Undergraduate Programmes

About the Course

Anthropology offers a unique and powerful means for understanding cultural and social diversity in the modern world. It is concerned with contemporary issues such as multiculturalism, identity politics, racism and ethnic nationalism, changing forms of the family, religious conflict, gender, and the political role of culture. It also addresses perennial questions about human nature, such as, ‘What do we have in common with each other cross-culturally?’ and ‘What makes us different?’ If you are intrigued by these questions and want to study a discipline that will enrich your everyday life as well as equip you for a great variety of occupations, anthropology is for you.

Enquiries

Contact Admissions online
Tel +44 (0)1895 265265

View the Anthropology webpages

Related Courses

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

Special Features

The latest thinking
You will be taught by an internationally respected team of anthropologists who have conducted fieldwork in five continents on religion, witchcraft, disability, memory, nationalism, political violence, social hierarchies, race, ethnicity, and ecology. Their innovative research  feeds directly into teaching.

Best of both worlds
Brunel offers you a foundation in core topics such as politics, religion and kinship, and the chance to venture into specialised areas like medical anthropology, psychological anthropology and the anthropology of childhood, education and youth and international development.

Fieldwork based research for dissertations and work placements abroad
All our students undertake fieldwork for their dissertations. Projects have included work in a Nepalese monastery, a South African women’s refuge, the Police Complaints Authority (on the Stephen Lawrence case), as well as in schools and charities. Uniquely for a British university, studying anthropology at Brunel will always mean applying what you have read to what you discover in real-life situations. Half our students on the four-year degree spend their second placement abroad, doing research in countries like South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.

International exchange programme
Students can take advantage of the opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s ERASMUS scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.

Brunel Anthropology Society
Brunel has a thriving Anthropology Society  which organises talks, socials, pub quizzes, film screenings, fieldtrips and other events - a great way to meet people and take anthropology beyond the classroom. For the latest events, see: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BrunelAnthSociety/.

Best employment rates
As a result of the unique profession-enhancing research experiences we offer, Brunel’s anthropology graduates have the best employment rates in the UK. Our graduates find jobs in education, NGOs,  international development, the charity sector,  medical and health professions, film, journalism and business.

Course Content

Level 1 offers a grounding in the central themes and debates in anthropology; introduces students to the international work being carried out by the teaching staff; and explores the practicalities of undertaking anthropological fieldwork. 

At Level 2, you will take more advanced modules in the history and theory of anthropology, alongside modules covering on topics such as kinship, ethnicity, religion, sex and gender and regional ethnography.

At Level 3, in addition to training in contemporary anthropological theory, students select from a range of topics as varied as personhood, the body, disability, medical anthropology, international development, childhood and youth, education, and psychological and psychiatric anthropology.

The BSc consists of both core and optional modules; a typical selection can be found below. Modules can vary from year to year, but these offer a good idea of what we teach.

Dissertation

All students write a 10-15,000 word dissertation in their final year (which, on four-year degrees, usually draws on research conducted during the second Work Placement). This is on a topic of your choice. In past years, students have written on topics such as:

• A New Age Settler Colony in South India
• The Effectiveness of AIDS Education Programmes
• The Role of Indigenous Healers in a South African Village
• Migration and Social Investment in a Mexican Village
• Exploring Modern Urban Paganism

MODULES

Core

Level 1

• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes and Debates
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking
• Fieldwork Encounters: Thinking Through Ethnography
• Anthropology through Film
• Research Methods in Anthropology
• Individual and Social Processes

Level 2

• Ethnicity, Culture and Identity
• Ethnography of the Contemporary World - Selected Regions
• Classical Anthropological Theory
• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Kinship, Sex and Gender

Level 3

• Contemporary Anthropological Theory

Optional

• Anthropology and Global Health
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropological Perspectives on War and Humanitarianism
• The Anthropology of the Body
• The Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• The Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• The Anthropology of Education and Learning
• The Anthropology of International Development
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• The Anthropology of the Person
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology

Teaching and Learning

Brunel offers you the best of both worlds: a solid foundation in core anthropological topics such as politics, religion and kinship, and the chance to venture into new and cutting-edge areas, notably in medical anthropology and the anthropology of childhood, education and youth.

Our courses are ethnographically grounded, covering a broad range of issues and societies across the world, from rural Java to the urban centres of South Africa. Our programmes are split into modules, each of which deals with a distinct topic.

Our approach
We pursue excellence in both teaching and research. Our aim is to produce degree programmes that 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. As a student at Brunel you will also be assigned a personal tutor who will oversee your academic and personal development during your degree.

The latest thinking
All our modules are run by lecturers who are actively conducting research and publishing on these issues, so you will be taught by real specialists in the field.  Their innovative findings ensure that teaching is topical and interesting.

How will I be taught?
Like most social science subjects, anthropology is taught through a mixture of lectures and small discussion groups or seminars. For each module, you will usually attend one lecture and one seminar every week. You will need to spend much of the rest of your time in the library studying independently, or, depending on your assignments, out in the field conducting interviews or undertaking participant observation. 

Lectures
Most modules involve one or two hours of lectures a week. These provide a broad overview of key concepts 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 to discuss the content of lectures and issues arising from the modules. Seminar activities, based on both discussion of readings and small group work, are structured to ensure active student participation and to allow students to clarify their own ideas in an atmosphere of discussion and debate.

Research work
All students take part in practical modules that engage directly with ethnographic methods, including participant-observation, interviewing, and other more specific research techniques. As you progress through the course, direction by staff over the design and implementation of projects is reduced.

One-to-one
You will have 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. When you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will monitor your progress and provide further support if you need it. Lecturers are usually available to answer particular queries outside of scheduled hours – either in one-to-one tutorials or by email.

