35 courses with the subject MSSP, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
MSSP 5920Innovations in Public-Private Collaboration
This course considers the origins, motivations for, and recent advances in public-private collaborations and contracting arrangements for achieving public and social program goals. The course begins with an examination of the origins and trends in public-private sector partnerships and the fy influence of important reforms such as New Public Management on the nature of collaborative arrangements. The course takes a deeper look at the newest innovations–social impacts bonds or pay for success arrangements–and the evidence on their implementation and effectiveness to date. Case examples and studies are used to illustrate challenges encountered in implementing public-private partnerships and performance-based contracts and in achieving accountability for outcomes and impacts. The course includes asynchronous recorded video lectures, synchronous discussions, readings, and applied assignments designed to provide an opportunity to implement learnings from the course. Mutually Exclusive: NPLD 5920 1 Course Unit
MSSP 6010The Power of Partnerships between Government, Non
profits, & the Private Sector Everything from the Affordable Care Act to the Mayor's Rebuild Initiative here in Philadelphia could not be implemented by government without strong and vital partnerships with non-profits and the private sector. These collaborations provide an opportunity to help people, impact and change policy, improve outcomes, and multiply the impact that non- profit and private sector organizations can have. The course will help graduate (and advanced undergraduate) students not only understand the theory, policy, and practice of these collaborations but also learn how they actually happen. Students will also learn the characteristics of these three sectors, their roles and contributions, and competitive forces that are often at work in the collaborative process. Topics for discussion will include attitudes and expectations in the public sector, the ingredients of effective partnerships, and effective communication strategies with elected and appointed officials. The course will be conducted on a seminar basis. Graduate students are expected to take an active part in shaping the discussion. Students will be expected to rotate leadership for the class discussions and to supplement course materials with independent study of relevant magazine and newspaper articles. Course grades are assigned as follows: 20 percent for class participation, 15 percent for an in-class written exam, 30 percent for a group presentation and write up of a case study, and 35 percent for a final project. High quality written work and accurate citations is an expectation in all assignments.
Data for Equitable Justice Lab is a research course that gives SP2 Master’s students an opportunity to analyze some of today’s most important social issues through data and, with instructor support, create a product for audiences well beyond the classroom. With guidance from lab instructors, students develop a project – either individually or as part of a team – to examine a contemporary social policy issue through the use of data, or to examine a social justice issue that concerns data or digital technology. In these projects, students will produce an op-ed, blog post, podcast, academic article, short film, or other product of their choosing that creates or contributes to contemporary policy discourse. This course helps students produce a data-focused work product that they can build on during their Capstone seminar and internship.
This course familiarizes students with no prior programming experience with the core concepts of programming and the practice of software development for data-intensive applications in industry and government. After this course, students will be comfortable (1) writing code to save and load from files and spreadsheets into basic data structures like strings, lists, and maps; (2) manipulating data with code to perform tasks like generating aggregate statistics and filtering data into subsets; (3) effectively communicating findings from interactive, exploratory programming with others; and (4) working with technical teams, using best practices of software development when building line- of-business applications.
This course prepares students with no background in machine learning or data science to use tools from those fields effectively in applied contexts. Using GUI-based software - or optionally, by programming with libraries - students will build skills including (1) feature representations of spreadsheet-based or text datasets; (2) training classification and regression models for prediction tasks; (3) evaluation of machine learning model accuracy and error analysis; and (4) reasoning about predictive models and making tradeoffs like bias vs. variance, granularity and annotation complexity in labeled training data, and the ethical application of predictive modeling to human-centered data.
MSSP 6280Policy: Analysis of Issues, Strategy and Process
Policy analysis requires an understanding of social problems/social issues and the processes by which policy is developed and implemented. Critical skills in many policy frameworks include: problem definition and analysis, review of relevant research, identification of possible actions, implementation and evaluation, and fiscal analysis. Competency in written and oral communication is also essential. To develop these and related skills, this course utilizes as a base a dynamic social problem analysis framework that addresses issues of equity, equality and adequacy. It also examines multiple theoretical and analytical perspectives. Through the review of contemporary and historical social policy debates and provisions, selected case examples and policy briefs, this course provides students with an understanding of the policy roles of the legislative and executive branches of government, including goal setting, policy rulemaking and enactment, allocation of resources, financing, regulation, and implementation. The policy process at state and local levels of government will also be addressed. The primary focus is on U.S. policy although global policies will be discussed when relevant.
