Programme Specification for Sociology (Professional Development) BSc (Hons)

Undergraduate Programme Specification for BSc (Hons) Sociology (Professional Development)

Final award	BSc (Hons)
Intermediate awards available	Cert HE, Dip HE
UCAS code	L302 - Level 1 entry (3 Year full time route) L305 - Level 0 entry (Extended 4 year full time route)
Details of professional body accreditation	N/A
Relevant QAA Benchmark statements	Sociology (mainly) + Social Policy
Date specification last up-dated	May 2012

Profile section

Alternative locations for studying this programme

Location	Which elements?	Taught by UEL staff	Taught by local staff	Method of Delivery
Bromley by Bow Centre-	IS2500; IS2502; IS2503: IS3501*	-Yes	-	Same as on Campus
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·         Modules are mainly taught on Docklands Campus, however, once every three years these modules are taught at the Bromley by Bow Centre.

The summary - UCAS programme profile

BANNER BOX:

So you want to work with people? The route to professional careers in public, voluntary and social organisations starts here.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

The minimum requirements for entry for Level 1 entry is 240 UCAS tariff points from: A/AS level (Including 2 A2 passes), GNVQ, AVCE, Scottish Highers, International Baccalaureate. European Baccalaureate, BTEC / SCOTEC Diploma, Relevant Access Course or successful completion of the Level 0. Other qualifications, including overseas, may be considered. Applicants who do not fulfil the admission requirements for Level 1 may be considered for entry into Level 0. Applicants should have 120 UCAS tariff points from GCE A2 or equivalent.

We also welcome applicants from mature students who do not have formal qualifications but may have relevant experience. Students applying to this programme will be expected to demonstrate a specific interest in this area of study and should have a commitment to engaging with the subject. Applicants will be asked to write an essay and attend an interview. If at the end of that process the Admissions Tutor feels that the applicant has the skills to succeed in Higher Education, they will be offered a place conditional on completion of New Beginnings 2. New Beginnings 2 is a 40 credit programme; 20 at level 0 and 20 at level one.

Students can commence their programme in either Semester A or B.

Overseas Qualifications

The number of overseas qualifications which are accepted for entry are too numerous to list, but you can get advice from the British Council on +44 (0)161 957 7755 or our admissions unit on 020 8223 2835. You must be able to understand and express yourself in both written and spoken English and some evidence e.g. For level 1 entry a TOEFL score of 525 or an IELTS score of 5.5  (no skill level below 5) and for Level 0 entry an IELTS score of 5.5 (no skill level below 5) would be required. International Qualifications will be checked for matriculation to UK Higher Education undergraduate programmes.

ABOUT THE PROGRAMME

What is Sociology (Professional Development)?

The BSC Sociology (Professional Development) programme is aimed at those looking for a professional route through sociology.  It appeals to people who want to work in organisations in the private, voluntary and statutory sectors involved in planning or delivering community services.   This is an applied route through sociology with a specific focus on social welfare.  Students develop skills in analysis and critical thinking through a detailed exploration of welfare services, service delivery and welfare change.  This includes thinking about how social problems are defined and how this then shapes the kinds of policy interventions that are delivered. Students engage with traditional sociological questions around inequality and social justice, again with a specific focus on welfare services and welfare delivery.

The BSc Sociology (Professional Development) programme is innovative in enabling students to apply sociological theory to policy contexts and has a strong focus on professional development.  Core modules include sociologically informed social policy modules; research methods; and approaches to planning and resourcing organisations. It offers a distinctive policy focus and draws on QAA benchmarks for Sociology and Social Policy and Administration. 

The Programme enables students to pursue areas of study and develop expertise in a number of applied fields e.g. Community Studies/Development; .Criminology;  Education; Health Studies(including Health Promotion and Management); Psycho-social studies and Social Enterprise. There is a focus on equipping students with skills that will assist them in following a career in policy, community, or social settings.

 There are many opportunities for professional development on this programme.  The research training element provides excellent transferable skills in social research developed across a three year period and culminating in the production of an 9,000 word research dissertation.  Students are trained to use software packages such as NVivo and SPSS and final year students have had access to paid work experience on research projects and through the University’s Research Undergraduate Internship scheme.

