The department of Social Science, situated under the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences (FASS), commenced its journey with twofold primary objectives: firstly, to enhance and cultivate the mental, ethical, and creative facets of students' personalities, and secondly, to equip them for successful professional and technical employment in the future. Its overarching goal is to establish the university as a leading educational institution that remains abreast of contemporary advancements through an effective learning process.
There is indisputable recognition that ethics, values, morality, and creativity constitute foundational elements in the development of a nation. As a trailblazing private university in Bangladesh, AIUB has consistently upheld a commitment to instill these elements among its students, viewing them as broader societal concerns. The Department of Social Science staunchly believes that a value-based education can foster excellent leadership, thereby contributing to the progress of the nation. With this perspective, the Social Science curriculum has been meticulously crafted to impart general knowledge and nurture intellectual capacities among students. Furthermore, Social Science, as a foundational department or subject, places a distinct emphasis on practical implementation more than any other department or program, making it one of the most exemplary Liberal Arts curricula available.
Vision
The vision of the Department of Social Science is to cultivate professionals and exceptional leaders who will render the country globally compatible, illuminating the arena of Social Science. They will also contribute significantly to the nation's development across various aspects.
Mission
The mission of the Social Science Department is to steadfastly deliver not only historical and societal landscapes but also a contemporary understanding of social, political, economic, and governance systems. This delivery is characterized by quality and excellence, designed to empower students to confront global challenges effectively. The department is dedicated to instilling a robust sense of ethical values in its students, fostering their development into competent, world-class professionals in their respective fields.
Objectives
1. Foster continuous development and progress among students.
2. Enhance educational services and facilities to address the evolving demands for change and societal needs.
3. Cultivate a heightened research consciousness to explore new dimensions for curriculum development and enrichment.
4. Execute meaningful and pertinent community outreach programs that align with available resources.
5. Facilitate the exchange of resources and expertise with both local and international educational institutions and organizations.
6. Develop a curriculum to expand and improve global academic standards.
1. Basics in Social Science
The course aims to acquaint students with an overall introduction to the fundamental concepts and perspectives of Social Sciences, particularly Sociology, and its interrelation with other Social Science fields. It provides foundational Sociological theories and examines major social issues and problems in contemporary society, with a special focus on Bangladesh. In addition to theories, topics such as Socialization, family & marriage, culture, social inequality, gender, crime, and deviance are also covered. The course also aims to develop the ability to identify, analyze, and apply sociological perspectives to current social problems and everyday life, facilitating a better understanding of how larger society affects individual behavior and choices.
The purpose of the course is to enlighten students with knowledge and analytic skills necessary to understand increasingly complex and changing social world in which we live by exploring social issues ranging from culture, socialization, family and marriage to social structure, stratification and deviance. The course emphases on the changes of social and cultural patterns over time and different settings. It also highlights the importance of sociological perspectives and theories for understanding Bangladeshi society, focusing on identifying, studying, and solving social problems based on empirical data.
2. Foundations of Sociology
The course aims to acquaint students with an overall introduction to the fundamental concepts and views of Social Sciences, particularly Sociology, and its relation to other Social Science fields. It offers foundational Sociological theories and examines major social issues and problems in contemporary society, with a special focus on Bangladesh. In addition to the theories, topics such as social interaction, family, culture, social inequality, gender, crime, and deviance are covered in this course. The course also aims to develop the ability to identify, analyze, and apply sociological perspectives to current social problems and everyday life, to better understand how larger society affects individual behavior and choices.
3. Bangladesh Studies
The course offers a thorough exploration of the evolution and development of Bangladesh from different past era to the present, highlighting the significant changes in its foundational aspects. Students will learn about the country's Land and people, Demographics, Origins, Environmental contexts, Natural resources, Governance, Constitutional framework, Political landscape, Administrative structure, and Social and Economic conditions. Additionally, the course covers the chronological historical narrative, the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent nation, social structures, music, art and literature, family dynamics, religious beliefs, tourism, cultural festivals, and archaeological heritage. It also prepares students to envision a future by examining both past and present, with a focus on democracy, digitalization, and achieving a sustainable smart Bangladesh.
4. Bangla Language and Literature
The course will explore the basic tenets of Bangla linguistics and literary features. Texts and poems of several literary maestros will acquaint students with Bangla's rich literary elements in relation to Bangladeshi cultural values. In this course, students will grasp the evolution of modern Bengali language, culture, history, and arts. The course covers the history of Bengali language and literature, short stories and novels, authors' biographies, practical Bengali vocabulary, and functional grammar exercises. It also includes Bengali poems, translation, contemporary text analysis, and the writing of paragraphs, essays, letters, or creative pieces. Additionally, there will be topic-based conversations and role-playing.
At the end of the course, students should acquire widespread knowledge in the Bangla language and literature and develop proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking standard colloquial Bengali.
This course delves into the foundational principles of Cognitive and Social Psychology, exploring key aspects such as the origins of psychological study, human behavior, mental processes, personality development, motivation, learning mechanisms, memory functions, and the intricacies of sensation and perception. Additionally, it addresses psychological disorders within the context of major applied sub-fields.
