Year 1
Core units
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Introduction to Social Theory: You’ll be introduced to key social theory that has informed classical and contemporary sociology, anthropology and criminology, and is embedded in the historical and philosophical context of the analysis of Western society and its social forms.
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Introduction to Social Research: This unit offers a broad introduction to social scientific approaches and methodological issues in research. You will be introduced to the parameters and scope of social scientific enquiry, focusing on the relationship of individuals to society, explore using published examples, including those carried out by BU researchers. Various approaches will be examined and practised with a view to you gaining the ability to develop your own social scientific research.
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Families & Kinship in Contemporary Society: The aim of this unit is to introduce you to the complexity of family constellations and their meanings in contemporary societies. You will be introduced to the sociology of families, competing definitions, social policies relating to families, and comparative international family practices, drawn from sociological and anthropological research and literature.
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Understanding Communities: This unit provides a broad overview of the development of urban and rural communities where you’ll explore recent social and cultural issues, changes and conflicts in rural and urban Britain and elsewhere. You’ll consider the ways in which ‘rural’ and ‘urban’ are represented in contemporary society, and how this impacts upon both individual and community identity and participation.
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Social Inequality & Exclusion: Explore the nature, lived experience, impact and possible causes of discrimination, inequality and social exclusion, using sociological, criminological and anthropological approaches. You’ll apply relevant sociological, criminological and anthropological enquiry to explore social exclusion, community cohesion, inequality, discrimination, marginalisation and oppression, together with an understanding of how this might be addressed and tackled.
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Histories of Social Policy and Social Welfare: This unit provides an understanding of the historical development of social policy and social welfare systems in British, other European, and international contexts. You’ll critically examine how welfare policies are bound up with the development of the modern state, and how they are linked to changing perspectives and ideologies relating to the causes of social deprivation and ‘social need’, and the inequalities associated with class, gender and race amongst other social variables
Year 2
Students are required to complete all 4 core units including either Quantitative Skills or Doing Ethnographic Research as a core unit, and choose 2 option units. Option units will run if selected by a minimum of 10 students. Some combinations of optional units may not be available depending on the semester of delivery and timetable configurations.
Core units:
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Qualitative Research Skills: You will be equipped with knowledge and skills to enable you to carry out entry level qualitative research and analyse the qualitative research of others. The unit will assist you in your preparation for your final year dissertation.
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Contemporary Social Theory: Introducing social theory that informs contemporary sociology, criminology and anthropology, you’ll explore theories embedded in the contemporary and philosophical context of Western society and its social forms.
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Understanding Globalisation: Globalisation is a concept that refers to economic, political and technological forms of global interdependence and alignment in today’s world. In this unit you’ll explore the debates about globalisation within sociology and associated social science disciplines.
Core or option:
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Quantitative Skills: You will develop your understanding and evaluation of a range of quantitative methods and the underlying philosophical and ethical principles of their application within social science research. This unit will assist you in your preparation for your final year dissertation.
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Doing Ethnographic Research: You’ll gain experience of designing and undertaking an ethnographic research project in the Bournemouth area, investigating sociological and anthropological research questions, and critically reflecting on the benefits and challenges of qualitative research. The skills and experience developed from this unit will assist you in your preparation for the primary qualitative research you may wish to carry out as part of your final year dissertation. You will also have the opportunity to present your research findings at BU’s annual Student Undergraduate Research Conference.
Option units:
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Crime, Health and Society: Discover the rich and complex findings of social science in the sphere of health and how it relates to crime. You’ll investigate the sophisticated inter-relation between these fundamental concepts, and how their relationship continues to change.
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Impact of Crime: Examine the various forms of crime, particularly criminal acts within relationships, as well as sex offending and sex work. Alongside the established ‘legal’ definitions of crime, you’ll also explore the broader concept of social harm and related theoretical frameworks such as zemiology, environmental criminology and risk society. Consider the obvious and less obvious ‘costs’ and impact of crime and harm on individuals, on communities and on society at large, as well as the role and impact of the media on social attitudes and stereotypes, which might determine how we perceive crime and harm.
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Understanding Cultures: This unit considers classic and contemporary debates about how culture should be understood, theorised and studied; and what theoretical concepts lend themselves to a critical and sensitive approach to understanding cultures and cultural practices considered different from our own. You’ll explore cultures which are considered controversial or ‘deviant’ such as gang culture and cultures defining the body, personhood, life and death in different ways.
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Growing Up and Growing Old: This unit explores sociological and anthropological perspectives and theories of childhood, youth and aging. You’ll examine the variety, changes, and categories of the life course and the impacts of these constructions on people’s experiences of growing up and growing old.
