The Faculty - its beginning and its subsequent development

1959 - 1969

Teaching in Social Science courses such as Economics, Political Science, Government and Sociology commented in the Faculty of Arts at Mona.

Faculty of Social Sciences was established with two Departments: Economics and Government.

The Department of Government introduced two non-degree programmes: a one-year diploma in Public Administration; a two year certificate in Social Administration (changed in 1962 to Certificate in Social Work). 

At the end of the 1961-62 academic year, the first class of Social Science students graduated, being conferred with the BSc Economics degree but with specializations in Economics, Government, Political Science and Sociology.

Department of Sociology was established:  Teaching in the Social Sciences was started at Cave Hill Campus and the Certificate in Social Work was transferred to the Department of Sociology.

The following developments took place between 1963 and 1969:

The Diploma (For graduates) and the Certificate in Management Studies were introduced.

The title of the undergraduate degree programmes was altered from the common designation of the BSc, (Economics) and degrees were granted carrying the name and field of concentration.

Undergraduate degree programmes were offered in Management Studies, accounting, International Relations. Social Administration (later discontinued), and Applied Social Studies (1969 but, in 1974, renamed Social Work).

Graduate Studies in Economics, Government and Sociology began.

1970 - 1988

A Certificate in Public Administration was introduced in the Department of Government.

An undergraduate degree programme in Hotel Management was established in the Bahamas at the new UWI Centre for Hotel Management with Part 1 of the programme being taught at the three campuses and, by special arrangement, at the College of the Bahamas.

The most interesting and significant development took place in the Faculty’s outreach activities. The first was the introduction of the Challenge Scheme which enables candidates in non-campus territories to sit Part I of the degree courses without attending a campus. The second was the Certificate in Public Administration (CPA), which was extended to non-campus territories subject to the availability of classroom instruction and teaching materials. Both schemes were supported by UWI Distance Teaching Experiment (UWIDITE, now UWIDEC).

A Certificate in Business Administration was approved primarily for non-campus territories.

The MSc Accounting, MPhil and PhD degrees in Government and Sociology were offered.

An undergraduate degree option in Tourism Management was introduced at the UWI Centre for Hotel Management (later to renamed Centre for Hotel and Tourism Management) in the Bahamas, with Part 1 of the programme to be taught in a similar way as the BSc Hotel Management.

A Diploma in Population Studies was offered for a three year period.

A Diploma in Health Management and a Certificate in Energy Management were instituted. (These were offered for a few years only for the duration of the special funding provided).

A MSc. in Social Sciences (later renamed Development Studies) was offered within the Consortium Graduate School of Social Sciences, Mona. The School was a joint collaborative effort of the UWI, Mona Campus and the University of Guyana.

Changes were made to the MSc. Sociology to introduce a Masters degree by course work. (This was later adopted by other masters’ programmes).

The name of the Department of Sociology was changed to Sociology and Social Work.

Institutes of Business (Mona and St. Augustine) and the Centre of Management Development (Cave Hill) were launched and links were established with the business communities in the respective territories.

Institute of Business-IOB (now Mona School of Business-MSB) introduced graduate programme namely: the Executive Masters in Business Administration (EMBA) 1989-90 and the Masters in Public Sector Management (MPSM) 1994-95. In addition MIOB offered Cohort I MBA part-time (1997-98): Cohort I MBA full-time (1998-99); MPSM redesigned as MBA Public Sector Management. A Diploma in Public Sector Management as also started.

1989 - 1999   

The degree in Business Economics and Social Statistics (BESS) was offered by the Department of Economics.

The Department of Management Studies in collaboration with the Department of Computer Science in the Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences jointly offered a computer based MSc. Management and Information Systems.

The Department of Sociology and Social Work introduced the following new programmes: Master of Social Work (MSW) in 1993; Diploma in Social Work – for non Social Work graduates in 1994; Diploma in Sociology - for non Sociology graduates in 1995; A self-funded Masters in Human Resource Development in 1996; A Diploma in Population Development was introduced and offered with funding from UNFPA in 1997.

A Masters programme in International Business was introduced by the Department of Management Studies.

The Faculty embarked on a franchising arrangement with a number of Tertiary Level Institutions (primarily community colleges) to deliver its Certificate programmes. These were no longer to be offered at Mona but the respective Departments maintained coordinating and final examination responsibility for the continued award of UWI Certificates.

The BSc in Hospitality and Tourism Management was introduced as a joint degree by the University of Technology and UWI through the Faculty of Social Sciences.

The Faculty’s Honours Society was established. Those who have excelled in the academics as well as those who have performed exemplarily in the co-curricular activities of the university were inducted. The first set of inductees was drawn from the batch of graduates of 1998-99 and featured First Class Honours Degrees.

The Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Research (SALISES) was established in August 1999 out of a merger of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) and the Consortium Graduate School of Social Sciences (CGSS). The institute is headed by a University Director, currently Head of the unit at Cave Hill, with other Directors at Mona and St. Augustine.

2000 - 2010

The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences instituted Dean’s Breakfast in recognition of top students within the Faculty. Top students in the second and third year of their studies meet with the Dean and the Heads of Departments to share breakfast and have fellowship with one another. An undergraduate degree in Demography was started in the Department of Sociology and Social Work.

The BSc in African and African Diaspora Studies was started in the Department of Government.

The Department of Sociology and Social Work, in collaboration with the Department of Community Health and Psychiatry, offered the MSc. in Clinical Psychology for the first time.

The Centre for Caribbean Thought (CCT) in the Department of Government was launched with a view to increase awareness of the field of Caribbean intellectual thought and knowledge about Caribbean intellectuals.

The Department of Sociology and Social Work had its name changed to Sociology, Psychology and Social Work during the academic year (March 2002).

The Department of Economics in collaboration with the Department of Management Studies introduced an undergraduate degree in Banking and Finance.

A MSc. in Demography was introduced in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work.

A BSc in Social Policy and Development and an MSc in Applied Psychology were introduced in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work in 2003.

In 2004, the undergraduate degree programme in the Department of Management Studies was fully restructured and, after a common first year, five areas of specialization (with 15 level II/III courses) were introduced - (a) Management Studies (General),  (b) Accounting (c) Marketing  (d) Human Resource Management  (e) Operations Management.

The Department of Economics in association with the Department of Government introduced a Masters degree in International Economics and International Law as a full-time programme.

The Western Jamaica Campus opened in Montego Bay in 2008.

The Weekend Programme (Saturday) accepted its first chort of students to read for BSc degrees in Management Studies (Accounting) option and Banking and Finance in 2009.  A year later the programme was expanded to include the BSc Management Studies (General) option.

The flamboyant Poinciana (Delonix regia) was designated the official Faculty tree in 2010.  The tree’s beautiful orange-red petals are symbolic of the Faculty colour which is Colour Wheel orange.