Politics and Sociology with Professional Development BSc

About the Course

This degree provides an innovative combination of high-level study into both politics and sociology. As well as gaining a firm understanding of key political institutions and players, which form a framework to understanding contemporary social and political issues, you will study challenging sociology topics in one of the best Schools in the country.

About the School of Social Sciences

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together with politics and history constitute the Social Sciences at Brunel, and we offer a wide range of BSc courses across these subject areas.

The focus of study is upon all aspects of human behaviour: its personal, social and cultural dimensions. We have a strong research reputation that enhances all our undergraduate teaching, with particular expertise in areas such as: neuropsychology; psychoanalysis; developmental psychology; social psychology; contemporary social structure and social change; popular culture and the media; ethnicity and kinship; and power, inequality and prejudice in modern societies. All of our academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field.

We provide a stimulating introduction to the social sciences by teaching a broad base of cross-disciplinary modules in the first year. Thereafter, you specialise increasingly in your particular disciplines.

Our courses will help you to develop specific skills in the practical methods associated with your discipline, including ethnographic fieldwork. A full range of laboratory and technical facilities is used in the teaching of experimental psychology, including video production, psychophysics and information technology.

Politics and History brochure
Sociology and Communications brochure

Aims

Studying Politics enables students to address critical political questions, such as: ‘Who has political power?’ ‘Why do they have it?’ ‘To whom are they accountable?’ ‘In whose interest do they exercise it?’ ‘What is globalisation?’ ‘Is violent protest ever justified?’

Brunel Sociology degrees provide rigorous training in a range of appropriate methodologies and research skills.

Enquiries

Dr Niall Palmer
Admissions Tutor

Helen Stevenson
Admissions and Marketing Administrator
School of Social Sciences
Tel: +44 (0)1895 265952
Email: helen.stevenson@brunel.ac.uk

Related Courses

• Politics BSc
• Politics with Professional Development BSc
• Psychology and Sociology BSc
• Psychology and Sociology with Professional Development BSc
• Anthropology and Sociology BSc
• Anthropology and Sociology with Professional Development BSc

Special Features

• You have good access to some the best research facilities in the UK, and Westminster and Whitehall are within easy reach.
  
  
• You have the chance to spend a period of study in New York, Rennes, Stuttgart and Helsinki through our student exchange programme.
  
  
• We have good links with key political figures and institutions.
  

Facts and Figures

Our courses are designed and taught by experts in the fields of politics, international relations, social policy and contemporary history who have been nationally and internationally recognised for the excellence of their research.

Course Content

In the Politics half of this course, you will take core modules in political science methods, British politics, political theory, comparative politics, democratisation, and the politics of the EU, and you will have the option of taking more specialised options at Levels 2 and 3. At Levels 1 and 2 you will have a mixture of core and optional modules. At Level 3 you can choose topics to suit your own personal interests and strengths.

In the Sociology half of this degree, students have the chance to study a broad range of social science topics, including sociology, social theory, social anthropology, psychology, communications and media. You will take core modules offering an understanding of the main currents in the social sciences, such as individual and social processes, research methods for social sciences, and social theory, culture and modernity.

You will also select from a range of specialist modules in politics and sociology and write a dissertation which draws on either or both.

Typical Modules

Please note that module availability is subject to change

Level 1 Core

• Political Science Methods
• Central Themes in Political Thought
• Modern British Politics
• Introduction to Social Research Methods
• Introduction to Sociology
• Globalisation

Level 2 Core

• Comparative Politics
• Social Divisions: Difference and Resistance
• Work and Society
• Sociology of Everyday Life: Issues in Contemporary Culture

Level 2 Options

• Asia-Pacific International Relations: Modern East-West Encounters
• Democracy and Democratisation
• International Relations
• Issues in American Politics
• The Holocaust
• Total War in the Modern Era
• US Foreign Policy from World War II to the end of the Cold War

Level 2 (Year 3)

• Work Placement

Level 3 Core

• European Union Politics: Problems and Prospects
• Dissertation

Level 3 Options

• The Arab-Israeli Conflict
• Empire, Imperialism, Hegemony
• India and the World: The International Relations of a Rising Power
• Media, Politics and Power in America
• Marx and Marxism
• Parties and Voters in the UK
• Intelligence and National Security
• Theory and Practice of Cultural Diversity
• Fascism
• The Second World War
• The History and Politics of Heritage
• History, Travel and the Sea
• Rethinking Modern Europe: Borders, Nations and Identities since 1850
  
• City Lives and Urban Cultures
• Comedy, Culture and the Media
• Multiculturalism: "Race", Ethnicity and Difference
  
• Understanding Audiences
• Crime, Deviance and Addiction
• Popular Music and Popular Culture
• The Age of New Media
• Forensic Science and Society

Final year dissertation

Students produce a 15,000 word dissertation on a subject of their choice. This major piece of work will give you a valuable opportunity to demonstrate research and writing skills. It is written on a subject relevant to your particular course of study and may well relate to your future career plans.

Teaching and Learning

Our approach

We pursue excellence in both teaching and research. Our aim is to produce degree programmes which combine innovative and classical teaching methods with leading-edge research, and which recognise the value of practical work experience in the learning process. We take great pride in both the quality of teaching and the extensive pastoral care of our students.

Staff expertise

All members of the academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field. All of them write important books, publish well-regarded scholarly articles and present papers to universities at home and abroad. Their innovative findings feed into your courses to ensure that teaching is up-to-date, and you will benefit from their exciting contacts and inside knowledge.

We have an unusually strong concentration of sociologists who specialise in the study of issues related to science, technology and the environment.