Assessment

Each of your modules will be assessed through a mixture of essays, examinations and other projects and tasks. Exam results from level 1 do not count towards your final degree mark but you have to pass this level to continue with your degree. Level 2 is worth a third, and Level 3 is worth the rest. The final year dissertation is worth a third of Level 3 marks.

We want each of our students to fulfil their potential. Brunel also offers great advice and support to help you develop your study skills and we are active in supporting students with dyslexia and other disabilities.

Employability

Students who pursue the three-year degree in Anthropology undertake empirical research for their final year projects, gaining experience and contacts vital for future employment in a world that increasingly expects job candidates to offer something more than a degree certificate. Brunel anthropology graduates are amongst the most employable in the country.

Careers

Students of Anthropology can go on to pursue both private and public sector careers including work with governmental organisations like the United Nations and with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like Save the Children and Oxfam.

Others now work as teachers, journalists and research officers in the health and social sectors, and in other professions requiring knowledge of social and cultural processes.

Some pursue further research degrees in anthropology and become academic anthropologists.

Placements

Students can choose to study either a three-year degree course or the four-year sandwich degree course. Students on our four year sandwich course (with Professional Development) have the opportunity to gain professional work experience in a variety of settings. We have excellent links with a wide range of external organisations providing high quality placements. Students develop invaluable skills and in some cases have been offered graduate positions within the organisations where they undertook their work placements.

Around half our Anthropology students carry out a placement or fieldwork abroad, in places as wide ranging as India, Nepal, Australia, South Africa, Papua New Guinea and Jamaica. Recent UK placement destinations include the Royal Anthropological Institute, Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, Amnesty International and the Department of Health.

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 Social Anthropology experienced the following outcomes:

• 100.0% progressed into employment or further study
• 100.0% were engaged in a graduate-level activity (employment or further study)
• 100.0% of employed leavers were working in the top three categories of graduate level employment
• The average starting salary was £15,000.
  

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time

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 ABB (General Studies/Critical Thinking accepted as third A-Level).
• Irish Leaving Certificate AABBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers ABB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade A in Society, Health and Development plus a C at A-level for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*DD in a related subject.
• IBDP 33 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.

About the Course

Anthropology offers a unique and powerful means for understanding cultural and social diversity in the modern world. It is concerned with contemporary issues such as multiculturalism, identity politics, racism and ethnic nationalism, changing forms of the family, religious conflict, gender, and the political role of culture. It also addresses perennial questions about human nature, such as, ‘What do we have in common with each other cross-culturally?’ and ‘What makes us different?’ If you are intrigued by these questions and want to study a discipline that will enrich your everyday life as well as equip you for a great variety of occupations, anthropology is for you.

Enquiries

Dr James Staples
Admissions Tutor
Helen Stevenson
Undergraduate Admissions Administrator
+44 (0)1895 265952
Email: Helen.Stevenson@brunel.ac.uk

For more information about the Department visit: http://www.brunel.ac.uk/sss/anthropology

Related Courses

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

Special Features

The latest thinking
You will be taught by an internationally respected team of anthropologists who have conducted fieldwork in five continents on religion, witchcraft, disability, memory, nationalism, political violence, social hierarchies, race, ethnicity, and ecology. Their innovative research  feeds directly into teaching.

Best of both worlds
Brunel offers you a foundation in core topics such as politics, religion and kinship, and the chance to venture into specialised areas like medical anthropology, psychological anthropology and the anthropology of childhood, education and youth and international development.

Fieldwork based research for dissertations and work placements abroad
All our students undertake fieldwork for their dissertations. Projects have included work in a Nepalese monastery, a South African women’s refuge, the Police Complaints Authority (on the Stephen Lawrence case), as well as in schools and charities. Uniquely for a British university, studying anthropology at Brunel will always mean applying what you have read to what you discover in real-life situations. Half our students on the four-year degree spend their second placement abroad, doing research in countries like South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.

International exchange programme
Students can take advantage of the opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s ERASMUS scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.

Brunel Anthropology Society
Brunel has a thriving Anthropology Society  which organises talks, socials, pub quizzes, film screenings, fieldtrips and other events - a great way to meet people and take anthropology beyond the classroom. For the latest events, see: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BrunelAnthSociety/.

Best employment rates
As a result of the unique profession-enhancing research experiences we offer, Brunel’s anthropology graduates have the best employment rates in the UK. Our graduates find jobs in education, NGOs,  international development, the charity sector,  medical and health professions, film, journalism and business.

Course Content

Level 1 offers a grounding in the central themes and debates in anthropology; introduces students to the international work being carried out by the teaching staff; and explores the practicalities of undertaking anthropological fieldwork.

At Level 2, you will take more advanced modules in the history and theory of anthropology, alongside modules covering on topics such as kinship, ethnicity, religion, sex and gender and regional ethnography.

At Level 3, in addition to training in contemporary anthropological theory, students select from a range of topics as varied as personhood, the body, disability, medical anthropology, international development, childhood and youth, education, and psychological and psychiatric anthropology.

The BSc consists of both core and optional modules; a typical selection can be found below. Modules can vary from year to year, but these offer a good idea of what we teach.

