University of Canberra: UC launches new online courses in public policy to upskill professionals and graduates
The University of Canberra has launched several new online public policy courses aimed at professionals and graduates, that are intended to give them the skills they need to engage with and develop public policy.
The four courses opening for registration from today are a Graduate Certificate in Public Policy, Graduate Certificate in Policy Evaluation, Graduate Diploma in Public Policy and Master of Public Policy.
The courses will delve into topics including data analytics, policy analysis, economic modelling, and communicating evidence-based policy effectively, giving students working in public and non-public sectors valuable skills and the opportunity to progress their careers.
The online delivery of the courses will also support students to undertake their study with flexibility and accelerate their qualifications, with the courses ranging from eight months to two years in duration.
Dr Mary Walsh, Associate Professor Faculty of Business, Government and Law and online public policy courses program director, said the degrees would equip students to consider the role they can play in public policy and provide a qualification strongly aligned with market need.
“The degrees are all about influencing change through public policy. What we really want to do (with these degrees) is get you thinking about how you can be an agent of change and influence the important public policy of Australia,” Associate Professor Walsh said.
“We have widely researched the market for this degree and saw a gap. We have consulted with our course advisory groups and industry panels, and they’ve told us what they want from employees in the public and non-public sectors. There has been a lot of consultation, and they have provided us with an understanding of what the needs of the market are”.
Meaningful learning experiences and fully supported online learning are also key features of the new courses.
“We’ve got expert input, great pedagogy, and fantastic learning experiences that are fully online. The core of the degree is ‘learn it today, use it tomorrow’”, she said.
This input includes practitioners, industry experts and world leading academics from the Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, Canberra Law School, Canberra Business School, the Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis, the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling, the Centre for Change Governance, the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance, the 50/50 by 2030 Foundation, Democracy 2025 and the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Canberra.