Program Overview

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Sociology and Criminology (BSc)

Award

Bachelor of Science

Typical Offer

ABB

Duration

3 years

Course Type

Full-time

Campus

Highfield

UCAS Course code

LL63

About this course

Explore the relationship between social behaviour and crime with this fusion of 2 fascinating disciplines. On this BSc degree, you’ll examine our perception of what is right or wrong, and how this changes over time and between cultures. You’ll learn from expert tutors who are consulted by the government, criminal justice agencies and the media. A wide range of rewarding sociology and criminology-related careers await, including social and police work.

This programme is highly flexible, allowing you to develop your own specialist research interests in both sociology (examining the identities, relationships and practices within our world) and criminology (the study of crime, law enforcement and the criminal justice system).

You’ll find many optional modules to choose from, including:

• Criminological Psychology
• Race and Ethnicity
• Violent and Sexual Offenders

Your core modules will help you develop key knowledge and skills in areas such as:

• theoretical approaches and perspectives in sociology and criminology
• the relationship between individuals, groups and institutions
• research methods in social sciences, including quantitative and qualitative research

As part of your degree you can:

• take an active part in seminars, workshops and lectures at our interdisciplinary hub, the Institute of Criminal Justice Research
• develop your leadership skills and make a difference in our Social Impact Lab
• study complementary modules from other areas, such as languages, anthropology or sustainability
• study a semester abroad with one of our partner universities in Brazil, Canada or China

Course structure

You’ll study a mixture of core and optional modules across sociology and criminology.

Each year you’ll also have the chance to choose modules from other courses at the University. This will give you valuable opportunities to expand your knowledge and create an impressive CV.

Year 1 overview

Your core modules will prepare you for successful study in both disciplines. Topics include:

• Understanding Everyday Life
• Introduction to Criminology
• Criminal Justice Studies
• Social Problems and Social Policy
• Transformations of the Modern World
• Foundations of Social and Anthropological Thought
• Introduction to Quantitative Methods

Optional modules will allow you to delve deeper into some of the most relevant topics of our time. Choose from subjects like:

• Population and Society
• Global Health
• Human Origins

Year 2 overview

Go broader and deeper into key areas, with core modules including:

• Perspectives in Criminology
• Social Theory
• Research Methods in the Social Sciences
• Qualitative Research: Foundations, Principles and Skills

Optional modules allow you to explore subjects that generate news coverage and debate, including:

• Gender and Society
• Criminological Psychology
• Race and Ethnicity
• Criminology: Policy and Practice
• Globalisation, Inequalities and Power

Year 3 overview

You’ll put your research skills into practice by investigating and writing a 10,000-word dissertation on a subject of your choice.

You’ll also consider the most important processes of social change taking place today in a core module in comparative sociology. Your last core module explores historical and contemporary issues in law enforcement and social control.

Prepare for your chosen career or onward study by selecting modules such as:

• The Deserving and Undeserving: Victims and Scroungers in Criminology and Social Policy
• Sexuality and Intimacy
• Violent and Sexual Offenders
• Global Crime and Justice

Entry requirements

A-levels

ABB

A-levels additional information

Offers typically exclude General Studies and Critical Thinking.

A-levels with Extended Project Qualification

If you are taking an EPQ in addition to 3 A levels, you will receive the following offer in addition to the standard A level offer: BBB and grade A in the EPQ

A-levels contextual offer

We are committed to ensuring that all applicants with the potential to succeed, regardless of their background, are encouraged to apply to study with us. The additional information gained through contextual data allows us to recognise an applicant's potential to succeed in the context of their background and experience. Applicants who are highlighted in this way will be made an offer which is lower than the typical offer for that programme.

International Baccalaureate Diploma

Pass, with 32 points overall with 16 points at Higher Level

International Baccalaureate contextual offer

We are committed to ensuring that all learners with the potential to succeed, regardless of their background, are encouraged to apply to study with us. The additional information gained through contextual data allows us to recognise a learner’s potential to succeed in the context of their background and experience. Applicants who are highlighted in this way will be made an offer which is lower than the typical offer for that programme.

BTEC

RQF BTEC

D in the BTEC National Extended Certificate plus AB from two A levels

DD in the BTEC National Diploma plus B from one A-level

DDM in the BTEC National Extended Diploma

Additional information

For BTEC Extended Diplomas, we can only consider these subjects along with specific modules:

• Health and Social Care but only if you are taking these 3 modules (Psychological Perspectives/Sociological Perspectives/Policy in Health and Social Care),
• Forensic and Criminal Investigation (no specific modules needed),
• Uniformed Protective Services/Public Services but please check with us which modules you are taking before applying.

We strongly suggest BTEC applicants doing these subjects contact us before applying to check if you are doing the required modules.