Dissertation

All students write a 10-15,000 word dissertation in their final year (which, on four-year degrees, usually draws on research conducted during the second Work Placement). This is on a topic of your choice. In past years, students have written on topics such as:

• A New Age Settler Colony in South India
• The Effectiveness of AIDS Education Programmes
• The Role of Indigenous Healers in a South African Village
• Migration and Social Investment in a Mexican Village
• Exploring Modern Urban Paganism

MODULES

Core

Level 1

• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes and Debates
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking
• Fieldwork Encounters: Thinking Through Ethnography
• Anthropology through Film
• Research Methods in Anthropology
• Individual and Social Processes

Level

• Ethnicity, Culture and Identity
• Ethnography of the Contemporary World - Selected Regions
• Classical Anthropological Theory
• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Kinship, Sex and Gender

Level 3

• Contemporary Anthropological Theory

Optional

• Anthropology and Global Health
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropological Perspectives on War and Humanitarianism
• The Anthropology of the Body
• The Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• The Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• The Anthropology of Education and Learning
• The Anthropology of International Development
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• The Anthropology of the Person
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology

Teaching and Learning

Brunel offers you the best of both worlds: a solid foundation in core anthropological topics such as politics, religion and kinship, and the chance to venture into new and cutting-edge areas, notably in medical anthropology and the anthropology of childhood, education and youth.

Our courses are ethnographically grounded, covering a broad range of issues and societies across the world, from rural Java to the urban centres of South Africa. Our programmes are split into modules, each of which deals with a distinct topic.

Our approach
We pursue excellence in both teaching and research. Our aim is to produce degree programmes that 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. As a student at Brunel you will also be assigned a personal tutor who will oversee your academic and personal development during your degree.

The latest thinking
All our modules are run by lecturers who are actively conducting research and publishing on these issues, so you will be taught by real specialists in the field.  Their innovative findings ensure that teaching is topical and interesting.

How will I be taught?
Like most social science subjects, anthropology is taught through a mixture of lectures and small discussion groups or seminars. For each module, you will usually attend one lecture and one seminar every week. You will need to spend much of the rest of your time in the library studying independently, or, depending on your assignments, out in the field conducting interviews or undertaking participant observation. 

Lectures
Most modules involve one or two hours of lectures a week. These provide a broad overview of key concepts 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 to discuss the content of lectures and issues arising from the modules. Seminar activities, based on both discussion of readings and small group work, are structured to ensure active student participation and to allow students to clarify their own ideas in an atmosphere of discussion and debate.

Research work
All students take part in practical modules that engage directly with ethnographic methods, including participant-observation, interviewing, and other more specific research techniques. As you progress through the course, direction by staff over the design and implementation of projects is reduced.

One-to-one
You will have 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. When you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will monitor your progress and provide further support if you need it. Lecturers are usually available to answer particular queries outside of scheduled hours – either in one-to-one tutorials or by email.

Assessment

Each of your modules will be assessed through a mixture of essays, examinations and other projects and tasks. Exam results from level 1 do not count towards your final degree mark but you have to pass this level to continue with your degree. Level 2 is worth a third, and Level 3 is worth the rest. The final year dissertation is worth a third of Level 3 marks.

We want each of our students to fulfil their potential. Brunel also offers great advice and support to help you develop your study skills and we are active in supporting students with dyslexia and other disabilities.

Employability

Anthropology at Brunel is exceptional in that it offers both a conventional three-year degree and a 'thin-sandwich' four-year degree with two six-month work placements. Students gain experience and contacts vital for future employment in a world that increasingly expects job candidates to offer something more than a degree certificate. Brunel anthropology graduates are amongst the most employable in the country.

Careers

Students of Anthropology can go on to pursue both private and public sector careers including work with governmental organisations like the United Nations and with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like Save the Children and Oxfam.

Others now work as teachers, journalists and research officers in the health and social sectors, and in other professions requiring knowledge of social and cultural processes.

Some pursue further research degrees in anthropology and become academic anthropologists.

Placements

Few other sociology degrees contain work placements, let alone high quality organised placements. Students on our four year sandwich degree course benefit from our excellent links with external organisations.

Around half our students carry out a placement or fieldwork abroad, in places as wide ranging as India, Nepal, Australia, South Africa, Papua New Guinea and Jamaica. Recent UK placement destinations include the Royal Anthropological Institute, Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, Amnesty International and the Department of Health.

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 Social Anthropology experienced the following outcomes:

• 100.0% progressed into employment or further study
• 100.0% were engaged in a graduate-level activity (employment or further study)
• 100.0% of employed leavers were working in the top three categories of graduate level employment
• The average starting salary was £15,000.
  

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 ABB (General Studies/Critical Thinking accepted as third A-Level).
• Irish Leaving Certificate AABBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers ABB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade A in Society, Health and Development plus a C at A-level for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*DD in a related subject.
• IBDP 33 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.

About the Course

Psychology is often defined as the study of behaviour and of the mind. Through their theories and research, psychologists investigate a diverse range of topics including:

• the relationship between the brain, behaviour and subjective experience;
• human development;
• the influence of other people on the individual’s thoughts, feelings and behaviour;
• psychological disorders and their treatment;
• the impact of culture on the individual’s behaviour and subjective experience;
• differences between people in terms of their personality and intelligence;
• people’s ability to acquire, organise, remember and use knowledge to guide their behaviour.

Anthropology at Brunel is an outward-looking and cosmopolitan social sciences, its subject being the documentation and explanation of cultural diversity. You will apply the ideas of anthropology to practical issues and will gain a solid grounding in the social sciences (sociology, psychology and media and communications). Special emphasis is placed on cross-cultural studies.

About Social Sciences at Brunel

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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; the role of science and the media; ethnicity and kinship; and power, inequality and prejudice in modern societies.

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.

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.

Anthropology brochure
Psychology brochure

Aims

This degree ensures that you gain an understanding of the breadth and diversity of Psychology. Combining this with Anthropology, this course is particularly suited to students who are curious about their own and other societies and who are interested in understanding social processes and meanings in the world around them.

Rigorous training is provided in a range of methodologies and research skills appropriate to psychology and anthropology.

Enquiries

Dr Andrew Clark
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

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

Special Features

Psychology

• The degree provides graduate basis for registration and membership with the British Psychological Society (assuming a 2.2 or above is achieved). This can be important as an entry qualification for postgraduate professional training in psychology.
  
