MSSP/Juris Doctor (MSSP/JD) Program
The Master of Science in Social Policy/Juris Doctor (MSSP/JD) program prepares students to assume positions of leadership in law and social policy, capable of analyzing and shaping social policy at the local, national, and global levels. Additionally, the program’s graduates will be ready to promote a fuller integration of social policy between and across sectors of social life and promote more humane and equitable responses to the needs of historically vulnerable population groups.
Application Information
Students apply separately to the School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2) and the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Applications to the MSSP program are welcomed contemporaneously with the Law School application or during the 1L year.
Course of Study
Students can earn both degrees in three years. The MSSP is a 10-credit course of study, including 6 core courses, 3 electives, and a Capstone project. The MSSP program will accept four Law courses and Penn Law grants credit for four approved courses from the MSSP curriculum toward the Juris Doctor degree. Students then complete an additional two courses.
Course Grid
| Course Name | Term Offered | CUs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2L – Second Year of Law School | |||
| Core | MSSP 6280: Policy: Analysis of Issues, Strategy and Process | 2L Fall | 1 |
| Core | MSSP 6300: Quantitative Reasoning | 2L Fall | 1 |
| Core | MSSP 6290: Research and Evaluation Design | 2L Spring | 1 |
| Core | MSSP 8970: Applied Linear Modeling (prerequisite: MSSP 6300) | 2L Spring | 1 |
| 3L – Third Year of Law School | |||
| Core | MSSP 6680: Economics for Social Policy | 3L Fall | 1 |
| Core | MSSP 6320: Capstone I: Policy Communications (0.5 cu) | 2L/3L Spring | 0.5 |
| Core | MSSP 6330: Capstone II: Policy Internship (0.5cu) | anytime | 0.5 |
| 4CUs from the JD program count toward the MSSP program: | |||
| Core* | MSSP 6310: Law & Social Policy (Waived) | Spring only | 1 |
| Elective 1* | LAW XXX | Any | 1 |
| Elective 2* | LAW XXX | Any | 1 |
| Theory* | MSSP XXXX: Theory Elective (Cross-Counted) | 3L Spring | 1 |
| Total MSSP CUs | 10 | ||