This course provides an introduction to statistical inference. We will learn the fundamental tools of data science and apply them to a wide range of social science and policy-oriented questions. The objective of the course is to develop two broad skill sets: (1) an understanding of the conceptual foundations for why we might manage or analyze data in one way versus another, and (2) learning the computing and programming tools (using R) to manage, visualize, and analyze data. The topics covered in the course include descriptive statistics, measure of association for categorical and continuous variables, introduction to t-tests, ANOVA and linear regression, research design (e.g., sampling, measurement, and causal inference), and the language of data analysis. Students will learn how to apply statistical tools to data sources, to design research studies, to test hypotheses, and to interpret the results of quantitative studies. The lecture focuses on the conceptual foundations of statistical inference; R programming instruction is covered in the weekly lab sections.
MSSP 6340MSSP+DA Capstone I: Telling Stories with Data
The volume and complexity of data continues to increase in the world around us, including science, business, medicine, social media and everyday human activity. This course aims to expose students to visual representation methods and techniques that increase the understanding of complex data. Good visualizations not only present a visual interpretation of data, but do so by improving comprehension, communication, and decision making. In this course, students will learn about the fundamentals of perception, the theory of visualization, and good design practices for visualization. The course will also provide hands-on experience on the process of data communication, from initial data analysis, to identifying appropriate visualization techniques, to crafting informative visualizations.
The focus of the Capstone Seminar is three-fold: 1) to enhance student integration of the theory and practice of social policy analysis; 2) to enhance the student's competencies in the written and oral communication processes and procedures necessary for the policy world; and 3) to ensure basic knowledge about federal budget processes, stakeholder roles, and inter-organizational collaboration. At the end of this course, students will complete a final project related to their policy internship. Registration restricted to majors only.
The course is paired with an intensive, multi-week policy practicum that is selected through a consultative process involving the student, the MSSP Practicum Coordinator, and their practicum mentor/supervisor. The practicum provides an opportunity for the student to expand their horizons beyond the academic sphere. The course serves as a medium to integrate classroom learning with experiences in policy-making activity. Your cohort will meet monthly to discuss your practicum, career development, and apply what you learn in the program to your work. Meeting dates and times will be communicated at the beginning of each semester and will be posted on Canvas. Registration restricted to majors only. 0 Course Units University of Pennsylvania Catalog 2261
MSSP 6380MSSP+DA Capstone Seminar: Telling Stories with Data
The volume and complexity of data continues to increase in the world around us, including science, business, medicine, social media and everyday human activity. This course aims to expose students to visual representation methods and techniques that increase the understanding of complex data. Good visualizations not only present a visual interpretation of data, but do so by improving comprehension, communication, and decision making. In this course, students will learn about the fundamentals of perception, the theory of visualization, and good design practices for visualization. The course will also provide hands-on experience on the process of data communication, from initial data analysis, to identifying appropriate visualization techniques, to crafting informative visualizations. At the end of this course, students will complete a final project related to their policy internship in data analytics. Registration restricted to majors only.
MSSP 7060Behavioral Economics and Social Policy Design
This course will introduce students to the field's of behavioral economics and its application to designing social policies concerning health, education, childcare, voting, poverty, financial stability, legal and regulatory frameworks, etc. Behavioral economics extends the classical textbook theory of how the "rational" economic individual - often referred to as homo economicus - makes choices to include insights from psychology, biology, anthropology, sociology and other fields to increase the explanatory power of economic theories. While classical economics is still a useful tool for any social scientist to possess, behavioral economics, in the words of one of the fields founding fathers, Richard Thaler (2015), "is more interesting and more fun than regular economics. It is the un-dismal science."