  
• A full range of laboratory and technical facilities is used in the teaching of experimental psychology, including brain imaging facilities (fMRI, EEG), psychophysics, eye tracking and the use of information technology.
  
  
• We enjoy greater funding than many other comparable academic schools and departments in Britain.

Anthropology

• Students can carry out fieldwork placements overseas. Roughly half of our students spend their second work placement abroad, engaged in research in countries such as: South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.
  
  
• This course differs from anthropology courses at other universities because of the broad social science perspective from which it is taught.
  
  
• You are encouraged to seize the valuable opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s SOCRATES scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.
  
  
• Research has an international reputation, with particular expertise in child-focused anthropological research, medical anthropology, psychological and psychiatric anthropology and the anthropology of education and learning.

Facts and Figures

School of Social Sciences

Psychology, Sociology, Social Anthropology and Communications together 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 and 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; the role of science 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. We take particular pride in both the quality of our teaching and the extensive pastoral care of our students.

Course Content

Anthropology

This degree will introduce you to the history, theory and main contemporary issues within the discipline. You will also apply the ideas of anthropology to practical issues in the field of medical anthropology, in the anthropology of childhood and youth, and in the analysis of cultural diversity in Britain, Europe, Africa, parts of Asia, the Pacific and Latin America.

The course addresses contemporary issues such as war, nationalist movements, racial prejudice, inter-ethnic conflicts, and gender inequalities. Popular modules include: British Ethnic Minorities; Kinship and New Directions in Anthropology; Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology; Anthropology and International Development; and Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings.

Psychology

The Psychology courses at Brunel emphasise the everyday and real-life significance of psychology by encouraging you to explore the relationship between the practical and theoretical aspects of the subject, both through your academic study and your work placements.

Typical Modules

Level 1

• Research Methods
• Statistics
• Foundations of Psychology 1: Learning and Social Psychology
• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes
• Foundations of Psychology 3: Brain and Cognition
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking
  

Level 2

• Advanced Research Methods
• Advanced Data Analysis
• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Biological Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Classical Anthropological Theory
  

Level 3 Core

• Dissertation in Psychology and Social Anthropology
• Advanced Issues in Psychology
• Advanced Topics in Individual Differences
  

Level 3 Options

Students take one Psychology module from the following list:

• Autistic Spectrum Disorder
• Inter-Group Relations
• Psychology of Ageing
• Therapeutic Approaches in Clinical Psychology and Mental Health
• Psychology of Expertise
• Understanding Health
• Evolutionary Psychology
• Drugs, Hormones and the Brain
• Practical investigations of mind and brain
• The Cognitive Neuroscience of Consciousness
  

And two Social Anthropology modules from the following list:

• Anthropology of the Body
• Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropology of the Person
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• Anthropology of Education and Learning
• Global Health in Anthropological Perspective

Dissertation/Project

A major part of the final year is the writing of a joint psychology and anthropology project which is normally based on research carried out during the second work placement. This may include a combination of an ethnographic study and quantitative or qualitative research methods from Psychology to investigate a specific topic of interest.

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.

Practical skills

This course will help you to develop specific skills in the practical methods associated with psychology. A full range of laboratory and technical facilities is used in the teaching of experimental psychology, psychophysics and the use of information technology.

Staff expertise

All members of the academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field. Their innovative findings feed into your courses to ensure that teaching is up-to-date.

Hours

Each module will involve two to three hours of contact time per week. Students will also spend a great deal of their time in private study and preparing assignments.

How will I be taught?

Teaching methods include tutorials, seminars, laboratory classes and integrated or formal lectures.

Assessment

Students are assessed using a range of methods, including coursework assignments, poster presentations, oral presentations and seen and unseen examinations.

Employability

Brunel graduates will develop a range of transferable skills that are useful in the wider workplace - Psychology degrees are highly regarded by employers in many fields and a joint honours degree in Anthropology will add a further dimension.

Students will acquire knowledge in new information and communications technologies and rigorous training is provided in methodologies and research skills. Our British Psychological Society (BPS) accredited courses provide eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered membership (GBC). On completion students will acquire a range of skills, which include the following:

• Communicate effectively, both face-to-face or in writing
• Understand, analyse and use complex data
• Retrieve and organise information from different sources
• Handle primary source material critically
• Engage in effective team work
• Solve problems and reason scientifically to consider alternative approaches and solutions
• Make critical judgements and evaluations to gain different perspectives on a question
• Use personal planning and project management skills to become more independent and pragmatic

Careers

This degree forms the basis for a wide variety of careers, including development work, social research and journalism. Psychology and Anthropology degrees are valued by business and other employers.

With a good degree in psychology you may go on to train as a clinical, educational or occupational psychologist. Other careers include work with adults or children with disabilities, counselling, personnel management, market research and advertising, and prison and probation work.

Placements

This course is also available as a four year sandwich course (with Professional Development) which includes two high quality placements in a variety of settings.

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 their degree was a formal requirement or where they believe their degree gave them a competitive advantage in recruitment.

Around 40% of Psychology students include sandwich placements as part of their degree which are predominantly carried out in a range of public sector and research environments.

Placement leavers from Psychology experienced the following outcomes:

• 88.7% progressed into employment or further study
• 63.8% 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 £17,481.

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time

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, with at least two of the three A-levels in traditional subjects (General Studies not 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 Society, Health and Development 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 at Grade C or above to include English Language, Maths and Science (please note that these must have been gained by the time you submit your UCAS application).

