News

Sociology launches Stuart Hall Dissertation Prize
18th June 2025
Sociology announces the Professor Stuart Hall Dissertation Prize, awarded annually to three outstanding Sociology dissertations that contribute to discussions on issues relevant to the field of sociology, with a particular focus on social justice and equality.
Two new OU courses explore some of the world’s most pressing issues
26th July 2023
New MA in International Relations and BA (Honours) Sociology courses have just launched, offering the chance to explore some of the big questions about the world around us.
Society’s biggest challenges explored by third annual SSGS magazine
26th September 2022
The new SSGS magazine showcases the most up-to-date teaching and research from the school, delving into everything from the cost-of-living crisis to space ethics, via the science of long-term love and decolonising religious studies.
Take the Digital Technologies, Power and Control survey
20th December 2021
A survey about the digital divide, COVID-19 pandemic and issues of power and control in digital technology use.
Counting the Dead on World Refugee Day
21st June 2021
This moving blog is written by Helen Hintjens, Assistant Professor in Development and Social Justice at the International Institute of Social Studies in the Netherlands. Helen is a member of the Cov19: Chronicles from the Margins project, a joint collaboration with The Open University.
We need to talk about mental health
13th May 2021
Marie Gillespie, Professor of Sociology at The Open University joins Ahmad Al-Rashid and Kelly Wearing to highlight that while there has been a surge in mental illness during the COVID-19 pandemic, it remains a taboo subject for many asylum seekers and refugees.
The impact of COVID-19 on reproductive justice
25th November 2020
Umut Erel, Professor of Sociology at The Open University, chaired a webinar this week which explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the 'Politics of Social Reproduction, Migration and the Hostile Environment'. You can now watch it back in full here.
The new SSGS magazine
4th November 2020
We're pleased to announce the publication of SSGS Magazine, which offers insight into the breadth of work across the School's eight disciplines.
OU Relationship Research behind $1m Paired App
6th October 2020
OU Research is behind a newly-launched relationship app designed to tackle the fact that two-thirds of us don’t talk about our relationships with anyone.
Building a better society: Hearing the Sisters not Strangers report
27th July 2020
Jeni Williams is Chair of Swansea Women’s Asylum and Refugee Support Group and co-researcher on the COVID-19 Chronicles project. She shares the chilling findings of a report outlining the experiences of refugee and asylum-seeking women during the pandemic