Program Overview

In one of the most culturally diverse and socially complex cities in the world, you'll be introduced to ideas on globalisation, social inequality, identity, and ethnicity and race. As you prepare for social and public policy careers in the private, public or voluntary sectors, you'll learn skills to address multidisciplinary concerns relevant to a variety of public issues and have opportunities to take up a work placement and to study in other European countries. By the end of the course you'll be qualified to apply sociological perspectives, concepts and research methods to the most challenging social issues facing us today.

The Sociology BSc (Hons) degree is equipped with practical and transferable skills for research in the real world. You'll develop a systematic understanding of the key aspects of sociology, including a coherent and detailed understanding of specific areas.

You'll learn the most up-to-date techniques to devise and sustain arguments and to solve problems, consider current research, or equivalent advanced scholarship, and recognise the uncertainty, ambiguity and limits of its knowledge.

Making use of scholarly reviews and primary sources, you'll critically evaluate arguments, assumptions, abstract concepts and data, and examine how to communicate information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialist and non-specialist audiences. Exercising initiative and personal responsibility, you'll develop skills for decision-making in complex and unpredictable contexts.

By examining global inequalities in the twenty-first century and our work and working lives, you'll explore what is meant by the sociological imagination and also have the option to study homelessness and housing policy, gender and sexuality or to take up a sociology and social policy work placement.

The sociology placement, available to students entering their third year, is usually undertaken over the summer period, between years one and two.

The emphasis of this course is very much on the applied and practical nature of sociology and sociological research and a variety of teaching and learning methods are used to deliver a course that is both stimulating and relevant.

While developing the social experience, interests and understanding that stems from experiencing a diversity of educational, ethnic and social backgrounds, you'll receive the training, skills and understanding of specialist areas of study that are required to pursue a social and public policy-related career in national or local government, or the voluntary sector, or to apply the social research techniques you have learned to a wide range of private sector jobs.