Non-traditional A-level subjects

The following list of A-level subjects are generally considered "non-traditional". Within your A-level qualifications we would ideally look for two subjects not on this list. Taking one of these subjects at A-level is not detrimental to your chances. The subjects you take will become important after the A-level grades are released, if you do not get the tariff points previously indicated. The Admissions Tutor will then give priority to those with two or more ‘traditional’ subjects.

Non-traditional subjects include: Accounting; Art and Design; Business Studies; Communication Studies; Dance; Design and Technology; Drama/Theatre Studies; Film Studies; Health and Social Care; Home Economics; ICT; Leisure Studies; Media Studies; Music Technology; Performance Studies; Performing Arts; Photography; Physical Education; Sports Studies; and Travel and Tourism.

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.

About the Course

Psychology is often defined as the study of behaviour and of the mind. Through their theories and research, psychologists investigate a diverse range of topics including:

• the relationship between the brain, behaviour and subjective experience;
• human development;
• the influence of other people on the individual’s thoughts, feelings and behaviour;
• psychological disorders and their treatment;
• the impact of culture on the individual’s behaviour and subjective experience;
• differences between people in terms of their personality and intelligence;
• people’s ability to acquire, organise, remember and use knowledge to guide their behaviour.

Anthropology at Brunel is an outward-looking and cosmopolitan social sciences, its subject being the documentation and explanation of cultural diversity. You will apply the ideas of anthropology to practical issues and will gain a solid grounding in the social sciences (sociology, psychology and media and communications). Special emphasis is placed on cross-cultural studies.

About Social Sciences at Brunel

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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; the role of science and the media; ethnicity and kinship; and power, inequality and prejudice in modern societies.

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.

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.

Anthropology brochure
Psychology brochure

Aims

This degree ensures that you gain an understanding of the breadth and diversity of Psychology. Combining this with Anthropology, this course is particularly suited to students who are curious about their own and other societies and who are interested in understanding social processes and meanings in the world around them.

Rigorous training is provided in a range of methodologies and research skills appropriate to psychology and anthropology.

Enquiries

Dr Andrew Clark
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

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

Special Features

Psychology

• The degree provides graduate basis for registration and membership with the British Psychological Society (assuming a 2.2 or above is achieved). This can be important as an entry qualification for postgraduate professional training in psychology.
  
  
• A full range of laboratory and technical facilities is used in the teaching of experimental psychology, including brain imaging facilities (fMRI, EEG), psychophysics, eye tracking and the use of information technology.
  
  
• We enjoy greater funding than many other comparable academic schools and departments in Britain.

Anthropology

• Students can carry out fieldwork placements overseas. Roughly half of our students spend their second work placement abroad, engaged in research in countries such as: South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.
  
  
• This course differs from anthropology courses at other universities because of the broad social science perspective from which it is taught.
  
  
• You are encouraged to seize the valuable opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s SOCRATES scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.
  
  
• Research has an international reputation, with particular expertise in child-focused anthropological research, medical anthropology, psychological and psychiatric anthropology and the anthropology of education and learning.

Facts and Figures

School of Social Sciences

Psychology, Sociology, Social Anthropology and Communications together 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 and 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; the role of science 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. We take particular pride in both the quality of our teaching and the extensive pastoral care of our students.

Course Content

Anthropology

This degree will introduce you to the history, theory and main contemporary issues within the discipline. You will also apply the ideas of anthropology to practical issues in the field of medical anthropology, in the anthropology of childhood and youth, and in the analysis of cultural diversity in Britain, Europe, Africa, parts of Asia, the Pacific and Latin America.

The course addresses contemporary issues such as war, nationalist movements, racial prejudice, inter-ethnic conflicts, and gender inequalities. Popular modules include: British Ethnic Minorities; Kinship and New Directions in Anthropology; Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology; Anthropology and International Development; and Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings.

Psychology

The Psychology courses at Brunel emphasise the everyday and real-life significance of psychology by encouraging you to explore the relationship between the practical and theoretical aspects of the subject, both through your academic study and your work placements.

Typical Modules

Level 1

• Research Methods
• Statistics
• Foundations of Psychology 1: Learning and Social Psychology
• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes
• Foundations of Psychology 3: Brain and Cognition
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking

Level 2

• Work Placement Module 1
• Biological Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Classical Anthropological Theory

Level 3

• Advanced Research Methods
• Advanced Data Analysis
• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Work Placement Module 2

Level 4 Core

• Dissertation in Psychology and Social Anthropology
• Advanced Issues in Psychology
• Advanced Topics in Individual Differences
  

Level 4 Options

Students take one Psychology module from the following list:

• Autistic Spectrum Disorder
• Inter-Group Relations
• Psychology of Ageing
• Therapeutic Approaches in Clinical Psychology and Mental Health
• Psychology of Expertise
• Understanding Health
• Evolutionary Psychology
• Drugs, Hormones and the Brain
• Practical investigations of mind and brain
• The Cognitive Neuroscience of Consciousness
  

And two Social Anthropology modules from the following list:

• Anthropology of the Body
• Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropology of the Person
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• Anthropology of Education and Learning
• Global Health in Anthropological Perspective

Dissertation/Project

A major part of the final year is the writing of a joint psychology and anthropology project which is normally based on research carried out during the second work placement. This may include a combination of an ethnographic study and quantitative or qualitative research methods from Psychology to investigate a specific topic of interest.

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.

Practical skills

This course will help you to develop specific skills in the practical methods associated with psychology. A full range of laboratory and technical facilities is used in the teaching of experimental psychology, psychophysics and the use of information technology.

Staff expertise

All members of the academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field. Their innovative findings feed into your courses to ensure that teaching is up-to-date.

Hours

Each module will involve two to three hours of contact time per week. Students will also spend a great deal of their time in private study and preparing assignments.

How will I be taught?

