Social Sciences
Ranked 3rd for Social Policy
Guardian University Guide 2013
Department Overview
Social Sciences students enjoy a lively and innovative teaching and learning environment in one of the country’s very top social science departments, supported by excellent library and computing facilities.
Our undergraduate courses cover a number of social sciences disciplines, including media and communications, sociology, social psychology, criminology and social policy.
Our courses are taught by world-renowned academics who are leaders in their fields of research, with this research informing all teaching.
This approach means our courses benefit from the underpinnings of latest developments in respective research fields, and applied learning techniques.
How you will learn
A mixture of lectures, practical classes and tutorials offer a range of learning experiences to ensure our students acquire a thorough grounding in social science disciplines, as well as advanced understanding of their chosen areas of interest.
Languages
All of our courses provide you with the opportunity to further your language study in French, Spanish or German. Mandarin is available for beginners. A wide range of extra curricula language classes are also available.
Study Abroad and Placements
The Department encourages students to undertake study abroad or work placements. Further details can be found on individual course pages.
Research
Our staff are active in research, and this large Department continues to perform excellently in the national Research Assessment Exercise, indicating the international renown of the its scholarship and research. Twenty-five percent of its research output is officially described as world-leading.
Teaching and Resources
We received an excellent 23/24 rating in the Quality Assurance Agency review of our teaching and resources.
Sociology – An Overview
The Sociology course covers the central areas of concern in the discipline.
Staff have particular expertise in mass media, health and diet, the cultural industries, globalisation, race and racism, the sociology of religion, historical sociology, social change, migration, tourism, social anthropology, visual culture, social movements and activism and social theory.
Our Sociology staff are at the forefront of developments in social research methodologies.
Social Psychology – An Overview
Social Psychology is one of the few degrees in the country to teach psychology from a specifically social, rather than individual perspective.
Although the degree course covers all aspects of psychology, staff have specific expertise in the areas of social interaction, everyday and institutional relationships, discourse and rhetoric, gender and sexuality, media and nationalism, humour, psychotherapy and child development.
Criminology and Social Policy – An Overview
Criminology and Social Policy examines current theories, problems and policies in modern society.
Staff have specialist research expertise in the criminal justice system, crime prevention, policing, drug policy, sex work, antisocial behaviour, poverty and social security, women and welfare, diversity and equal opportunities, education policy, asylum and migration, racism and ethnic differences and children at risk.
Communication and Media Studies – An Overview
Our Communication and Media Studies degree offers a unique interdisciplinary approach to the analysis of the mass media, firmly grounded in the social sciences.
Staff teaching the degree are leading writers and researchers in advertising, journalism, broadcasting, international communications, cultural theory, children and the media, memory, identity, political communication, audience participation and digital media.