School of Sociology and Social Policy

Raj Passy

MA Social and Public Policy | 2008 - 2009

About me
I graduated with a degree in Psychology from the University of Liverpool in 2006 and went on to work in the public sector for a couple of years. I applied to a couple of universities but Leeds offered me a full scholarship worth almost £10,000 – an offer I couldn’t refuse!

I currently work as a civil servant for the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. The current organisation that is responsible for administering statutory child maintenance; the Child Support Agency, is being de-commissioned.

This is where my role comes in. My role is to design a completely new organisation that is set to go-live in 2012. I have responsibility for defining the customer experience, specifying our policy framework, and ensuring the design of our new IT system meets the requirements of our future customers.

My motivation to study
Although I enjoyed studying Psychology as a subject, I wasn’t sure if I was suited to a related career. I had a part-time job at HM Revenue and Customs which was becoming more of a career and I decided I wanted to somehow formalise my public sector experience.

The School of Sociology and Social Policy was very attractive because of its 4* RAE rating and the credentials of the University itself. With over 33,000 students, no matter how niche your interests are, or how diverse your background is, you’re bound to find like-minded people.

My experience at Leeds
One of the best experiences I had at university was near the beginning of the year. New students (particularly postgraduates and international students) are keen on making friends as they are all in the same situation. People are especially friendly and this time is usually very exciting on campus – you wouldn’t be considered strange if you walked up to someone and just introduced yourself!

I also found being a member of a varsity sports team really contributed to my experience as a student. I represented the university at national and European badminton tournaments and we brought back a number of prizes. You tend to make lasting friends who you’ll always reminisce with, along with sharing a common love of a sport.

The course
My initial perception of a postgraduate degree was that it would be more like a 4th year of uni but just ‘a little harder’. But as I got into my first semester, I found that my perception was challenged quite a bit! The course was different in that it forces you to reconsider what you learnt in your undergraduate degree and look at things in a new light.

More specifically, I had imagined a Masters in public policy would give me the ‘training’ that I needed to become a policy advisor but I think this assumption was a little misplaced. The course is mainly focussed on research and equips you with a high level awareness of policy issues. It does not aim to provide vocational training, but instils an understanding of the issues in doing research in your chosen areas of policy.

This is an academic course. It is different to other seemingly related courses (e.g. Masters in Public Administration) as there is a strong emphasis on research skills. If you are clear on your policy interests and are ready to take on the academic challenge then this is for you.

During my entire time with the School, from application to graduation, the communication from the School was absolutely brilliant. This got even better throughout the semesters and I cannot fault the School on any count.

City life
The university plays a big part in a student’s experience of the city. I think most students can be cocooned from local life in Leeds because the university feels like a hub of so much activity, students seldom feel the need to venture out. The city is different when experienced from the eyes of a student as opposed to a professional for example. All in all, Leeds is very well-suited to students. It’s cheap, vibrant and has some great places to go out!

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