About this course
Study human life in all its cross-cultural complexity on this BSc Sociology and Anthropology degree. You’ll explore a broad range of issues faced by modern societies around the globe, and understand the importance of cultural anthropology and diversity in our rapidly changing world. Join graduates who have gone on to careers in government, education and research.
Studying sociology (examining the identities, relationships and social practices within our world) and anthropology (the study of human behaviour and societies) will equip you with research expertise and a unique way to consider the impact of social inequality, gender, ethnicity, race, poverty, class differences, and the function of culture in the 21st century.
Your core modules will focus on key areas, including:
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research methods in social sciences, including quantitative and qualitative research
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sociological and anthropological theories and perspectives
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relationships between individuals, groups and institutions in societies around the world
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comparative analysis in sociology and cross-cultural analysis in anthropology
You’ll have the option to specialise by studying modules in subjects like:
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archaeology
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criminology
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collective action and social change
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migration
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ethnography of food and culture
As part of your degree you can:
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study abroad for a semester at a partner university in Brazil, Canada or China
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make a difference by getting involved with our Social Impact Lab
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study modules from other areas, such as languages or psychology
What it's like to study Sociology with Anthropology at Southampton
Course location
This course is based at Highfield.
Awarding body
This qualification is awarded by the University of Southampton.
Download the Course Description Document
The Course Description Document details your course overview, your course structure and how your course is taught and assessed.
Changes due to COVID-19
Although the COVID-19 situation is improving, any future restrictions could mean we might have to change the way parts of our teaching and learning take place in 2021 to 2022. We're working hard to plan for a number of possible scenarios. This means that some of the information on this course page may be subject to change.
Find out more on our COVID advice page.
Entry requirements
For Academic year 202223
A-levels
This course is not recruiting for entry in September 2022
Scottish Qualification
Offers will be based on exams being taken at the end of S6. Subjects taken and qualifications achieved in S5 will be reviewed. Careful consideration will be given to an individual’s academic achievement, taking in to account the context and circumstances of their pre-university education.
Please see the University of Southampton’s Curriculum for Excellence Scotland Statement (PDF) for further information. Applicants are advised to contact their Faculty Admissions Office for more information.
Other requirements
You might meet our criteria in other ways if you do not have the qualifications we need. Find out more about:
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our Access to Southampton scheme for students living permanently in the UK (including residential summer school, application support and scholarship)
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skills you might have gained through work or other life experiences (otherwise known as recognition of prior learning)
Find out more about our Admissions Policy.
Got a question?
Please contact our enquiries team if you're not sure that you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000
Course structure
You’ll learn the social theories and research methods that form the basis of sociology and anthropology. Your wide range of optional modules are designed to support your career plans and areas of interest, including criminology, belief, migration and the media.
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 5 core modules will introduce you to the basics of sociology and anthropology, including:
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Exploring Other Cultures
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Foundations in Social and Anthropological Theory
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Transformations of the Modern World
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Introduction to Quantitative Methods
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Understanding Everyday Life
You’ll also choose more modules from options like:
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Introduction to Ethnography: Food and Culture
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Human Origins
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Social Problems and Social Policy
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Criminology
Year 2 overview
Next, you’ll take 4 more core modules to advance your existing skills:
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Social Theory
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Research Methods in The Social Sciences
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Qualitative Research: Foundations, Principles and Skills
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Cosmology, Ritual and Belief
You’ll also take 4 optional modules from a broad range of subjects, including:
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Race and Ethnicity in Society
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Gender and Society
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Class Structure and Social Inequality
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Globalisation, Inequalities and Power
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Criminological Psychology
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 consider the most important processes of social change taking place today in a core module in Comparative Sociology. Your last core module is Sexuality and Intimacy, in which you’ll examine the historical and cultural constructions of human relationships.
Finally, you’ll select 4 more modules from a wide range of options, many of which will be taught in student-led seminars. These include:
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The Sociology of Youth
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Collective Action and Social Change
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Comparing Welfare States - Evolution, Politics & Impact
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The Archaeology and Anthropology of Adornment
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Anthropology, Film and Representations of the Other
Want more detail? See all the modules in the course.