Professional development is enhanced as students develop specialisms in particular areas, such as those outlined above. ‘Planning and Resourcing’ is an ambitious module at level two that enables students to develop transferable skills relevant to managing third sector organisations. These skills can be further developed if students opt for modules such as Fundraising for Social Enterprise and Community Organisations and Organising People: Power and Resources.  The Programme allows students to specialise in particular professional areas through taking modules such as ‘Foundations of  Management for Healthcare’;’ Constitutional and Administrative law’; and ‘Principles and Values of Healthcare’ Management.

Learning environment

Programme staff use a wide range of teaching and learning methods including lectures, workshops, seminars, field trips, tutorials, and Virtual Learning Environments.  A reflexive approach to learning and teaching is adopted in all modules within the programme and we are continually reflecting on how to improve the learning experience. Sociology graduates should be able to evaluate bodies of evidence and judge competing arguments. With this in mind we create learning situations that allow students to rehearse their own ideas and to revise them, through small group discussions, classroom debates and in written work. All modules offer a mix of lectures and seminars with a minimum of three hours contact time per module, with an additional one hour weekly surgery providing one to one support.

Assessment

 Modes of assessment are varied and innovative. This includes traditional essay writing; reports; critiques; presentations; government briefings; database analysis; literature reviews and a policy research project/dissertation. None of the programme’s core modules includes an exam, though some of the approved options for the programme do include exams.

 We provide extensive support and information on what is expected from assessment and detailed feedback on written work.  As a minimum each piece of work will be given written feedback on standard assessment sheets that students collect from the Student Enquiry Desk (SED).  However, many modules significantly exceed this and adopt a grid format related to the assessment criteria enabling extensive and focused feedback.

Within the programme most module leaders schedule specific drop in sessions linked to feedback on a particular piece of coursework and we hold feedback days at the end of each semester.  We schedule the hand in for the first piece of coursework early on in order to provide advice on how to improve your performance in the second piece of coursework.

• There are generally two or three assessments per module, and these vary in content, style and significance
• We provide excellent study support and skills development throughout in order to enable you to achieve your potential
• Degree class is based on performance in ten of the final twelve Modules (taken in Years Two and Three).

Work experience/placement opportunities

There are a number of opportunities for work experience on this programme. Students are advised to undertake relevant volunteering work when commencing their programme. Work experience is also offered through the university-wide Volunteering Module at Level Two and students can opt for a third level  Placement Module in level three. Students are encouraged to undertake dissertation research projects on topics linked to future employment aspirations.

Students undertaking the placement module identify a placement in a relevant organisation (perhaps using our excellent list of local contacts). Students agree to undertake a specific piece of work over a period of time for the organisation. The module enables students to use their workplace experience as an opportunity for personal and academic development and to reflect on skills, strengths and weaknesses. It aims to facilitate reflection and learning from the whole experience of work, such as understanding organisational structures, personal development and lifelong learning through to reflection and critical analysis. 

Students are able to develop specialist skills by working with professionals in a variety of fields. Students have undertaken placements in a variety of settings including housing organisations; schools; a mental health charity; an outreach group for victims of domestic violence; an outreach centre specialising in the teaching of Indian art and culture; a social enterprise working with inner-city young people; a child day-care centre; a local government museum; and a residential care home for the elderly. 

Students on the programme have also been able to access paid employment opportunities on a consultancy project undertaken by Shelter and on an internal research project exploring the experiences of residents decanted from the Olympic Park. The University also has an undergraduate research scheme offering paid work experience to students.

Many of our students are interested in a career in teaching or social work. We have excellent links with UEL’s Cass School of Education and Communities and each year a session is organised enabling Programme leaders from these areas to meet existing second and third year students and provide advice on how to progress onto these popular programmes.  Data from the Destination of Leavers in Higher Education Survey indicates that many of our students go on to work or further study. The field in which the programme is located has an employability website to update students on opportunities and events.

Project work

From the outset, we set project based tasks, encouraging you to learn how to identify and scope a project, resource it, and get it done on time and within the constraints with which you work. We encourage you to develop your own areas of interest, to work as part of a team and learn how to effectively get things done, and to find your own voice and direction in the work which you do. Projects are found in many of the modules which you can take on this programme, with an emphasis on independent work in the compulsory modules. In the final year you prepare an in-depth study in an area of interest to you, and are supported while you undergo its inception, performance and write-up to completion.