MSSP 7090Human Service Organizations: Leadership, Policy, Equity
Historically, human service organizations have focused on policies and issues that impact the health and well-being of the most vulnerable and marginalized in American society. These include, but are not limited to, child welfare, poverty, housing, reentry, and access to employment and equitable healthcare. Racial and ethnic disparities in human services programs and program outcomes have been well documented. This course will use an intersectional lens to: 1) explore key theoretical and empirical insights from the social sciences to examine the historical barriers to the achievement of equity; 2) focus on ways that policies create persistent barriers to the well-being of radicalized and marginalized populations; and 3) explore ways that human service organizations can be more effective in their equity related goals.
MSSP 7200Introduction to Data Analysis for Social Impact
In today’s fast-paced world, practitioners, leaders, and researchers must stay connected with the latest cutting-edge research in their fields. This course is your gateway to understanding the quantitative methods that drive social impact research. Through hands-on, lab-based activities, you’ll gain both the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to analyze real-world data. We’ll explore the dynamics of individual participation in the nonprofit sector, focusing on activities like charitable giving and volunteering. This course is all about getting you comfortable with the nuts and bolts of handling and analyzing quantitative survey data. We’ll start with the basics—understanding statistical principles and using descriptive and exploratory methods to make sense of data. Then, we’ll dive into more advanced techniques like OLS regression and logistic regression, all within the user-friendly environment of STATA. Along the way, you’ll also tackle big-picture topics like theory testing, the philosophy of science, and the importance of replication in research. Whether you’re looking to engage with existing social impact research or make your own original contributions, this course has something for you. And don’t worry —no prior experience with statistics or programming is required. Just bring your curiosity, and by the end of the course, you’ll be equipped to make data-driven decisions that can truly make a difference.
se Total Course Units 4 ts 2 Relevant GIS courses in other departments, such as SWRK or ENVS, may also be approved. Please consult HSPV department for approval. 2026-27 Catalog | Generated 08/03/26
Gender and Social Policy develops an advanced understanding of social policies through the lens of gender - a socially constructed classification system based on ideals of femininity and masculinity, which are most commonly understood to be binary, mutually exclusive categories corresponding to sex (female and male). (Gender is) a concept that pervades all aspects of culture: structuring institutions, social identities, cultural practices, political positions, historical communities, and the shared human experience of embodiment*. The class provides students with the opportunity to explore how social policies respond (and contribute) to the needs and risks of different groups of people based on gender classifications. Rather than a survey of "gender" policy, students will be introduced to key feminist and trans concepts and frameworks that can be applied to any social issue and policy intervention. Policy examples may include reproduction, state violence, exclusionary/ inclusive space, and national emergencies. The topics and specific readings may change based on the class's interests and current events. Class assignments are designed to provide an opportunity to practice applying gender theory, as well as for each student to examine a policy issue of import to them through a gendered lens. *Paraphrasing Garland- Thomson, 2002, "Integrating Disability, Transforming Feminist Theory," NWSA Journal, 14(3): pg 4.
Fiction provides a lens to look at social issues and social policy through the rich and understandable lives of human beings, their challenges, and their triumphs in the holistic context of their worlds. Through appreciation of the human condition as portrayed in literature, students learn to frame issues more precisely and present arguments in compelling and convincing ways, thus enhancing the capabilities of social workers, social policymakers, and other agents to influence policy change.
With the impactful decision of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the US Supreme Court in 2022 struck down almost 50 years of federal policy precedent of Roe v. Wade (1973). This opened a time of confusion as states scrambled to determine the meaning and implications of existing and future state and local policies. This course specifically utilizes the term reproductive justice. As Ross & Solinger (2017) describe, the definition of reproductive justice intentionally moves beyond the pro-choice/pro-life perspectives of policies regulating abortion and focuses policy assessment through core principles of 1) the right not to have a child, 2) the right to have a child, 3) the right to parent children in a safe and healthy environment, and 4) sexual autonomy and gender freedom for every human being. This course will first provide historical context of reproductive justice policy in USA history, then focus on local, state, and federal policies regulating reproductive justice. Policies will be particularly analyzed through the lenses of LGBTQ+, race, disability, and critical theory.