Many politics academics are regular media performers worldwide and their research has led to major television and radio programmes. Several staff act as paid consultants to government Departments (such as the Home Office and the departments of Education, Employment, Health and Social Security) and major national newspapers.

Student support

We are committed to helping you progress confidently through the levels of your degree programme. To achieve this, we devote as much care to your initiation into higher education, both by entry-level courses and study skills teaching, as to the completion of your learning at Level 3.

By your final year, therefore, you will be in a position to benefit from the specialist research-led courses and will be prepared for the research and writing involved in your dissertation.

Overseas exchanges

Students are encouraged to take advantage of the University’s exchange scheme with the State University of New York at Brockport (which includes the opportunity to do a work placement in Washington or Albany). You may also be able to study at those EU universities with whom we have partnerships in the Socrates programme (eg Rennes, Stuttgart and Helsinki).

How will I be taught?

Modules are generally taught by a mixture of lectures and seminars. Depending on its credit-rating, you can expect to have one or two hours of lectures per week for each module and a one-hour seminar each week or fortnight.

The bulk of every student’s work, however, will undoubtedly consist of private study. On average this should absorb approximately 25 to 30 hours of your life each week.

Lectures – These provide a broad overview of key themes and ideas relating to your course and provide you with a framework from which to carry out more in-depth study.

Seminars – These relatively small groups are used for subjects where the lecture material is examined in more detail, and theoretical concepts are analysed and applied in specific contexts. Seminars provide students with an opportunity for discussion, argument and the development of presentational skills.

One-to-one – You will get one-to-one supervision on your final year dissertation and at all levels you will have a personal tutor who is available to discuss personal and academic problems. If you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will ensure your progress and provide further support if you need it.

Private study – Real learning requires active involvement by you. Lecturers and seminar leaders can provide guidance and help but you must develop the ability to organise your studies. During your first months at Brunel, you are given help and advice designed to encourage you to become an ‘independent learner’, capable of managing your work effectively.

External visits – Wherever possible we aim to introduce students to the benefits which stem from observing politics in action and from the personal experience of other political systems and ideas. You will visit important political sites in the UK (the University is a short distance from Parliament), and depending on the options you select, you may visit overseas.

Assessment

Level 1 does not count towards your final degree mark. Level 2 is worth a third, and Level 3 is worth two-thirds. The final year dissertation is worth a third of Level 3 marks.

All modules are assessed at the end of the term in which they are taken. Exact assessment patterns vary, but most are based on a combination of coursework and formal written exams. Typically, coursework marks constitute 25-50% of overall module grades.

Employability

Knowledge and understanding of statistics and research skills as well as new information and communication technologies are particularly useful assets in the job market. A major attraction of our courses is the wide variety of career opportunities to which they can lead. Not surprisingly, our graduates have gone on to important careers in public and private life.

Careers

Past students have gone on to further training in law, accountancy, personnel management and other graduate degrees. They have joined the Civil Service (fast stream), have gone into publishing, journalism and the media including BBC Radio and Granada Television, have entered major financial and accountancy firms such as PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Lloyds Bowmaker Finance Group, and have entered the fields of management and marketing with firms such as Ford, Metal Box and Rank Xerox.

Politics students benefit from excellent career prospects – graduates have gone on to become politicians, have joined local and national government organisations, or work in the private sector.
 
Sociologists are in increasing demand in many sectors in social welfare and policy, in local government and administration (including lobbying, campaigning and fundraising), in medicine, in education and research, and in industry. If you are thinking of a career in any of these fields, it may also be possible to select work experience in these areas. There are also openings available in business, particularly marketing and advertising, management, media, and recruitment, as well as computing, consultancy and teaching.

Placements

You can take a one-year, professional work placement – past students have worked for the Home Office, Treasury, Houses of Parliament and organisations such as Epolitix.com and Politics International. Few other sociology degrees contain work placements, let alone high quality organised placements. Students benefit from our excellent links with external organisations.

The positive impact of a sandwich placement on graduate employment outcomes across Brunel is considerable. Those who have done placements are also much more likely to be in employment for which they their degree was a formal requirement or where they believe their degree gave them a competitive advantage in recruitment.

Placement leavers from Politics experienced the following outcomes:

• 87.5% progressed into employment or further study
• 71.4% were engaged in a graduate-level activity (employment or further study)
• 60.0% of employed leavers were working in the top three categories of graduate level employment
• The average starting salary was £33,000.

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time; £1,000 placement year

International students: £12,000 full-time

We are introducing over 700 scholarships for 2013, meaning that one in five applicants who join Brunel next year will receive financial support from the University. See our fees and funding page for full details

Fees quoted are per annum and are subject to an annual increase.

Entry Requirements for 2013 Entry

• GCE A-level Typical offer AAB (General Studies/Critical Thinking accepted). Applicants who have already achieved at least ABB at A-level and have Personal Statements showing a strong interest in the course and transferable skills will also be considered. Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants within this range.
• Irish Leaving Certificate AAABB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers AAB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade A in Creative and Media, Society, Health and Development, Public Services or Business, Administration and Finance, plus an A-level at Grade B for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*D*D in a related subject.
• IBDP 35 points.
• Access Complete and pass a related subject Access course with 45 credits at Level 3, of which 30 credits must be at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit or higher.
  

For all of the above, 5 GCSEs or equivalent at Grade C or above are also required, to include English and Maths (please note that these must have been gained by the time you submit your UCAS application).

English Language Requirements

Brunel also offers our own BrunELT English Test and accept a range of other language courses. We also have a range of Pre-sessional English language courses, for students who do not meet these requirements, or who wish to improve their English.