Teaching methods include tutorials, seminars, laboratory classes and integrated or formal lectures.

Assessment

Students are assessed using a range of methods, including coursework assignments, poster presentations, oral presentations and seen and unseen examinations.

Employability

Brunel graduates will develop a range of transferable skills that are useful in the wider workplace - Psychology degrees are highly regarded by employers in many fields and a joint honours degree in Anthropology will add a further dimension.

Students will acquire knowledge in new information and communications technologies and rigorous training is provided in methodologies and research skills. Our British Psychological Society (BPS) accredited courses provide eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered membership (GBC). On completion students will acquire a range of skills, which include the following:

• Communicate effectively, both face-to-face or in writing
• Understand, analyse and use complex data
• Retrieve and organise information from different sources
• Handle primary source material critically
• Engage in effective team work
• Solve problems and reason scientifically to consider alternative approaches and solutions
• Make critical judgements and evaluations to gain different perspectives on a question
• Use personal planning and project management skills to become more independent and pragmatic

Careers

This degree forms the basis for a wide variety of careers, including development work, social research and journalism. Psychology and Anthropology degrees are valued by business and other employers.

With a good degree in psychology you may go on to train as a clinical, educational or occupational psychologist. Other careers include work with adults or children with disabilities, counselling, personnel management, market research and advertising, and prison and probation work.

Placements

Students on our four year sandwich course (with Professional Development) have the opportunity to gain professional work experience in a variety of settings. We have excellent links with a wide range of external organisations providing high quality placements. Students develop invaluable skills and in some cases have been offered graduate positions within the organisations where they undertook their work placements.

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 their degree was a formal requirement or where they believe their degree gave them a competitive advantage in recruitment.

Around 40% of Psychology students include sandwich placements as part of their degree which are predominantly carried out in a range of public sector and research environments.

Placement leavers from Psychology experienced the following outcomes:

• 88.7% progressed into employment or further study
• 63.8% 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 £17,481.

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, with at least two of the three A-levels in traditional subjects (General Studies not 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 Society, Health and Development 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 at Grade C or above to include English Language, Maths and Science (please note that these must have been gained by the time you submit your UCAS application).

Non-traditional A-level subjects

The following list of A-level subjects are generally considered "non-traditional". Within your A-level qualifications we would ideally look for two subjects not on this list. Taking one of these subjects at A-level is not detrimental to your chances. The subjects you take will become important after the A-level grades are released, if you do not get the tariff points previously indicated. The Admissions Tutor will then give priority to those with two or more ‘traditional’ subjects.

Non-traditional subjects include: Accounting; Art and Design; Business Studies; Communication Studies; Dance; Design and Technology; Drama/Theatre Studies; Film Studies; Health and Social Care; Home Economics; ICT; Leisure Studies; Media Studies; Music Technology; Performance Studies; Performing Arts; Photography; Physical Education; Sports Studies; and Travel and Tourism.

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.

About the Course

This degree is particularly suited to students who are curious about their own and other societies, and who are interested in understanding social processes and meanings in the world around them.

Rigorous training is provided in a range of methodologies and research skills appropriate to anthropology and sociology.

Anthropology at Brunel

Anthropology at Brunel is one of the more outward-looking and cosmopolitan social sciences, its subject being the documentation and explanation of cultural diversity. The course differs from Anthropology courses at other universities because of the broad social science perspective from which it is taught.

Research has an international reputation, with particular expertise in child-focused anthropological research and medical anthropology.

Sociology at Brunel

Sociologists are concerned with developing theories that explain the changing nature of social behaviour in their own and other societies. The kinds of question with which they are concerned are: ‘What is society?’ ‘How and why is it changing?’ ‘What are the opportunities for future change and development?’

The earliest sociologists tried to understand the major issues of their time, such as poverty, unemployment, social conflict and the social and economic consequences of rapid and profound industrial and economic change. Sociologists today continue to examine how such social issues are redefined by the contemporary processes of individualisation, globalisation and the rapid growth of new forms of communication.

Within this broad framework, a central theme of Sociology at Brunel is the study of the development of techno-cultural phenomena such media and information technology, and environmental issues, which straddle traditional conceptual distinctions between the social, the natural, the technical and the material.

It also needs to be stressed that, at Brunel, Sociology has developed a particularly close relationship with Communication and Media Studies, reflecting and emphasising the central and ever-increasing importance of the communications media within our culture.

Among the more specific interests of Brunel sociologists are, for example, social theory, celebrity culture, the influence of the media, environmental risk, media regulation, media discourses, and contemporary social structure and change, urban spaces, and addiction and deviance. These various interests strongly reflect the options available in the third level of our degree course.

About the School of Social Sciences

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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.

Anthropology brochure
Sociology and Communications brochure

Aims

You will apply Anthropology ideas to practical issues and will gain a solid grounding in a broad range of social science topics, including sociology, social theory, social anthropology, psychology, communications and media the social sciences. Special emphasis is placed on cross-cultural studies.

Enquiries

Dr James Staples
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

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

Special Features

• You are encouraged to seize the valuable opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s SOCRATES scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.
  
  
• Students can carry out fieldwork placements overseas. Roughly half of our students spend their second work placement abroad, engaging in research in countries such as South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.

Facts and Figures

School of Social Sciences

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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; the role of science 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, video production, psychophysics and the use of information technology.

Course Content

Level 1

You will gain a broad social science training in your first year. This includes an introduction to key theoretical issues and practical training in research methods, such as interviewing and participant observation.

Level 2

Anthropology modules introduce students to the history and theory of Anthropology, and to some of the current issues in the fields of ethnicity, gender, religion and kinship. Sociology topics include sociological theory, methods and contemporary social institutions. You also continue your studies of research methods, and conduct your own research exercises.

