data, and analyzing and reporting on the results using statistical methods.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Methods and Statistics in Social Sciences Specialization
Duration: 10 Months
Start Date: Self-paced
4. Race and Cultural Diversity in American Life and History
This course also ranks among our best pick of free online courses in social science, as a result, if you’ve been wondering how you might learn more about how race, ethnicity, and cultural variety have affected American institutions, philosophy, law, and social connections from the colonial era to the present, this course is for you.
Because race and ethnicity are intellectual and cultural constructs that encompass all groups and individuals, this social science course is intended to take a broad look at race and cultural diversity ideas in America’s past and present. The historical and social links between European Americans, Native Americans, African Americans, Latino/as, and Asian/Pacific Americans are the primary focus.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Race and Cultural Diversity in American Life and History
Duration: 8 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
5. Police Brutality in America Teach-Out
The tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmad Arbery have ignited a new wave of anti-police brutality rallies across the United States. These widespread protests have piqued the public’s interest in understanding systematic racism and power abuse.
Millions of Americans and people worldwide are witnessing videos of police brutality and excessive force. Still, they want to know more about the injustices at the base of these situations.
In this Teach-Out free online course offered by the University of Michigan, you will study the history of police violence in America, become aware of laws and policies that obstruct accountability, comprehend protester demands, and get the information and means to fight for accountability.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Police Brutality in America Teach-Out
Duration: 7 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
6. Revolutionary Ideas: Utility, Justice, Equality, Freedom
When it comes to dissecting revolutionary Ideas, this is one of the most detailed free online courses in social sciences that does justice to the subject. Even within political society, there may be severe disputes over the nature and purpose of government. Some people want an active, involved government to assist in bringing about peace, equality, justice, and happiness and defend individual liberty. Others prefer a more limited government, inspired by the belief that political power is frequently just a step away from tyranny.
In many situations, these conflicts stem from profound philosophical differences. This course will investigate the ideas that lie at the root of such differences. You’ll examine the concepts and arguments of some of the world’s most prominent philosophers, including historical thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Immanuel Kant, and many more current theorists such as Elizabeth Anderson, Isaiah Berlin, and Thomas Christiano.
The goal of the course is to equip you with a more philosophically-informed foundation for your own beliefs and help you better comprehend the views of people with whom you disagree.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Revolutionary Ideas
Duration: 18 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
7. Uncommon Sense Teaching
Do your pupils spend too much or too little time learning, resulting in poor output? Do they put off studying because it’s boring and they are easily distracted? Are you attempting to make your teaching more inclusive? If any of these describe you, Uncommon Sense Teaching will provide you with practical and new insights to assist you in addressing these and other problems and obstacles.
This course blends cutting-edge neuroscience ideas with personal classroom observations to deliver unexpected yet practical new techniques. In today’s diverse teaching environment, where students typically have a wide range of talents, you’ll learn how to bring out the best in all of your pupils.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Uncommon Sense Teaching
Duration: 16 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
8. Human Rights for Open Societies
Human rights are under attack in many parts of the world; nonviolent rallies are ruthlessly suppressed, voting is manipulated, and minorities are frequently excluded from decision-making. All of this jeopardizes the notion of a free and equal society in which we can all participate freely.
A strong defense of human rights is required for an open society to exist and thrive. However, achieving that goal is frequently an uphill battle. As a result, you must arm yourself and learn more about human rights and how they work.
In this free online course in social science, you’ll learn about the European Convention on Human Rights, one of the world’s most complex human rights frameworks. You’ll see when and how people can rely on it, making this course rank among the best free online courses in social science.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: Human Rights for Open Societies
Duration: 14 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
9. Social Norms, Social Change
The course is a Penn-UNICEF collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania. It contains numerous examples of norms that support behaviors such as child marriage, gender violence, and sanitation practices.
It teaches how to diagnose social norms and differentiate them from other social structures such as customs and conventions. This is the first part of the “Social Norms, Social Change.” In this course, you’ll discover the fundamental ideas of social norms, such as social expectancies and conditional preference, the different forms of social practice, the rules that hold society together, and how to distinguish them from other conceptions.
Provider: Social Norms, Social Change l
Subject: Social Norms, Social Change l
Duration: 13 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
10. How to Change the World
How can we leverage the things we have in common to address some of the world’s most pressing issues? Wesleyan University’s course addresses topics such as poverty, the environment, technology, health care, gender, education, and activism to help us better understand how to initiate positive change.
Provider: Coursera
Subject: How to Change the World
Duration: 26 Hours
Start Date: Self-paced
Conclusion
A career in social science can set you on a course for earning money and living a fulfilled life by building impact and influence since you’ll mostly work with people from various backgrounds. As social science expert, you can specialize in a field such as geology, economics, anthropology, sociology, history, Linguistics, and Law. So you can work in various industries ranging from government or non-profit firms either as police, psychologists/Counselors, researcher, youth workers, etc.
With the advent of technology, there has not been a time when enrolling in professional courses with certificates is cool as now. As a result, there are tons of free online courses in social science that are available. We hope you found this article helpful. Do you have friends that need to benefit from this information? Feel free to share the article
Frequently Asked Questions About Online Courses in Social Science
Social science is the field of science that deals with the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies.
With a certificate in social science, you can work in nearly any industry, including government and non-governmental organizations, for a competitive salary, so if you desire to pursue a career in social science, feel free to go ahead.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in social science jobs is expected to expand at 12 percent over the next decade, which is faster than the average for all occupations. It also stated that an average of 78,300 openings for social workers are expected each year over the next decade, indicating that social sciences are in high demand and would remain so.
The most important branches of Social Science are Anthropology, Economics, Politics, Law, Sociology, Psychology, History, Linguistics, Archaeology, and Geography.
Below are the top ten highest paying jobs in social science:
Political Scientist
Geographer
Economist
Sociologist
Psychologist
Historian
Survey Researcher
Industrial-Organizational Psychologist
Urban and Regional Planner
Anthropologist and Archeologist
Reference:
- ziprecruiter.com – What is Social Science?
- bls.gov – Salary Outlook For Social Science
- coursera.org – Best Social Science Courses
- indeed.com – How to become a social researcher
- bestcolleges.com – Why pursue a career in social science?
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