During a policy intervention, how can we learn from the lived experience of program participants, patients, and the community? Are their lived experiences able to generate innovative and alternative policy solutions? These are some of the questions that strategies of qualitative inquiry can address. Qualitative inquiry provides much needed nuance and complexity that complements quantitative data, enhancing our understanding of social problems, and identification of people- centered solutions. Qualitative methods can empower individuals and communities and act as a conduit for their voices. For example, why do Black patients who have Black physicians report better outcomes? How do the lived experiences of people experiencing poverty establish different needs and solutions for achieving economic stability? This course introduces students to a range of qualitative approaches that can yield insights for use in policy development and analysis. Students will learn how to conceptualize qualitative research questions, select appropriate methods, and develop skills through doing. Course topics include: research ethics, field observation, semi-structured interviewing, focus groups, coding, and analysis. Students who are currently developing their own research projects are encouraged to use this course to refine their methodological framework.
MSSP 7803Global Abolition, Decolonization, & Social Policy
Social policy reflects social structure, and this course seeks to chart how dramatic transformations of that structure can give rise to previously unforeseen policy alternatives. Focusing on abolitionist movements past and present and ongoing global struggles for decolonization, we will analyze not only the concrete impact that these structural shifts produced in the realm of policy, but also—more qualitatively—what kinds of abolitionist and decolonized social policy alternatives can become possible in the process of dismantling entrenched structures of global inequality.
The United States has the highest rates of gun ownership and gun violence in the world; and it is such an outlier globally that many scholars consider guns to be a uniquely American problem. Numerous empirical studies have indicated that simply having access to guns is one of the biggest risk factors for later violence—including peer violence, homicide, suicide, and intimate partner violence. If firearm accessibility is a key driver of gun violence, then what should we do about it? This course will explore why Americans own guns, how communities currently respond to gun violence, and various policy options for enhancing gun safety. Gun violence is a complicated problem, and multiple policy solutions are possible to curb this social epidemic. We will read academic, personal, organizational, and governmental articles, as well as engage with mixed media content, like videos. Each student will pick a population or issue on which to focus during the semester. This course will take an active- learning approach, with classes being a mix of lectures and hands-on activities.
This course introduces students to the basics of the American legal system, offering an overview of the intersection of litigation and social policy. Students will learn how law, and particularly case law, is made. Students will study the structure of court systems at both state and federal levels as well as the litigation process and the role of law and courts in shaping and addressing social policy issues. Students will also learn the basics of several areas of substantive law, with an eye toward consideration of how that law has been, and can be, used to effect social change. Students who already have a basic understanding of the American legal system should take MSSP 6310.
This course explores the transformative potential of AI in the realm of public policy. Students will delve into the implications of AI for policy practice, learning how to harness AI tools to understand citizen priorities, formulate policy options, and aid decision making processes. Additionally, the course will cover methods for using AI to extract insights from large datasets and academic literature, enabling evidence-based policy development. Co-taught by an AI expert and a policy expert from the University of Pennsylvania, students will gain both a technical grounding in AI tools (including large language models) and a nuanced understanding of policy processes, ethical frameworks, and real-world case studies. 1 Course Unit 2026-27 Catalog | Generated 08/03/26
Mass incarceration is deeply embedded in American society—inextricably intertwined with the labor market, housing, immigration, mental healthcare, and other seemingly distinct policy areas. Understanding any of them requires understanding the carceral state: its roots at the very founding of America; its role in hollowing the promise of slavery’s abolition and as a tool to maintain racial castes in the Jim Crow South; and its expansion through the present day as both the cause of and ostensible response to other social policy failures. This course foregrounds that history, and dives into modern practices, including but not limited to bail and pretrial detention; the role of plea bargaining; criminal sentencing; prisons, jails, and immigration detention; probation, parole, and the rise of surveillance; and the treatment of juveniles. With that base, we will explore the connections between the carceral state and other policy areas. We will also consider alternatives to policing and incarceration, including ongoing experiments across the country. 1 Course Unit
