Professional Education Statement

The Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Sheffield is a major provider of professional education, embracing Business and Management, Education, Information Science, Journalism, Law, Social Work and the Built Environment (Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Property Development and Town and Regional Planning).

Each subject area seeks to be at the leading edge in its discipline, and also to benefit from collaborative opportunities, especially within the Faculty. Together, we seek to inform professional practice through our knowledge, experience and values – locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. We provide our students with an outstanding academic education, promoting a desire for critical thinking and lifelong learning over and above competence to practise. We are committed to a practical expression of the Sheffield Graduate and Sheffield Academic concepts, maximising the employability and good citizenship of our graduates through approaches that exemplify the University´s core values and qualities. Hence, we ensure that students understand the value of: undertaking and applying research as a basis for enhancing professional practice; working flexibly within interdisciplinary and diverse teams; contributing to the wider public good in various ways; critically reflecting on existing approaches and their own practices; taking responsibility for promoting justice, sustainability and opportunity; and applying the highest ethical standards.

The Faculty of Social Sciences is distinctive in ways which merit further development, collaboration and celebration. In particular, we display: a high level of postgraduate provision; a strong culture of world class research, leading to effective knowledge exchange; a commitment to socially responsive professional practice through the dissemination of innovative ideas and evidence; a high relevance to key contemporary issues, such as social inclusion, corporate social responsibility, and environmental sustainability; and a commitment to internationalism, both in respect of our student body and our wider sphere of influence. We are forward-looking in terms of the needs of professions, we provide continuing as well as initial professional education, and we contribute actively to lively debates about key issues and the wider meanings of professionalism.