Added value

The Sociology (Professional Development) programme is delivered by a highly committed and experienced staff team with a specific focus on the student experience.  The Complete University guide 2012 ranked us as the top modern university in London for Sociology. We consistently receive high ratings for student satisfaction. 97% of our existing students indicated in a recent survey (January 2011) that they would recommend us to a friend. Choice is an attractive feature of the programme as students are able to select from a wide range of modules.

The programme has a strong emphasis on employability.  Students have the opportunity to develop practical skills in fundraising; research methods and report writing. Students may choose to apply their practical skills through a work placement in year three.

Students can study abroad for a semester through our Erasmus Exchange system.  ERASMUS is a student mobility programme that gives you the opportunity to study or work for one or two semesters to study at one of our European partner institutions, or to work at an enterprise.  As students have a double dissertation module in level three we encourage students to do their semester abroad in level 2. International experience is increasingly valued by both the UK and overseas employers and more students than ever are taking the opportunity to study abroad as part of their degree.  

Five years after you have graduated, you may find yourself in a leadership role working in urban regeneration, preparing a bid, running your own organization, running a school, or even running part of a university! You may find that your life has called you in new directions, exploring arts and health in communities, working with systems and data in a large organization, participating in local or even national politics. Degrees of this kind appeal to people who are looking for socially relevant, useful programmes of study, and who want to make an effective contribution, whether this is to an international organization, and/or to their own family.

IS THIS THE PROGRAMME FOR ME?

If you are interested in...

• Applying sociological theory to understand a wide range of social problems such as the underachievement of ‘African-Caribbean’ boys; the growing levels of inequality in Britain; the challenges to welfare services posed by an ageing population; and social unrest such as the London Riots.
• Critically evaluating different policy responses to such issues, and developing your own policy solutions to social problems
• Learning about the world in which you live, and making a contribution to it
• Your personal and professional development

If you enjoy...

• Making up your own mind about issues
• Engaging in social analysis
• Doing research and undertaking investigations
• Going out there and doing something about social problems
• Thinking your way through sometimes complicated issues, and arriving at judgements which are ethically principled
• Meeting, working with, and learning from a lively group of diverse people

If you want...

• To make a useful contribution to the world in which you live.
• To be challenged and stretched and learn how to build on your strengths
• To work with people, in socially relevant work which you find intrinsically rewarding

Your future career

This degree programme is designed to ensure that you attain a wide range of transferable skills relevant to working in public and social settings.  The emphasis on employability should ensure you are well placed to apply for graduate employment or further study and data indicates that most students are in work or paid employment six months after graduation.

The mix of practical work experience; analytical skills; in depth knowledge of social policy;  training in research methods and an introduction to management issues should provide you with the foundation you need to take on a leadership position relatively early on in your career.

Students graduating from the programme have

• Successfully applied for very competitive programmes of post graduate study in social work and teacher training
• Developed the relevant skills necessary to apply for work in health including research, promotion, systems management and development, narrative work and group work
• Started work in the criminal justice system, for example working with young people in trouble
• Gone into careers in education, including policy work, consultancy (after experience), community support, adult literacy and basic skills, further education employment (which requires training which can be only done on the job), entry to PGCE training for primary school teaching and so on
• Worked for community based welfare organisations, including social enterprise, third sector and activist organisations creating opportunities and building capacity at local, grass roots level
• Started careers in areas of work which support people who are experiencing stress and difficulties in their lives: drug rehabilitation, refugee and asylum work, counselling, life style issues such as obesity, stress and occupational health, and so on. Many of these may require further training, some of this is usually done on the job as part of a programme of continued professional development,
• Become employed in formal institutions: these might include local authority, civil service, European organisations, regional governments or assemblies, development networks and major non-governmental organisations.

