Law and Policy
SPS Certificate website: sps.northwestern.edu/undergraduate-certificate/law-and-policy
In the Law and Policy certificate, students explore and analyze the interplay of politics, public policies, and legal institutions that shape societies across different time periods and geographical regions. Courses in this program equip students with an understanding of how law and policy evolve, intersect, and impact societal dynamics, with a particular focus on the role of race and ethnicity in shaping these frameworks.
SOC_SCI 320-DL Social and Public Policy (1 Unit)
Social and public policy formulation and implementation. Impact of policy on communities. Challenges, opportunities, and ethical considerations of policymaking. Exploration of policy areas such as education, healthcare, housing, criminal justice, and social welfare, and the role of various stakeholders, including government agencies, non-profit organizations, advocacy groups, and the private sector, in shaping social and public policies.
SOC_SCI 322-DL Identity and U.S. Policy (1 Unit)
Interplay between identity categories and policymaking in United States history. Through a multidisciplinary approach, incorporating perspectives from history, sociology, and political science, examination of the influence of identity on and by policy decisions. Key policy developments that have impacted groups defined by identity categories like ethnicity, nationality, class, gender, disability, and sexual orientation.
SOCIOL 318-DL Sociology of Law (1 Unit)
Sociological analysis of legal institutions such as courts, the police, and lawyers. Law, inequality, and social change.