Level 3

You can choose from a wide range of advanced options in topics as varied as family, gender, kinship, ethnicity, medical anthropology and cultural patterns of consumption.

Dissertation

All students produce a dissertation of about 10,000 words in their final year. This is based on a topic of your choice, but is usually related to your second work placement.

Typical Modules

Level 1

• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes
• Anthropology through Film
• Introduction to Sociology
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking
• Research Methods in Anthropology
• Globalisation

Level 2 Core

• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Social Divisions
• Classical Anthropological Theory
• Work and Society
• Sociology of Everyday Life: Issues in Contemporary Culture

Level 2 Optional

Students take one module from the following list:

• Ethnicity, Culture and Identity
• Ethnography of a Selected Region: South Asia

Level 3 Core

• Social Anthropology and Sociology Dissertation

Level 3 Options

Students take two modules from the following list:

• Anthropology of the Body
• Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology
• Ethnography of a Selected Region: South Asia
• Anthropology of International Development
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropology of the Person
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• Anthropology of Education and Learning
• Anthropological Perspectives on War and Humanitarianism
• Global Health in Anthropological Perspective

And two modules from the following list:

• City Lives and Urban Cultures
• Crime, Deviance and Addiction
• Multiculturism
• Popular Music and Popular Culture
• Understanding Audiences
• The Age of New Media
• Forensic Science and Society

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.

The latest thinking

All members of the academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field. Their innovative findings feed into your courses to help to ensure that teaching is topical and interesting.

How will I be taught?

The course is taught through a mixture of lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical laboratory sessions and small group projects.

Lectures – Most modules involve one or two hours of lectures a week. These provide a broad overview of key concepts 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 (3 to 15 students) are used to discuss the content of lectures as well as issues arising from the modules. Seminars are often student-led. You can use them to clarify your own ideas in an atmosphere of discussion and debate.

Research work – All students take part in practical modules. In the first year you will experience the similarities and contrasts between methods of enquiry used in psychology, sociology and anthropology. The investigative methods used in projects include observation, interviewing, questionnaire design and more specific research techniques. As you progress through the course, direction by staff over the design and implementation of projects is reduced.

One-to-one – You will have 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. When you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will monitor your progress and provide further support if you need it. Lecturers are usually available to answer particular queries outside of scheduled hours – either in one-to-one tutorials or by email.

Assessment

Level 1 does not count towards your final degree mark but you have to pass this level to continue with your degree. Level 2 is worth a third, and Level 3 the rest. The final year dissertation is worth a third of Level 3 marks.

Methods of assessment vary and depend on which modules you select. Some courses are assessed on coursework only, some by (seen or unseen) examination only, and some by a combination of the two.

Employability

Students who pursue the three-year degree in Anthropology and Sociology undertake empirical research for their final year projects, gaining experience and contacts vital for future employment in a world that increasingly expects job candidates to offer something more than a degree certificate. Brunel anthropology graduates are amongst the most employable in the country.

Careers

This degree provides a good general education, from which students can take up wide-ranging careers in, for example, television and radio production, press and publishing, the media, marketing, advertising, market research, public relations, IT work and consultancy, industrial relations, local and central government and administration, and academic research.

Placements

Students can choose to study either a three-year degree course or the four-year sandwich degree course. Students on our four year sandwich course (with Professional Development) have the opportunity to gain professional work experience in a variety of settings. We have excellent links with a wide range of external organisations providing high quality placements. Students develop invaluable skills and in some cases have been offered graduate positions within the organisations where they undertook their work placements.

Around half our students carry out a placement or fieldwork abroad, in places as wide ranging as India, Nepal, Australia, South Africa, Papua New Guinea and Jamaica. Recent UK placement destinations include the Royal Anthropological Institute, Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, Amnesty International and the Department of Health.

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time

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 ABB (General Studies/Critical Thinking accepted as third A-Level).
• Irish Leaving Certificate AABBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers ABB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade A in Society, Health and Development plus a C at A-level for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*DD in a related subject.
• IBDP 33 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.

About the Course

This degree is particularly suited to students who are curious about their own and other societies, and who are interested in understanding social processes and meanings in the world around them.

Rigorous training is provided in a range of methodologies and research skills appropriate to anthropology and sociology.

Anthropology at Brunel

Anthropology at Brunel is one of the more outward-looking and cosmopolitan social sciences, its subject being the documentation and explanation of cultural diversity. The course differs from Anthropology courses at other universities because of the broad social science perspective from which it is taught.

Research has an international reputation, with particular expertise in child-focused anthropological research and medical anthropology.

Sociology at Brunel

Sociologists are concerned with developing theories that explain the changing nature of social behaviour in their own and other societies. The kinds of question with which they are concerned are: ‘What is society?’ ‘How and why is it changing?’ ‘What are the opportunities for future change and development?’

The earliest sociologists tried to understand the major issues of their time, such as poverty, unemployment, social conflict and the social and economic consequences of rapid and profound industrial and economic change. Sociologists today continue to examine how such social issues are redefined by the contemporary processes of individualisation, globalisation and the rapid growth of new forms of communication.

Within this broad framework, a central theme of Sociology at Brunel is the study of the development of techno-cultural phenomena such media and information technology, and environmental issues, which straddle traditional conceptual distinctions between the social, the natural, the technical and the material.

It also needs to be stressed that, at Brunel, Sociology has developed a particularly close relationship with Communication and Media Studies, reflecting and emphasising the central and ever-increasing importance of the communications media within our culture.

Among the more specific interests of Brunel sociologists are, for example, social theory, celebrity culture, the influence of the media, environmental risk, media regulation, media discourses, and contemporary social structure and change, urban spaces, and addiction and deviance. These various interests strongly reflect the options available in the third level of our degree course.

