Studying Sociology with us provides you with an exciting and up-to-date curriculum that allows you to gain a critical understanding of contemporary social issues at a local and global level.

You will gain a thorough grounding in research methods and will be provided with plenty of opportunities to practically apply your knowledge to different scenarios. In the second year of the course you will have the opportunity to take a compulsory placement module that includes skills-based workshops to enhance your employment prospects.

Recent placements have been in settings such as the Northampton Borough Council, primary and secondary schools, community centres, banking, HR departments, and the charity sector. In the second year you will also have the option to take a week long field trip to Abu Dhabi, the UAE. The course curriculum is designed to promote employability and includes specialist input from careers guidance experts. Recent graduates have described the course as “very supportive”, “very challenging”, “well structured and well taught” and “thoroughly enjoyable and mind expanding”.

Starting university is a big step and we want you to have everything you need from day one. That’s why if you choose to study this course full-time at Northampton from September 2018, you will be provided with your own brand new Hewlett Packard laptop* to keep at no additional cost. For more information on this and many other benefits you can enjoy, please visit our benefits webpages.

*Terms and conditions apply. Please see the benefits webpages for more information.

Course content

Sociology is an exciting and relevant subject, which will provide you with a range of practical and academic skills that are highly valued in today’s job market.

If you have a passionate interest in the problems of the contemporary world and their possible solutions, if you are intrigued by the way our own identities are shaped and moulded or if you simply want to know what makes society ‘tick’, then studying Sociology with us may be the right choice for you.

We will help you to establish a solid basis in the fundamentals of Sociology as a discipline and we’ll offer you a considerable range of specialist modules that give you the chance to pursue your own particular interests. This course gives you a taste of the world of work and allows you to apply your sociological skills in the ‘real’ world. 

Contemporary themes and issues included on our modules start from our own, familiar setting in Britain to embrace more general European and American concerns as well as global issues. You will have the opportunity to explore the following themes and issues throughout the course:

• gender issues
• youth cultures
• the impact of new technology
• the power of the mass media
• racism
• the problems of crime in contemporary Britain
• the ups and downs of relationships in the modern world or the politics of global relations

Our assessment strategies are regularly praised by our external examiners as being imaginative and varied. The majority of the modules in the second year are assessed solely through coursework, for example, with no exams. Our assessment strategies include: internet and electronic exercises, presentations (in groups or on your own), textual analyses, constructing annotated bibliographies. We provide you with plenty of support and guidance for each style of assessment used on the course. Throughout your time with us you can be sure that you will have supportive tutorial help both from the course leaders and your module staff.

Stage one

You will study the following three compulsory modules in your first year:

• The Sociology of Education
• Social Identities in the Global Age
• Inequalities, Diversity and Policy

Stage two

In the second year you will study two compulsory modules:

• Cultural and Social Transformations
• Research Methods for A Changing World 1

Plus a requirement to take further modules totalling 30 credits from various options including:

• Sociology Field Module
• Love and Intimacy in the 21st Century
• Media, Crime and Justice

If you are studying Sociology combined with Criminology or Politics as your joint combination you will need to take a Research Methods module. This can only be taken once and therefore an additional designated module must be taken in its place from your second subject.

Stage three

Joint honours students must take ‘Modernity and Beyond’ and two designated modules to make 60 credits and then must take 60 credits from their other subject to total 120 level six credits. Joint students must take a dissertation module from one of their subjects. Other taught modules include:

• Development and Change in the Global South
• Ideology, Fantasy and Film
• Difference, Othering and Spoiled Identity

Module information is quoted for 17/18 entry. Please note that modules run subject to student numbers and staff availability, any changes will be communicated to applicants accordingly.

Opportunities Abroad

Optional International field trip module.

Assessments

Our assessments are regularly praised by our external examiners as being imaginative and varied. Assessments used on this course include essays, seminar portfolios, seen and unseen exams, internet-based exercises, group presentations, research projects, and academic posters.

Facilities and Special Features

We are actively engaged in research and we see this as vital to renew our enthusiasm for the subject, and as an important means of informing our teaching.

Reading List

The preparatory reading list is available to download.

Career Opportunities

The skills, knowledge and competencies that you will develop equip you for a wide range of careers. Our graduates have pursued careers in areas such as teaching, research, social work, community organisations, local government, and Human Resources.

Work Experience

Timetables permitting, you will complete a three week placement in your second year. The placement module includes a number of skills-based workshops to enhance your employability and helps to prepare you for work in your host institution.

“I enjoyed every minute of my placement. I am so thankful for this experience; it is definitely something I won’t forget. It has confirmed my aspirations for the future as well as helping me to improve some of the life and academic skills I will need in the future” (Primary School placement, 2013)

“The placement really made me think about the future. It also gave me confidence to approach people I did not know…..” (HR placement, 2013)

For application information please see our how to apply page.

Standard entry requirements apply. A typical offer would be BCC at A Level or DMM at BTEC. We welcome international applicants and applications from those with a range of non-traditional educational or professional qualifications.

This course is available to international students.

Full-time international tuition fees

For information on our international tuition fees, please see our Tuition fees for international students page.

Please note that tuition fees for EU students will remain the same as UK fees for 2018/19. For more information, please visit the Gov UK website.

How to apply as an international student

For information on how to apply to study with us, please see our How to apply page.

Scholarships available to international students

For information on the scholarships available to you as an international student, please see our International scholarships page.