Modules
Changes due to COVID-19
Although the COVID-19 situation is improving, any future restrictions could mean we might have to change the way parts of our teaching and learning take place in 2021 to 2022. We're working hard to plan for a number of possible scenarios. This means that some of the information on this course page may be subject to change.
Find out more on our COVID advice page.
For entry in Academic Year 2021-22
Year 1 modules
You must study the following modules in year 1:
In this module you will develop an understanding of the England and Wales criminal justice system, with a particular focus on its philosophies, institutional practices and processes and outcomes. You will gain an understanding of how the criminal justice ...
We understand that few students have had the previous opportunity to study social and cultural anthropology. In this introductory module you will consider questions like: What is anthropology? What do anthropologists study? What is it like to do anthropol...
The module introduces you to key thinkers and their contributions to social theory, their ideas about the social world and the way it works. These ideas provide the building blocks for your degree whether you are studying sociology, anthropology, crimino...
This module focuses on definitions and measurement of crime and deviance; it explores sociological theories and bio-psychological approaches of crime and deviance and it promotes critical thinking on the social construction of crime.
The aims of this course are to: • Introduce you to quantitative methods used in the social sciences, including both descriptive statistics and elementary inferential statistics • Enable you to use these methods and to understand other people’s use of ...
The module introduces students to the ways in which "social problems" come to be defined within societies and the factors shaping social policy responses to such problems.
The module will look at key social transformations in the modern world and the way in which these have been analysed by social scientists.
The module will look at the disciplines of sociology and criminology through an examination of key aspects of everyday life and the ways in which these have been analysed by social scientists. This module also includes a preparatory section, which prov...
Year 2 modules
You must study the following modules in year 2:
This module is concerned with how people in different cultures make sense of their world. The spiritual beliefs and ritual practices of a range of different cultures across the world are considered together with some of the ways in which anthropologists ...
Anthropology actively studies people in real-life settings in order to investigate the crucial roles that culture and social organisation play in their lives. Sociology actively pursues strong theoretical perspectives which further explores the relationsh...
This module has two goals. First to teach students the foundations, principals and methods of qualitative research. Second to support students in identifying a topic and designing a research project for their third year dissertation. One of the pre-req...
This module builds upon the material learnt in the first year in STAT1003. It aims to increase your knowledge of social science research strategies and methods of collecting data (both quantitative and qualitative). It does this by covering the whole rese...
This module will look at some of the key terms, issues and debates within social theory. Key terms and concepts will be introduced via selected theories, theoretical issues and the ideas of specific writers who have attempted to explain social phenomena,...
You must also choose from the following modules in year 2:
This module is designed to introduce you to some of the key concepts and debates surrounding children and childhood. It will provide you an opportunity to develop an analytical and critical understanding of the theoretical frameworks, research, policy and...
This module looks at the changing nature of material, social and cultural inequality in British society, and how it affects our everyday lives.
This module encourages you to take an in-depth look at the way psychology has been used to explain and control crime. We will explore the way psychological principles can be applied to such issues as violence, murder, serial killing and the role of the c...
The module will introduce sociological perspectives on gender and to contemporary debates about gender and society.
This module focuses upon the contemporary development of criminology as a discipline and the range of perspectives and theories that form part of it. These include traditional and more radical sociological and criminological theories. One of the pre-re...
This module will explore the issues of race, racism, racial conflict, and race relations in contemporary Britain and worldwide. Although we will mainly refer to Britain, global examples from Europe, the US, the Caribbean, Africa, and South America will be...
The youth of today' has long been a source of curiosity to older generations, and sociologists and criminologists are no exception to this trend. Over the past 100 years, there have been attempts both to explain society's fascination with the younger gene...
Year 3 modules
You must study the following modules in year 3:
This module is concerned with the development of modern societies and the nature of 'modernity'. It will draw on the writings of contemporary sociologists in order to consider what the most important processes of social change taking place are and how the...
You will conduct small-scale, independent study of a chosen topic, within your particular degree pathway.
This module is concerned with different anthropological and sociological approaches to studying two important areas of human experience, namely sexuality and intimacy. We explore the relationship between sex, love and intimacy, taking into consideration ...
You must also choose from the following modules in year 3:
This module is designed to introduce you to some of the key concepts and debates surrounding children and childhood. It will provide you an opportunity to develop an analytical and critical understanding of the theoretical frameworks, research, policy and...
