Sociology with Foundation Year

The Foundation Year of this four-year programme provides a solid grounding in key social sciences subjects, preparing you for further study in the associated degree programme. You will focus on effective communication and study skills, alongside foundational subjects in social sciences and social care practice. This year introduces you to essential theories and concepts, offering a broad understanding of the disciplines to support your progression into more advanced study.

On the full course, you’ll explore human connections and relationships, examining how social structures like class, race, and gender shape behaviour. You'll tackle pressing issues such as poverty, sexism, austerity, immigration, privacy, and social unrest, gaining a deep understanding of cultural and everyday life.

In today’s rapidly changing world, societies are grappling with crises that demand careful analysis. From the cost of living crisis in the UK to global environmental challenges and international conflicts, many communities are facing significant shifts—sometimes becoming unaffordable or uninhabitable. At the same time, digital technologies are fostering unprecedented connections, and cultural changes are empowering individuals to express identities once suppressed or even criminalised. As a Sociology student, you’ll study these historical and contemporary changes, understanding their impact on society and how they can drive major social transformations.

• Year one: Contemporary Challenges in Crime and Society, Criminal Justice and Human Rights, Culture, Power and Deviance, Social Divisions and Inequality, Social Justice in Action, and Thinking Sociologically.
• Year two core modules: Research Problems and Methods: Making it Count, Research Problems and Methods: Qualitatively Better, and Understanding the Social World.
• Year two optional modules (choose three): Critical Perspectives on Policing, Critical Victimology, Environmental Justice, Globalisation, Society and Crime, Human Rights, Genocide and Resistance, Internet Risk and Security, Policing and Social Control, Violence in Society. You can replace an option with a University Wide Language module at level 5.
• Year three core module (choose one): Extended Essay, Dissertation, or Work: Practice and Reflection.
• Year three optional modules (choose four): Bodies: Biology to Blushing, Crime, Society and Racialisation, Critical Approaches to (Counter) Terrorism, Critical Perspectives on Policing, Critical Victimology, Digital Society, Environmental Justice, Gender, Crime and Criminal Justice, Human Rights, Genocide and Resistance, Identities and Interactions, Internet Risk and Security, Migration and Socio-Legal Dynamics, Prisons and Punishment: Responses to Crime, Probation and Rehabilitation, Violence in Society, and The Criminal Justice Process.
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You will be assessed during the foundation year through a group presentation and individual reflective essay, a personal learning statement essay, a written exam, two essays, a 5-minute presentation, a portfolio project, and a reflective portfolio.

To find out more about assessment for the remaining three years, please visit the BSc (Hons) Sociology programme page.