Psychology stands as a cornerstone in the realm of social sciences, offering invaluable insights into the complexities of our contemporary world. While acknowledging that psychology does not provide all-encompassing solutions to complex issues, it significantly enhances our comprehension of human nature. It elucidates the factors shaping individuals' thoughts and actions, empowering them to navigate life more effectively.
The rationale of this course is to understand the basic key concepts, methods, views, and theories of Philosophy, along with fundamental elements of logical reasoning. This course explores central questions and issues in philosophy, including our knowledge of the external world, mind and body, sources of knowledge, freedom of will, values, ethics, and moral judgment. It does so through the perspectives of classical and contemporary philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, George Berkeley, René Descartes, John Locke, David Hume, Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Foucault, W. James, J. Dewey, Heidegger, and others. The course aims to help students evaluate and criticize interpretations of these philosophers and apply their views to different real-life problems. Additionally, it will develop a basic set of skills (critical, analytical, and problem-solving) that will improve students’ ability to think clearly and rationally.
Research skills are crucial for students in academic studies, and the ability to support their views with evidence will benefit them in any future career. This course aims to help students acquire 'research literacy' regarding the basic principles of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methodologies in the field of applied linguistics. Students will also have opportunities to gain hands-on experience with the research procedure through practical exercises. Moreover, they will learn how to use technologies for various purposes, such as referencing, data collection, and analysis.
This course is designed to acquaint students with scientific research methods to design and evaluate solutions for social issues, social problems, and issues with policy implications. Each student will be exposed to and provided with a set of conceptual tools and techniques that will enable them to understand the nature of scientific methods as they apply to social research. Emphasis will be placed on research design, problem formulation, data collection, development of instruments, conducting a research project, and the application of social research in different special fields of society.
This course will present a general overview of political events, organizations, and issues that contributed to the birth of Bangladesh. The course will focus on the various political histories of this land, along with iconic historical moments starting from the political events of ancient Bengal. This course will place emphasis on iconic historic moments, such as the Battle of Plassey in 1757, the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, the partition of Bengal in 1905 and its multiple nationalist implications, the partition of Bengal in 1947, the 1952 Language Movement, Pakistan's experiences as a background to the Liberation War of 1971, and the role of the father of the nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The course will help develop students’ knowledge of political and cultural traits, heritage, and socio-economic conditions in Bangladesh. It will focus on its historical background, the emergence of Bangladesh as a new nation, its social structure, politics, and governance.
The course is designed to give an introduction to the concepts and techniques of statistics used extensively in business and economics. The statistical techniques covered in this course are used in functional areas including marketing, production, economics, human resource, finance and accounting. Topics include frequency distribution, charts and graphs, measures of central tendency, measures of dispersion, probability & probability distribution, sampling and sampling distribution, theory of estimation and test of hypothesis. The course will focus on real data applications, quantitative literacy, statistical thinking and the use of statistical software.
At the core, this course provides a foundation for an understanding of statistics and help you gain confidence leveraging statistics to create strong business cases and make intelligent business decisions. This course examines the use of descriptive statistics, probability, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, analysis of variance, regression and correlation analysis, t-tests, and applications of technology for statistical analysis, including the interpretation of the relevance of statistical findings for business problem solving and decision making.
10. Arts and Aesthetics
The rationale of this course is learning wide fields of Art and its Aesthetic values time to time. They are supposed to learn the role of Film in our society. They’ll understand about Art Film and the contribution of Filmmakers, and through film show they’ll absorb the fine techniques of Direction, Screen play writing, Music, Lyrics, Casting, Costume designing, Editing etc. Before they go to world of visual art, they’re expected to learn the Art & elements of Design and Art & principles of Design to understand the visual elements like; line, shape, direction, size, texture, values, balance, gradation, repetition, contrast, harmony, dominance, unity etc. In color theory they’ll learn the role of color in work of art and life. In visual art they’ll learn the art movement of Impressionism, and other visual art topics like, Landscape Painting, Still life Painting, Portrait painting etc. Visit of museum and art gallery will give them direct contact with art works and artifacts and they’ll develop their aesthetic senses instantly. To learn the contemporary Art of Architecture of Bangladesh and will visit National assembly of Bangladesh to get a real architectural essence of Sansad Bhavan.
Finally, this course will eventually help students in getting familiar with key ideas of arts and aesthetics. They will acquire abilities to think critically using the concepts and methods of the visual and performing arts. This course will give them insights to understand “aesthetics in art” critically.
11. Logic and Philosophy
This course offers a comprehensive overview of Philosophy, covering its origins, nature, key concepts, and methodologies. It explores the perspectives and theories of prominent philosophers from various historical eras and addresses fundamental issues in Metaphysics, Ethics, Epistemology, and Logic. Additionally, it examines Philosophy's intersections with disciplines like Science, Literature and Architecture, interpreting philosophical ideas within architectural contexts. The course also highlights significant philosophical questions regarding the origin and nature of knowledge, the mind-body problem, free will, values, ethics, positive living, aesthetics, and moral judgment. It aims to foster students' critical thinking, improve their logical reasoning abilities, and empower them to apply philosophical ideas to real-life situations, thereby enhancing their problem-solving skills.
Partnerships