This module looks at the changing nature of material, social and cultural inequality in British society, and how it affects our everyday lives.
In this module we will first explore why all industrialised countries developed programmes to reduce social risks. We will then examine how and why this development was different in different countries. Finally we will discuss some of the main challenges...
This module considers a range of issues in the area of the sociology of the policy and policing and more broadly the sociology of social control - issues, include domestic violence, public order and policing minority groups.
Penology is the study of punishment, in prison and in the community. Students are encouraged to think critically about the multiple purposes and debatable effectiveness of our contemporary modes of punishment, and to understand why this 'end product' of t...
This module will explore the issues of race, racism, racial conflict, and race relations in contemporary Britain and worldwide. Although we will mainly refer to Britain, global examples from Europe, the US, the Caribbean, Africa, and South America will b...
Societal sensitivity regarding victims in the UK has grown in recent decades. In the UK new policies and legislation have emerged at all levels in the criminal justice system with the aim of putting the victim at the centre of the criminal justice process...
Would you like to understand why people - mostly men - are violent, or commit rape, or sexually abuse young children? Are people who do such things mentally ill? What might have happened to them in their lives that makes them commit such serious offences...
The youth of today' has long been a source of curiosity to older generations, and sociologists and criminologists are no exception to this trend. Over the past 100 years, there have been attempts both to explain society's fascination with the younger gene...
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)
Course time
How you'll spend your course time:
Year 1
Study time
Your scheduled learning, teaching and independent study for year 1:
How we'll assess you
- dissertations
- essays
- individual and group projects
- oral presentations
- written exams
Your assessment breakdown
Year 1:
Year 2
Study time
Your scheduled learning, teaching and independent study for year 2:
How we'll assess you
- dissertations
- essays
- individual and group projects
- oral presentations
- written exams
Your assessment breakdown
Year 2:
Year 3
Study time
Your scheduled learning, teaching and independent study for year 3:
How we'll assess you
- dissertations
- essays
- individual and group projects
- oral presentations
- written exams
Your assessment breakdown
Year 3:
Academic support
You’ll be supported by a personal academic tutor and have access to a senior tutor.
Course leader
Traute Meyer is the course leader.
Careers
Sociologists and anthropologists are experts in social organisation and human behaviour. As a graduate of this course, you’ll have transferable expertise that will be valued across a wide range of roles and sectors.
Our graduates have established careers in:
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government
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the civil service
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social services
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education
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community development
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police and prison service
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HR, business and finance
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social research
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academia
Careers services at Southampton
We are a top 20 UK university for employability (QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2019). Our Careers and Employability Service will support you throughout your time as a student and for up to 5 years after graduation. This support includes:
work experience schemes
CV and interview skills and workshops
networking events
careers fairs attended by top employers
a wealth of volunteering opportunities
study abroad and summer school opportunities
We have a vibrant entrepreneurship culture and our dedicated start-up supporter, Futureworlds, is open to every student.
Work in industry
You’ll have the opportunity to take a Year in Employment, which is a paid work placement between your second and third year.
Fees, costs and funding
Tuition fees
Fees for a year's study:
- UK students pay £9,250.
- EU and international students pay £19,300.
What your fees pay for
Your tuition fees pay for the full cost of tuition and all examinations.
Find out how to:
Accommodation and living costs, such as travel and food, are not included in your tuition fees. Explore:
Bursaries, scholarships and other funding
If you're a UK or EU student and your household income is under £25,000 a year, you may be able to get a University of Southampton bursary to help with your living costs. Find out about bursaries and other funding we offer at Southampton.
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 that's linked to your chosen subject area.
We award scholarships and grants for travel, academic excellence, or to students from underrepresented backgrounds.
Support during your course
The Student Services Centre 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.
How to apply
When you apply use:
- UCAS course code: L3L6
- UCAS institution code: S27
What happens after you apply?
We will assess your application on the strength of your:
- predicted grades
- academic achievements
- personal statement
- academic reference
We aim to respond to you within 2 to 6 weeks with a decision about your application.
Equality and diversity
We treat and select everyone in line with our Equality and Diversity Statement.
Got a question?
Please contact our enquiries team if you're not sure that you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000