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Ethnographies of Crime and Policing: You will explore ethnographies of crime and policing. You will study critically how crime and ‘policing’ may be understood and approached within social worlds and will observe neighbourhoods and ‘policing’ behaviour in Bournemouth.
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Human Trafficking and Criminality: You’ll consider the relationship between human trafficking, migration and criminality by looking at the different forms of trafficking across a number of countries. You will also explore human rights’ issues and develop critical skills in understanding migration, human trafficking, organised crime, as well as a series of emotions around trauma, violence and loss from criminological, sociological and anthropological perspectives.
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Placement Learning unit: You will have the opportunity to develop your graduate employability and career management capabilities by studying and experiencing an area of work relevant to your academic and professional interest in sociology and its relationship to wider society through participation in a 20-day or 150 hours placement-based learning unit.
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Criminological Psychology: Develop your understanding of the contribution of psychology to issues relating to crime and criminal justice. You’ll be introduced to a range of theoretical perspectives on offending behaviour, drawing from cognitive, developmental, social and biological psychology. The unit will explore aspects related to criminal investigation and detection, such as offender profiling, eye-witness testimony, police interviewing and false confessions. It will also consider the psychological impacts of crime, through exploring issues such as fear of crime and the psychology of victimisation.
Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.
Practice placement year (Sandwich option)
You can opt to take a longer sandwich placement (30 weeks) for the third year of an extended four year degree. This gives you the chance to gain experience and make contacts for the future.
Whether you choose the three- or four-year option, you will complete the following units in your final year.
Final year
Core units
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Dissertation: The final-year project provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate your intellectual, analytic and creative abilities through sustained independent inquiry of a chosen topic within the broad parameters of sociology.
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Terrorism, Protection and Society: The aim of this unit is to introduce you to many of the complex issues involved in conceptualising and responding to terrorism and protection in contemporary societies. You will be introduced to protection and counter-terrorism as a form of social regulation and control of individuals and ‘deviant’ groups (micro and meso issues) and ways in which society is ordered in an age of terrorist threat (macro-political issues). You will develop a deep critical understanding of the ways in which meanings are constructed and how these impact on social life.
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Politics & Ideology: To improve, change and transform the situations and lives of individuals and communities, it may be necessary to influence government and decision makers in order to seek positive change. Therefore, this unit will provide you with an understanding of politics, political processes and the ideologies that may be key drivers in the development of policy and governance at the local, societal and global level.
Option units (choose two):
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Drugs, Crime and Society: Examines the phenomenon of illicit drug use and drug supply within the UK and internationally. It critically evaluates policing and policy regimes that have attempted to reduce the availability and consumption of drugs, whilst considering possible alternatives. The module explores theoretical explanations around drugs and drug addiction and considers the benefits of harm reduction and treatment programmes.
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Seekers, Believers and Iconoclasts: Sociology of Thought: Explore belief systems as a sociological phenomenon contextualised within a cultural and social analysis, as well as a philosophical and historical one. You’ll also consider belief systems as phenomena subject to social change and transformation in terms of influencing social structures, interactions and shared or diverse social understandings, influencing societies in transition.
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‘Troubling’ Gender: This unit will explore gender as socially constructed and historically variable aspect of societies, past and present. You will examine the ways in which gender informs and structures social inequalities, and analyse the interrelationships between gender, power and other social categories (e.g., class, sexuality, race, ethnicity, religion, age, and nationality).
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Anthropology of International Intervention: Following crises, conflict, war or regime change, many populations and states become subject to large-scale military or humanitarian interventions, global knowledge transfer and development projects, which has led to a recognition of the importance of understanding local knowledge and involving local stakeholders in order to ensure the success of projects intending securitisation and democratisation, peace and state-building. During this unit, you’ll be familiarised with critical anthropological and multi-disciplinary debates and insights on international intervention policies and practices in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and you’ll also develop your critical and creative thinking for improving such development projects.
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Crime and Criminal Justice in the 21st Century: Build on your understanding of how crime is differentially defined within different sociological traditions, its possible causes, and how crime and criminal acts can impact on individuals, communities and societies. You’ll consider how crime can be addressed and whether wider policy changes in education, mental health, and drug policy can make a difference.
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Criminology of Organisations: This unit will introduce you to organisational crime and how this type of crime is currently being policed and regulated through means of law and social control. You’ll explore critically, the reasons why only a small percentage of this type of crime is prosecuted and adjudicated by the criminal justice system.
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Intersectional Criminology: This unit will introduce you to the intersecting relations of crime between different social groups. You’ll critically explore the social construction of crime by looking at the media and the creation and construction of divergent images, identities and attitudes towards different social groups, together with social policies and laws relating to crime and victimisation. You’ll consider the representation of marginalised communities within the criminal justice system and the contribution of intersectionality to criminological research.
Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.