The criminal justice policy course will examine policies and theories that shape the criminal justice system from arrest to adjudication. This course will be rooted in critical race theory, with special attention paid to how the system deferentially affects people of color. We will also discuss how other populations are affected by the system, such as women and youth, and examine alternatives to current interventions. This is a data- driven, evidence-based course. Students will advocate for effective policies based on the current evidence and based on their own data analysis. Some comfort with statistics, statistical software, and data interpretation are required. Course readings will include scholarly work, legal documents, and grey literature. 1 Course Unit
MSSP 7960Family Economic Mobility: Problems and Policies
The experiences and voices of mothers, fathers, children, employers, children's teachers, human service workers, job training providers, policymakers and others in cities across America graphically show us the "real life" challenges to economic mobility facing today's families and organizations. These voices particularly illustrate how economic, social, and cultural policies, practices, and beliefs intersect to perpetuate economic inequality for low-income and many middle-income working families alike. The labor market, welfare and workforce programs, public schools and government are some of the institutions implicated in this intersection. In the course we deconstruct concepts such as the "work ethic," "family-friendly workplace," and "good jobs" in terms of economic, racial and cultural inequalities and, more broadly, in terms of their meaning, aims and rhetoric. At base, this course examines occupational mobility in America within the broad framework of capitalism, democracy, race, ethnicity and gender. Students from GSE, SAS, City Planning, and Communications often join SP2 students to read and critique classic and contemporary literature from multiple disciplines and explore generative roles for "meso-oriented" social change professionals.
Independent studies provide a flexible opportunity for faculty and students to work together in pursuing a topic of special interest that is not sufficiently covered by other courses in the curriculum. The content of independent studies is highly specialized and, as such, requires a plan of study developed jointly by the student(s) and the supervising faculty member. Plans for independent study should include: a statement of the issues(s) to be studied; a rationale for why the identified issue(s) should be pursued via an independent study; a statement of how the independent study fits into the student’s overall educational plan; a summary of the independent study’s major learning objectives; the methods to be used in carrying out the study; a workable plan; the educational “products” that will result from the study (normally a written report or paper); and the expected date by which the independent study will be completed. Independent Study Course Approval Form. The process for arranging an independent study requires approval of both the student’s academic advisor and a faculty member who has agreed to conduct the independent study. The procedures to be followed are: The student discusses interest in doing an independent study with the academic advisor. If the advisor concurs with the student’s submission, the advisor and student will discuss potential faculty sponsors. If a faculty sponsor can be located, the student and faculty sponsor craft the specific plan, including learning objectives, content, and structure for the course. The academic advisor informs the registrar that an independent study for the student has been approved. On the rare occasions that a student is unable to schedule a regular School course, the educational advisor makes a recommendation to the MSSP Faculty Director who will try to identify a standing or adjunct faculty member able to supervise the course delivered as an independent study. Fall, Spring, and Summer Terms 0.5-1 Course Unit
This course deals with how to critically and responsibly model real- world data to answer social science, education, and social policy-related questions, using the framework of the general linear model. Linear modeling (which, in statistics, is synonymous with regression analysis) is the workhorse of much of quantitative social science and, despite its enormous flaws and powerful limitations (which this course will also cover!), it remains an important tool to understand and be able to use. The course builds up multiple regression from correlation and bi-variate regression, and then covers categorical independent variables, nonlinear transformations and polynomial terms, diagnostic checks, model- building and model iteration, interaction effects, mediation analysis, and logistic regression. Mathematical (e.g., Gauss-Markov) assumptions are covered but the emphasis is on deeper epistemic assumptions and more immediate practical limitations. While not covered in detail, pointers will be given to techniques for specific types of data (especially multilevel modeling for nested data) and to important modern developments (especially structural causal modeling, non-parametrics, and machine learning). Throughout, the course will return to and emphasize critiques of linear modeling, to encourage students to be able to use (or choose not to use and oppose) regression analysis rigorously, critically, and responsibly. The course will be taught using R. This course includes an introduction to R. Background in R or in programming is not strictly necessary for this course but it is helpful. Prerequisite: MSSP 6300 Quantitative Reasoning/Social Statistics, or another Introductory graduate statistics course.
