Macquarie School of Social Sciences

Anthropology studies human diversity in the recent past and present, teaching us to recognise the remarkable array of circumstances in which human beings live their lives and make meaning from them.

In doing so anthropology invites deeper analysis of behaviour that we might think we understand but that has complexities that only reveal themselves to careful investigation. We seek to understand the full context of people’s actions and all that they impact.

Last, anthropology is more than just a catalogue of diversity. Anthropology studies ourselves. It also means stepping back and seeing ourselves the way others might see us – a shift in perspective foundational to the discipline.

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Meet our Anthropology academics.

Our Geography and Planning discipline is a leading centre of geographical and planning education and research. We consider how social, environmental, cultural, economic and political elements interplay to shape the world around us.

Our research focuses on the complex relationships between human and environmental systems in cities and regions. While our research is theoretically innovative and has made important contributions to global debates in geography and urban planning scholarship, we are equally dedicated to addressing “real world” problems and working towards a more just and sustainable future.

Our courses in geography and planning (accredited by the Planning Institute of Australia) provide students with the skills and knowledge they need to address some of the world’s biggest challenges.

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Meet our Geography and Planning academics.

Politics and International Relations is a dynamic community of researchers, teachers and students devoted to studying key challenges in contemporary political life. Our culture is inclusive, collaborative, critically-engaged and committed to social justice.

Our discipline staff include specialists in public policy, international relations, international security, international political economy, religion and the state, postcolonialism, political theory, state developmentalism, politics in literature, sexuality and human rights, energy security and climate politics. Regional specialists study the politics of the Middle-East, Indo-Pacific, East-Asia, North America, Europe and Australasia.

We pride ourselves on innovative teaching methods, which connect conceptual understandings to real-world challenges and scenarios. We equip our students with job-ready skills and critical thinking capacities for life-long learning.

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Meet our Politics and International Relations academics.

Macquarie University delivers cutting-edge programs in Sociology, Social Science, Social Justice, Gender Studies and Social Policy.

Our Sociology discipline brings together innovative theory and research methods to address social issues, training graduates to get a job they love and helping students and the community understand how societies work, and how they can be changed for the better.

Our research expertise includes: migration, mobilities and diversity; markets, policy and inequality; gender and the intimate sphere; work and society; social movements and citizenship; social capital, urban sociology and global resilience; and the sociology of culture and everyday life.

Learn about our Sociology research.

Meet our Sociology academics.