Online subject tasters: Social sciences

You'll explore how our students present their architecture work to peers and academic staff and learn the importance of being able to communicate ideas in architecture to different audiences. 

We'll talk about how the review process at the Sheffield School of Architecture is designed to be student-led, inclusive and supportive. We’ll then ask our students to perform a design review. This will be a real design review of a project they’ve worked on. 

Attendees will also have time to ask questions of our students and staff.

Schedule

• 5pm - 5.10pm -Welcome and Introductions
• 5.10pm - 5.25pm - Communication and Design Reviews at Sheffield School of Architecture
• 5.25pm - 5.45pm - Design Review(s) - this may be a single design review, or multiple design reviews depending on the project
• 5.45pm - 6.15pm - Round-up and Q&A
• 6:15pm - Finish

This taster session will introduce students to Journalism as a career, explain how news reporters gather news and highlight the ethical dilemmas journalists face when covering stories, using examples from the news that week.

The second part of the session will consist of a group debate around the subjects of ethics, privacy and celebrity. Participants will be given a number of scenarios and asked ‘What would you do?’ After that, we will talk through some real-world examples of ethical dilemmas, and ask the students what they might have done in that position.

Schedule

• 5pm - 5.10pm - log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduce the Journalism department, overview of what Journalism is, what our students study
• 5.20pm - 5.35pm - Taster lecture on Journalistic ethics
• 5.35pm - 6.10pm - Group discussion
• 6.10pm - 6.30pm - Q&A session from student ambassador

During this interactive session we will introduce some simple drawing techniques landscape architects use. Using a landscape you can see from your window - this may be your garden, a neighbour's garden, or the street - we want you to start considering how it is structured and what defines the space. 

The session lead will then demonstrate how drawing a ‘section’ of the garden enables you to explore and present how the garden spaces are defined by different landscape elements; trees, walls, hedges etc. 

This exercise will enable participants to begin considering how landscape spaces and their different characters are shaped and how to communicate these differences through their drawings.

Schedule

• 5pm - 5.05pm - Settling in
• 5.05pm - 5.15pm - Introduction to Landscape Architecture at Sheffield and the session leads
• 5:15pm - 5.35pm - Overview and demonstration of the session activity
• 5:35pm - 6.05pm - Participants to begin producing their own drawings (with guidance)
• 6.05pm - 6.20pm - Wrap up discussion with current student ambassador and an invitation to future Open Days
• 6.20pm - Finish

Economic choices shape nature just as nature can shape our choices. 

In this session, you will have the opportunity to learn about Environmental Economics and the key questions it is concerned with as well as how economic concepts help us understand environmental problems and their possible solutions.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.05pm - Welcome and settle in
• 5.05pm - 5.35pm - Introduction and overview: Environmental Economics: What is the right amount of pollution?
• 5.35pm - 5.45pm - Research and teaching about environmental economics
• 5.45pm - 6.15pm - Q&A: studying economics at the University of Sheffield
• 6.15pm - Finish

In this session we will explore how we can combine different elements learnt from Geography to understand and deal with landslide hazards in Nepal.

Landslides can be deadly natural disaster events, particularly in Nepal, where large earthquakes along the India-Asian collision zone and intense monsoon rainfall can trigger widespread landslides. Each year, Nepal suffers from deadly landslides, impacting its communities, infrastructure, agriculture, animals, and the economy. Between 2000-2009 there were 2042 deaths in Nepal due to floods and landslides, impacting 248,891 families and resulting in 15814 animal deaths. 

We’ll use Nepal as an example, to think about how learning about Geography prepares us to work towards handling natural hazards better, and managing risk better in the face of climate change.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.10pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduction to the School of Geography and Planning
• 5.20pm - 6.00pm - Interactive taster session
• 6.00pm - 6.15pm - Q&A with student ambassador

In this taster session, we’ll explore how Sociological Studies contribute to our understanding of health and wellbeing. 

Through informative discussion and real-world examples we will look to address the question: “How can we better understand and impact people’s health and wellbeing?” We’ll consider how Sociological Studies can apply this knowledge to drive positive change in societies around the world and use data to drive change and promote people’s health and wellbeing.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.10pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduction to School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations
• 5.20pm - 5.50pm - Interactive taster session
• 5.50pm - 6.05pm - Q&A with student ambassador

Join this session to explore the role of planning in making better urban places. 

We'll start by introducing the School of Geography and Planning and discuss what urban studies and planning is all about.

