TIK4011 – Science and technology in politics and society

Course content

Science is key for how we understand, handle, and also try to solve sustainability issues. But how is knowledge put to use? What is the interplay between science, publics, and politics? How are issues shaped and judgments performed? How is the worth of nature calculated, the value of life assessed, and the costs of climate change taken into account? What is the role of AI and digital technologies in shaping issues and engaged publics? These are core questions of this course, where you will be introduced to important and recent methods and approaches in STS for studying economic practices such as green finance, the life sciences, the climate issue, and the digital. You will learn about valuation studies, social studies of markets, and care studies and work partly hands-on with digital methods. Site-visits and meetings with practitioners who work on the above issues form part of the course.

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This course is a specialization course in science and technology studies (STS).

Learning outcome

Knowledge

  • Advanced insight into the interplay between science and politics and topics such as climate change, life science, green finance, and the digital society.
  • Advanced insight into methods for studying the above topics, such as valuation studies, STS-literature on economization and social studies of markets and bioeconomies.
  • Analyse issues as they play out at particular sites institutionally, historically, and politically.

Skills

  • Ability to analyse complex cases and ongoing issues and controversies.
  • Ability to critically engage with key literature in encounters with empirical cases and materials.
  • Ability to employ conceptual tools and methods in STS for analyzing politics, natural science, and economy.

Competences

  • Ability to read advanced literature and cases and develop your own analysis in written and oral form.
  • Ability to observe how different forms of expertise approach issues.
  • Be prepared to have the relevant competence to write a master thesis in STS and related fields.

Admission to the course

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.

The course is applicable for master programme students from humanities/social sciences if they meet the prerequisites. Students from TIK Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture have a priority, other students are admitted if there is capacity.

Formal prerequisite knowledge

Teaching

Lectures will take place between February and April. You need to participate in at least three obligatory activities. This is a prerequisite for sitting the exam.

Obligatory coursework:

  • Each module will have an obligatory activity at the end
  • The activity will be either a presentation, participation in discussion or a short written assignment

Examination

One week individual home-exam. Length: 6000 Words (+/-20%).

Language of examination

The exam assignment will be given in English. ESST students must write their exam paper in English, while TIK students may choose between English and Norwegian.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Resit an examination

If you are sick or have another valid reason for not attending the regular exam, we offer a postponed exam later in the same semester.

See also our information about resitting an exam.

More about examinations at UiO

You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.

Last updated from FS (Felles studentsystem) Apr. 9, 2026 6:48:31 AM

Facts about this course

Level
Master
Credits
10
Teaching
Spring
Examination
Spring
Teaching language
English

Contact

Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture