BSc Sociology with a Placement Year

Compulsory modules

Contemporary Social Problems

Explore what constitutes a social problem, the different ways in which social problems are approached by policy-makers, the media, and the public, and consider how the strengths and weaknesses of policy responses might be evaluated.

Thinking Sociologically

Examine different approaches to the study of society and social behaviour, including positivism, interpretivism, social constructionism, and feminism, and the kinds of evidence upon which they draw. You will think critically about how these different approaches can be used to make sense of contemporary societies and to answer big questions about social order and social change.

Gender, Race, and Class: Social Differentiation and Stratification

Explore the key theories which underpin the study of social differentiation and stratification, including Marxism, functionalism, Weber, and feminism. You will examine some dimensions on which social differentiation and inequality are mapped such as gender, race/ethnicity, and social class, and consider the inequalities associated with age, education, disability, and religion.

British Society

Delve deeper into contemporary British society, examining how it has changed since the second world war and why, and analysing the changing relationship between the state, social institution and citizens. You'll explore topics such as multicultural Britain and Britain as a class society, crime and deviance, the role of mass media, and the increasing power of the food industry.

Optional modules

Inequality

Analyse and understand the evolution of inequality, both over time and across developed countries. You’ll explore the economic, normative, and political implications of different forms of inequality, particularly in relation to gender and race.

Introduction to Psychology

Explore the methods used to understand human behaviour and how psychology can be applied in the world around us.

Contemporary World Cultures: An Introduction to Social Anthropology

Explore human societies and cultures through diverse case studies, focusing on kinship and marriage, gender and sexuality, the roles of religion, ritual and witchcraft in social life, and contemporary hunting and gathering societies. Develop critical thinking about real-world case studies while drawing on the research experience of lecturers.

Global Justice

Discover global perspectives on justice and freedom, from the Buddha to Christian female mystics, to acquire new insights and question your own beliefs and ideas.

Introduction to Political Ideas

Explore some of the major debates in political theory through the study of four themes: authority, freedom, democracy, and social justice. You’ll focus on conceptual and normative debates about politics and critically analyse, deconstruct, and develop arguments.

Introduction to Criminal Justice

Study the process for preventing and managing crime. You’ll be introduced to the main criminological traditions and perspectives relevant to studying criminal justice, focusing on the development, role, organisation, and governance of the main institutions and agencies involved in crime, control and punishment.

Modern American Culture and Counterculture

Discover American countercultures in work, from 1950s Beat poetry to fiction responding to the Black Lives Matter movement. You’ll study the perspectives of African-American, Native American and white American creatives in a variety of genres: poetry, short stories, YA fiction, science fiction, drama, songs, films, war reportage and the graphic novel.

Optional choices from the University-wide catalogue.

These are the modules that we currently offer for 2025/2026 entry. They may be subject to change as we regularly review our module offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Please note that the University cannot guarantee that all optional modules will be available to all students who may wish to take them.

You can also register your details with us to receive information about your course of interest and study and life at the University of Reading.

Compulsory modules

Research Methods

Explore research processes employed in sociological research with an emphasis on critically evaluating methodological choices and acquiring skills in research design and research ethics.

Sociological Theory

Examine classical and contemporary sociological theories and explore how they can inform our understanding of the social world, how it is structured, and how it is changing. You will engage directly with key theoretical texts, exploring what they say, the context in which they emerged, and their contemporary relevance. A strong emphasis is placed on the role of contemporary sociological theory in aiding our understanding of issues such as inequality, power and surveillance, culture, risk, the self and identity, and the family.

Identity Politics

Investigate how shared identities are formed and become politically salient. You’ll explore the concepts of ‘self’ and ‘identity’ and consider how identities are shaped, regulated, and maintained at the local and global levels while reflecting on how structures of oppression emerge and are maintained and challenged.

Optional modules

Work Placement and Project

Undertake a work placement or an internship with an external organisation broadly related to the general sphere of your degree studies. You’ll deliver an oral presentation directly based on your experience, including findings from a project undertaken within the placement.

Learning Gender: Exploring the links between gender, education, and society

Examine links between gender, education and society that impact individual opportunities and outcomes. Topics include constructions of femininity, feminist standpoint theory and performing gender.

Crime and the Media

Learn to think critically about the relationship between the media and crime. You’ll study theoretical perspectives on representation and the research methods needed to analyse media representations of crime and media in everyday life. Explore critical perspectives about media institutions and analyse how they build on and from ‘crime stories'.

Global Philosophies

Participate in cross-cultural conversations about global issues such as gender, race, social identities, and death. You will be introduced to and taught how to analyse a range of concepts, including Buddhist, Jain, and African American, critical theories, performative theories, and phenomenological theories.

Living Together: Social and Cultural Geographies

Explore social and cultural issues and concepts, such as analysing census data, iconography and participatory methods to understand local and international geographies. Key topics include identity, inequalities, landscape and consumption.

The Media, Society, and Politics

Develop understanding of the role and power of mass media in contemporary society and political life. You will explore the world of broadcasting and the social construction of news and produce a pre-recorded ‘documentary’ on a topic of your choosing which you’ll present as part of a radio broadcast in our on-campus radio studio.

Global Historical Sociology

Discover the historical rise and fall of social orders through global and transnational dynamics and bring greater historical and sociological awareness to contemporary debates in world politics.

Women, Crime, and Justice

Explore women’s experiences of offending, victimisation, criminal justice and punishment. You’ll analyse women’s experience in historical and contemporary contexts from a range of perspectives, relying on key theories and methodologies that employ a feminist analysis of crime and justice.

Black Britain: Race and Migration in Post-war Britain

Examine race in post-war Britain and how immigration has rendered contemporary Britain into a truly multi-cultural society. You'll study the influx of immigration from the 40s, 50s and 60s and the restrictive immigration acts that followed and analyse the experience of migrants and the political responses of both the white population and black power and civil rights groups.

Constructions of Childhood and Youth

Research psychology, sociology and policy on childhood and youth. By challenging assumptions about childhood and youth, you’ll develop a critical understanding of policy and practice.

Society, Thought, and Art in Modern Europe

Discover the birth of modern humanity in late 18th-century Europe and the revolutionary changes that Enlightenment and Romanticism intellectual movements brought in all spheres of thought and social life. You’ll also explore how different European nations contributed to innovation, how modernity diffused beyond the Western world, the transformations brought by non-European influences, and the leading role of art in the modernisation process.

Optional choices from the University-wide catalogue.

These are the modules that we currently offer for 2025/2026 entry. They may be subject to change as we regularly review our module offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Please note that the University cannot guarantee that all optional modules will be available to all students who may wish to take them.

You can also register your details with us to receive information about your course of interest and study and life at the University of Reading.

Professional Placement.

Our placement coordinator will support you in securing your placement and throughout your placement year. As part of your placement reflection, you'll be required to prepare and deliver a presentation and submit a written report detailing your experience and what you’ve learned.

Compulsory modules

Dissertation in Sociology

Design, conduct, and produce your own independent sociological research-based project on a topic you are interested in, with support by a specialist supervisor. You’ll identify the research question, critically evaluate the relevant literature, apply theoretical frameworks and research methods to your research questions, and learn to analyse and synthesise the research findings.

Optional modules

Global Justice

Explore some of the main debates around justice at a global level, focusing on how theoretical arguments are applied to real-world challenges. You’ll examine discussions around various topics, including open borders, climate change and countries’ responsibilities, colonialism and reparations, and economic globalisation.

Experiencing War

Examine the roles and experiences of human beings at and in war and examine the key actors in war: combatants, civilians, and third parties.

Feminism and Political Theory

Explore the role of feminism in the political landscape and the theoretical controversies surrounding it. You’ll examine a range of pressing issues in feminist politics, such as abortion, surrogacy, pornography, marriage, and the body.

Young People, Crime, and Justice

Delve into the history and theory of young people's offending. You will develop a critical understanding of childhood and delinquency and explore explanations for youth offending and experiences in youth justice systems.

Identity and Conflict in Modern Europe

Explore the diversification, evolution and fluidity modern notions of race, gender, and how individual and collective identities have been redefined by intellectuals and ideologies. You’ll be encouraged to engage with competing and conflicting visions and values both through set case studies and group projects.

Marx, Durkheim, Weber

Study the sociological methodologies, concepts and theories of three seminal thinkers: Max, Weber, and Durkheim. You will learn about the dramatic social contexts in which they were writing and their continuing relevance to contemporary societal challenges.

Gender and Politics

Critically examine how gender is manifested in the political domain and explore complex questions such as “why do women remain under-represented in politics?”, “are voters sexist?”, and “how do stereotypes about masculinity and femininity shape political campaigns or political leadership?”.

Spaces of Care and Wellbeing

Develop your knowledge and understanding of key theoretical approaches to geographies of care and wellbeing and how these may be applied using participatory methods to diverse spaces in the local community and globally. Engage with practitioners working with refugees, people experiencing loneliness and other marginalised groups in Reading.

Race, Ethnicity and Justice

Investigate the relationship between race, ethnicity and criminal justice as you examine key institutions such as the police, prosecution, defence, judges and juries. You’ll learn from the point of view of race and racism, exploring the long history of holding these organisations to account for racial and ethnic disparities.

Green Criminology: Environmental Crime and Climate Justice

Study environmental harm through a criminological lens as you ask questions about the forms of harm being done, where, by whom, to what effect, and what consequences and responses there might be. You’ll consider humans relationship to nature and the underlying political, social and cultural determinants of humans abuses to the natural world.

Please note that the University cannot guarantee that all optional modules will be available to all students who may wish to take them.

You can also register your details with us to receive information about your course of interest and study and life at the University of Reading.