We will then explore some ideas on how planning can impact upon people’s physical and mental health and wellbeing through housing, the provision of active travel infrastructure, access to greenspace and the creation of connected, inclusive and accessible places and spaces. 

There’ll also be a short exercise to explore how planners can work to create healthier places via the application of a technique known as health impact assessment. 

In addition, there’ll be time at the end of the session to talk with student ambassadors who can answer any questions you may have about studying urban studies and planning with us.

• 5.00pm - 5.10pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduction to the School of Geography and Planning
• 5.20pm - 6.00pm - Interactive taster session
• 6.00pm - 6.15pm - Q&A with student ambassador

In the United Kingdom, statistics show that: 

• Men are expected to die almost three years younger than women.
• Young men are less likely to go to university.
• Young men are more than 10 times more likely to end up in prison and almost twice as likely as women to be victims of violent crime. 

These facts, alongside shifts in social structure and the economy, have led some to ask whether British masculinity is in crisis. 

At the same time women’s rights organisations point out that, despite higher education, women: 

• Earn less than men.
• Do almost double the care work.
• Are outnumbered almost 2/1 in boards for the largest publicly listed companies, local councils and parliament. 

Further, they highlight the facts that the vast majority of violent crime against all genders is perpetrated by men, almost two women are killed each week by men, and the majority of those women being killed by their male intimate partner. How should we understand the tension between the challenges men face and the enduring disadvantages experienced by women and gender-diverse folk? 

In this taster session, you will interrogate the contentious debates over ‘toxic masculinity’ and the crisis of masculinity in Britain. Led by Dr David Duriesmith, we’ll discuss the future of gender politics and whether we are facing a ‘crisis of masculinity’ or a ‘crisis of gender inequality’ There will be plenty of time to ask questions, share your thoughts and reflect on your experiences.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.05pm - Log on, settle in, introductions to staff and ambassadors
• 5.05pm - 5.15pm - Overview of department and session
• 5.15pm - 6.00pm - Crisis of masculinity or crisis of gender equality? Understanding gendering politics in the 21st century
• 6.00pm - 6.30pm - Group discussion and Q&A
• 6.30pm - Finish

In this engaging and interactive taster lecture, we explore the fundamental question: what makes a good leader? The session focuses on the impact of leadership on teamwork in everyday contexts, such as school projects, part-time jobs, or community activities. Students will be invited to reflect on their own leadership experiences and consider different ways leadership can shape team success.

We will briefly cover a range of leadership theories, including trait, behavioural, relational, and situational approaches. Emphasis will be placed on understanding how these theories help explain how leaders influence others, adapt to situations, and build relationships that enable effective teamwork.

This session is suitable for students interested in business, management, or social sciences. It will be led by Dr Cristian Vasquez, organisational psychologist and lecturer at Sheffield University Management School. There will be opportunities for students to ask questions and hear from a current student ambassador about their experience of leadership and university life. By the end, students will gain insight into leadership styles and how leadership can enhance team dynamics and performance.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.10pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduction to the Sheffield University Management School
• 5.20pm - 6.00pm - Interactive taster session
• 6.00pm - 6.15pm - Q&A with student ambassador

You’ve probably used ChatGPT or other large language models, but do you know how they work? 

Come to this taster session to find out how the fundamentals of data science affect how chatbots and large language models respond to you, and the surprising reasons why ChatGPT is more like Netflix than it is like Microsoft Word. 

In the session, we will explore the core ideas behind large language models, using working examples from real data, and discuss the complex social processes that affect what you see and how large language models are produced.

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.05pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.05pm - 5.15pm - Introduction to Information School
• 5.15pm - 5.55pm - Interactive taster session
• 5.55pm - 6.15pm - Q&A with student ambassadors

In a major change to policy, sixteen-year-olds are to be given the right to vote in all UK elections. 

In this session we will explore Electoral Geographies and the Youth Vote, as well as how elections are being changed by Digital Technology. 

We will discuss questions like: 

• How do young people cote? What difference will this change in policy have?
• How does where you live influence your politics and voting?
• Why do political campaigns target different people in different places?
• How does the voting system make a difference?
• Does digital technology help more people get involved in elections and campaigning?

Schedule

• 5.00pm - 5.10pm - Log in and get comfortable
• 5.10pm - 5.20pm - Introduction to the School of Geography and Planning
• 5.20pm - 6.00pm - Interactive taster session
• 6.00pm - 6.15pm - Q&A with student ambassador