The School of Social Sciences comprises of disciplines(8) disciplines: Anthropology, Economics, History, Library & Information Science, Political Science, Public Administration, Psychology, and Sociology. The different programmes offered by the school undergoes a rigorous process with an objective to provide high quality course contents that are in tune with the changing times. The syllabi of the programmes are designed by some of the best specialised experts in the country from their respective disciplines. It aimed to impart high quality education and research environment.

The School of Social Sciences (SOSS) is the largest school within IGNOU, dedicated to providing inclusive education and catering to the diverse academic needs of students across the country.The School was established in 1986, shortly after the university itself was founded in 1985. Initially, there were six disciplines in the School, Economics, History, Library and Information Science, Political Science, Public Administration and Sociology. The discipline of Anthropology and Psychology were added in 2010further enriching its academic and research environment.The school now offers a wide range of programmes at the graduate, postgraduate, diploma, certificate, and Ph.D. levels.

The SOSS has always been in the forefront of integrating modern educational technologies and practices with the development of its courses. Initially, it was video-audio technology then came the teleconferencing and FM Radio. In the recent times, the SOSS has integrated advanced ICT tools and MOOC courses offered through the SWAYAM platform. In 2009, the School also experimented with a project on student support system.

In 1989, the School of Social Sciences (SOSS) introduced its first programme, the Bachelor’s Degree Programme (BDP). The BDP was further developed in the following years by adding new courses in the basket of the BDP programme. This along with development of Audio-video programmes in this period gave the student flexible elective options. After this, the master’s degree programmeswere introduced.The school has continuously updated its curriculum to align with contemporary educational standards and context. Notably, courses within the BDP were revised including the foundation course in humanities and social sciences. Later, the courses in master’s programmes were also brought under revision. In the period in which the New Education Policy (NEP) was being debated and adopted new programmes like the choice-based credit system (CBCS) and FYUP were developed by the School.

In July 2023, the School launched MA (Economics) and MA (History) as per NEP 2023. From January 2024 onwards, the school offered BA programmes in Economics, History, Library and Information Science (BLIS), Political Science, Psychology, Public Administration, Sociology besides BSc (Anthropology). BA (Multidisciplinary) was also launched in January 2024. In July 2024, Post Graduate Diploma in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management and Post Graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation Psychology was also launched.

• The School of Social Sciences stands as the oldest and largest school in the university, distinguished by its highest student enrolment.
• It offers the widest range of academic programmes available at the university.
• Students and alumni from this school have attained significant accomplishments across various sectors worldwide.
• The faculty comprises highly qualified and experienced professionals who have held roles in diverse institutions and organizations.
• Several professors from the School of Social Sciences have advanced to leadership roles as Vice Chancellor, PVC, Registrar at various universities across India. At present, two professors from SOSS continue to uphold this tradition by serving as vice chancellors, reflecting the school’s strong legacy of academic leadership and governance.

School of Social Sciences provides prospective learners with a wide variety of programmes in the subject areas that are popular as well as socially relevant. The School offers various programmes pertaining to eight disciplines (Anthropology, Economics, History, Library and Information Science, Political Science, Psychology and Sociology) that are housed in the School. The programmes are offered at undergraduate, masters and doctoral levels. Besides the school also offered post graduate diploma and diploma and certificate programmes. Some of the programmes offered by the School, like MA (Psychology) and Masters in Library and Information Science also have internship component that helps learners in gaining hands on experience. Further, many programmes also have components like practicum, field work, project, that help learner develop an overall understanding of the subject area.

Talks and Discussions Organized by SOSS Discussion Forum