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WPI is internationally renowned as a distinguished engineering school, but we know the world needs professionals who understand the social impacts of technology while remaining literate in both approaches. Our strong social science department prepares students to be social scientists who understand the wide-ranging influence technology has on an incredibly diverse and always changing human world that is full of social challenges.
Renowned faculty in the Social Science & Policy Studies (SSPS) Department offer students chances to make connections between society and technology through research and project work. Many students double major in a technical field and a social science field, finding each complementary to the other.
Our faculty encourages students to pursue the direction that appeals to them most. In our research-intensive environment, we teach students how to design and implement public policies, the reasons why economic policies are not a one-size-fits-all solution, or how and why human beings interact with technology in varied ways.
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As cybersecurity threats increase, social scientists need to stay one step ahead. At WPI, our technical and social fluency merge for a world-class education with faculty who are internationally respected for their cybersecurity expertise. Students learn the technical savvy to protect against threats and study the human behavior that makes cybersecurity such a complex issue.
The Social Science & Policy Studies Department offers outstanding students the opportunity to earn a BS/MS degree in an accelerated time. The undergraduate degree is in any major and then is combined with a System Dynamics MS or SDIM MS degree program. Interested students are encouraged to apply during junior year.
of students complete at least one project off campus
countries are represented by undergraduate population
of full-time faculty have a PhD or terminal degree (2017-18)
Patricia Stapleton, assistant professor of social sciences & policy studies, along with a colleague from Plymouth State University, published an article about their work on a new teaching modules that helps educators address disaster reduction challenges.
Patricia A. Stapleton, assistant professor of Social Science & Policy Studies and director of The Society, Technology and Policy program, wrote an “As I See It” op-ed in the Telegram & Gazette. In the article, Stapleton noted that debating the impact of climate change is a distraction that “undermines public support to develop and implement hazard mitigation plans.”