About the School of Social Sciences

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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.

Anthropology brochure
Sociology and Communications brochure 

Aims

You will apply Anthropology ideas to practical issues and will gain a solid grounding in a broad range of social science topics, including sociology, social theory, social anthropology, psychology, communications and media the social sciences. Special emphasis is placed on cross-cultural studies.

Enquiries

Dr James Staples
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

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

Special Features

• You are encouraged to seize the valuable opportunity offered by our membership of the European Union’s SOCRATES scheme to study at one of 15 continental European universities.
  
  
• Students can carry out fieldwork placements overseas. Roughly half of our students spend their second work placement abroad, engaging in research in countries such as South Africa, Botswana, India and Nepal.

Facts and Figures

School of Social Sciences

Psychology, sociology, anthropology and communications together 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; the role of science 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, video production, psychophysics and the use of information technology.

Course Content

Level 1

You will gain a broad social science training in your first year. This includes an introduction to key theoretical issues and practical training in research methods, such as interviewing and participant observation.

Level 2

Anthropology modules introduce students to the history and theory of Anthropology, and to some of the current issues in the fields of ethnicity, gender, religion and kinship. Sociology topics include sociological theory, methods and contemporary social institutions. You also continue your studies of research methods, and conduct your own research exercises.

Level 3

You can choose from a wide range of advanced options in topics as varied as family, gender, kinship, ethnicity, medical anthropology and cultural patterns of consumption.

Dissertation

All students produce a dissertation of about 10,000 words in their final year. This is based on a topic of your choice, but is usually related to your second work placement.

Typical Modules

Level 1

• Introduction to Anthropology: Themes
• Anthropology through Film
• Introduction to Sociology
• Introduction to Anthropology: Beliefs and Ways of Thinking
• Research Methods in Anthropology
• Globalisation

Level 2

• Work Placement Module 1
• Classical Anthropological Theory
• Work and Society
• Sociology of Everyday Life: Issues in Contemporary Culture

Level 3 Core

• Political and Economic Issues in Anthropology
• Social Divisions
• Work Placement Module 2
  

Level 3 Options

• Ethnicity, Culture and Identity
• Ethnography of a Selected Region: South Asia

Level 4 Core

• Social Anthropology and Sociology Dissertation

Level 4 Options

Students take two modules from the following:

• Anthropology of the Body
• Anthropology of Childhood and Youth
• Anthropology of Disability and Difference
• Themes in Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology
• Ethnography of a Selected Region: South Asia
• Anthropology of International Development
• Introducing Medical Anthropology: Theories, Themes and Controversies
• Anthropology of the Person
• Medical Anthropology in Clinical and Community Settings
• Anthropology of Education and Learning
• Anthropological Perspectives on War and Humanitarianism
• Global Health in Anthropological Perspective

And two modules from the following list:

• City Lives and Urban Cultures
• Crime, Deviance and Addiction
• Multiculturism
• Popular Music and Popular Culture
• Understanding Audiences
• The Age of New Media
• Forensic Science and Society

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.

The latest thinking
All members of the academic staff are actively engaged in research and many have international reputations in their field. Their innovative findings feed into your courses to help to ensure that teaching is topical and interesting.

How will I be taught?
The course is taught through a mixture of lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical laboratory sessions and small group projects.

Lectures - Most modules involve one or two hours of lectures a week. These provide a broad overview of key concepts 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 (3-15 students) are used to discuss the content of lectures and issues arising from the modules. Seminars are often student-led. You can use seminars to clarify your own ideas in an atmosphere of discussion and debate.

Laboratory/research work- All students take part in practical modules. In the first year you will experience the similarities and contrasts between methods of enquiry used in psychology, sociology and social anthropology. The investigative methods used in projects include observation, interviewing, questionnaire design, psychological testing, experimentation and more specific research techniques. As you progress through the course, direction by staff over the design and implementation of projects is reduced.

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. When you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will monitor your progress and provide further support if you need it. Lecturers are usually available to answer particular queries outside of scheduled hours - either in one-to-one tutorials or by email.

Assessment

Level 1 does not count towards your final degree mark but you have to pass this level to continue with your degree. Level 2 is worth a third, and Level 3 the rest. The final year dissertation is worth a third of Level 3 marks.

Methods of assessment vary and depend on which modules you select. Some courses are assessed on coursework only, some by (seen or unseen) examination only, and some by a combination of the two.

Employability

Anthropology and Sociology at Brunel is exceptional in that it offers both a conventional three-year degree and a ‘thin-sandwich’ four-year degree with two six-month work placements. Students gain experience and contacts vital for future employment in a world that increasingly expects job candidates to offer something more than a degree certificate. Brunel anthropology graduates are amongst the most employable in the country.

Careers

This degree provides a good general education, from which students can take up wide-ranging careers in, for example, television and radio production, press and publishing, the media, marketing, advertising, market research, public relations, IT work and consultancy, industrial relations, local and central government and administration, and academic research.

Placements

Around half our students carry out a placement or fieldwork abroad, in places as wide ranging as India, Nepal, Australia, South Africa, Papua New Guinea and Jamaica. Recent UK placement destinations include the Royal Anthropological Institute, Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, Amnesty International and the Department of Health. 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 Social Anthropology experienced the following outcomes:

• 100.0% progressed into employment or further study
• 100.0% were engaged in a graduate-level activity (employment or further study)
• 100.0% of employed leavers were working in the top three categories of graduate level employment
• The average starting salary was £15,000.

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 ABB (General Studies/Critical Thinking accepted as third A-Level).
• Irish Leaving Certificate AABBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers ABB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade A in Society, Health and Development plus a C at A-level for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*DD in a related subject.
• IBDP 33 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.