Modules

Year 1 modules

You must study the following modules in year 1:

• Delivering Justice: Mapping the Criminal Justice System
• Historical Perspectives: Deviance, Conflict, Censure and Control
• Inequalities in Everyday Worlds
• Interrogating Crime: An Introduction to Criminology
• Key Thinkers and Big Ideas: Foundations in Social Theory
• Simple Liars, Damned Liars and Experts: the use of empirical research in social science
• Understanding the Social World
• What's the problem? Debating responses to Contemporary Social Challenges

Year 2 modules

You must study the following modules in year 2:

• Criminological Perspectives in Global and Post-colonial Contexts
• Introduction to Social Data Analytics
• Qualitative Research: Methods, Tools and Techniques
• Theorizing The Social World
• What's the Solution? How to Become an Agent for Change in Public Policy

You must also choose from the following modules in year 2:

• Children and Society
• Collective Action and Social Change
• Comparative Youth Justice
• Crime Scene Investigation: Methods and Applications
• Criminological Psychology
• Education Policy and Reforms: Global Experiences and Local Contexts
• Gender and Society
• Gender, Power and Politics
• Geographies of Wellbeing, Inequality and Place
• Intersectional Perspectives on Modernisation Processes
• Introduction to Experiments in Social Science
• Issues in Law Enforcement and Social Control
• New Cultural Geographies
• Race and Ethnicity in Society
• Social Enterprise
• Social Stratification, Divisions and Resilience
• Techno Harms: Discrimination, Conspiracy Theories and Extremism
• Victims or Perpetrators? Social and Psychological Perspectives on Older People and Crime

Year 3 modules

You must study the following modules in year 3:

• Dissertation
• Real World Research: Designing Your Dissertation

You must also choose from the following modules in year 3:

• Applied Social Quantitative Analysis
• Children and Society
• Collective Action and Social Change
• Comparative Youth Justice
• Crime Scene Investigation: Methods and Applications
• Education Policy and Reforms: Global Experiences and Local Contexts
• Employability: Successful futures in Sociology and Criminology
• Exploring the Hidden Assumptions in Education
• Gender and Society
• Gender, Power and Politics
• Geographies of Nature: food, animals and other nonhuman life
• Geographies of Social Justice, Welfare and Rights
• Global Terrorism and Political Violence
• Intersectional Perspectives on Modernisation Processes
• Introduction to Experiments in Social Science
• Issues in Law Enforcement and Social Control
• Migration and Development
• Penology
• Race and Ethnicity in Society
• Sexuality and Intimacy
• Social Enterprise
• Social Stratification, Divisions and Resilience
• Techno Harms: Discrimination, Conspiracy Theories and Extremism
• The Creative Economy
• Victims or Perpetrators? Social and Psychological Perspectives on Older People and Crime
• Violent and Sexual Offenders

Learning and assessment

The learning activities for this course include the following:

• lectures
• classes and tutorials
• coursework
• individual and group projects
• independent learning (studying on your own)

Year 1

• Study time: 19% scheduled learning & teaching, 81% independent learning
• Assessment: 63% written exam, 37% coursework

Year 2

• Study time: 18% scheduled learning & teaching, 82% independent learning
• Assessment: 30% written exam, 67% coursework, 3% practical exam

Year 3

• Study time: 13% scheduled learning & teaching, 87% independent learning
• Assessment: 31% written exam, 59% coursework, 10% practical exam

Careers and employability

Graduates commonly work in a range of organisations or sectors including:

• charitable,
• counselling and voluntary organisations,
• Law Firms,
• local and central government,
• media companies,
• marketing and PR firms,
• the NHS,
• police and probation services,
• schools,
• colleges and universities,
• social and market research organisations,
• the police,
• prison and probation services,
• the court services,
• security services.

Careers directly related to this course:

• Advice worker
• Community development worker
• Housing manager
• Police officer
• Policy officer
• Social researcher
• Youth worker
• Detective
• Prison officer
• Probation officer

Wider career opportunities:

• Charity officer
• Human resources manager
• International aid worker
• Journalist
• Probation officer
• Public relations officer
• Social worker
• Special educational needs coordinator
• Border force officer
• Intelligence analyst

Example job titles of Southampton BSc Sociology and Criminology graduates*:

• Social worker
• Custody case worker
• Data analyst
• Home prevention assistant
• Legal assistant
• Paralegal
• Recruitment consultant
• Researcher in background screening
• Youth worker

Fees, costs and funding

Tuition fees

• UK students pay £9,535.
• EU and international students pay £24,200.

What your fees pay for

Your tuition fees pay for the full cost of tuition and standard exams.

Bursaries, scholarships and other funding

If you're a UK or EU student and your household income is under £36,200 a year, you may be able to get a University of Southampton bursary to help with your living costs.

If you're a care leaver or estranged from your parents, you may be able to get a specific bursary.

Get in touch for advice about student money matters.

Scholarships and grants

You may be able to get a scholarship or grant to help fund your studies.

We award scholarships and grants for travel, academic excellence, or to students from under-represented backgrounds.

Support during your course

The Student Hub offers support and advice on money to students. You may be able to access our Student Support fund and other sources of financial support during your course.

Funding for EU and international students

Find out about funding you could get as an international student.