 How we support you

• All students have a personal tutor to whom they can go for help and advice. Students should ideally meet with their tutor at least once a semester.
• We hold a personal tutor month in March each year to encourage students to meet their tutor.
• We hold feedback days at the end of each semester
• We hold feedback slots at the end of each piece of coursework
• All of the modules on the programme provide weekly surgeries
• We track the progress of all of our students and identify ways to improve grades across the whole spectrum of performance.
• We provide a strong and relatively sophisticated stream of study in skills, to both support you and to develop those which are weak – and to enable you to climb to a high standard of proficiency where you can
• Students develop and work through a Personal Development Plan, which covers tasks such as preparing a C.V., and reflecting upon your option choices

• The university provide a range of support services for students, ranging from the SMART team offering financial advice;  The Health and Wellbeing Team providing counselling services and the employability team offering careers advice. Along-with a dedicated advice and support service for International Students, through our international Advice Team. The university provides a dedicated Dyslexia, disability and Access service providing both assessments and support for students with disabilities.  The University also provides extensive employability support through the Employability and Enterprise Service.
• UEL provides a lively and exciting environment of staff and students. We are proud of our multicultural diversity and welcome people from all walks of life, and from all over the world.

• There is a good support framework provided by UEL regarding medical, counselling and financial advice, and an innovative structure which enables students to interact with us to deal with student business such as enrolment, getting your marks, getting help with coursework etc whenever you need it, by accessing the university from your PC at home or in an internet cafe.

Bonus factors

• A professional route through sociology oriented towards social policy, which draws on an excellent range of well designed, well taught modules in the context of a comprehensive degree programme structure
• A sophisticated range of skills built up through innovative and engaging exercises and projects built into the various modules which you take
• Excellent student support
• One of the most interesting socially relevant degrees on offer in the wider London area

Outcomes section

Programme aims and learning outcomes

What is this programme designed to achieve?

This programme is designed to give you the opportunity to develop an understanding of:

-       Key concepts and theoretical approaches that have been developed and are developing within sociology.

-       The relationship between sociological argument and evidence including the rigorous linking of theoretical analysis with empirical enquiry.

-       An awareness of social context, the nature of social processes, and of social diversity and inequality.

-       How different social groups and individuals experience, respond to and contest social policies

-       The history of contemporary social problems and of social policy responses to them

-       Issues involved in managing and delivering Services

-       Changing relationships between markets, states and individuals

-       A range of qualitative and quantitative research strategies and methods and their advantages and disadvantages.

-       In depth knowledge of specific areas of public policy

What will you learn?

Knowledge and understanding

The ability to formulate and investigate sociologically informed questions

Competence in using major theoretical perspectives and concepts in sociology and applying them to social problems and social policy

The capacity to analyse; assess and communicate empirical sociological information

The ability to recognise the relevance of sociological knowledge to social, public and civic policy

'Thinking' skills

• Understanding a range of academic texts, conflicting views, and contradictory data
• Summarising and synthesising theories and evidence
• Ability to recognise the problem of ethics, and to arrive at appropriate and reasoned judgements
• Ability to deal with theories and research, including their analysis, synthesis and critical evaluation

Subject-Based Practical skills

• Relatively sophisticated skills in reflexivity, inter-personal skills, the understanding of people and their concerns
• Relatively sophisticated research and data handling skills, including effective presentation of data and findings orally and writing
• Able to draw conclusions and make recommendations; able to find a way through difficult situations and to show clear direction to others

Skills for life and work

• Critical understanding of the contexts of public and community organisations of many kinds, their similarities and peculiarities, their needs and issues
• Critical understanding of the diversity of the world in which we live, and an ability to handle conflicting views and evidence about the world in which we live
• A good all round platform of skills which can be developed after graduation according to career needs, in a range of professional, managerial and entrepreneurial settings.
• Development of self understanding and finding one’s own voice and position in the world
• The ability to cope with the differences of others, and the understanding of the possibility of participation in the processes and structures of the world in which we live
• Ability to work in groups
• Time management skills
• Ability to present information in different formats

BSC Sociology (Professional Development) at UEL

Aims to ensure that graduates of the programme :

Become active and informed citizens able to develop innovative policy solutions to social problems and undertake work in a range of Public and Community Settings.

Are able to apply sociological theories and theoretical frameworks to a range of social problems,  with a clear emphasis on explanation, evidence and policy intervention.

Develop a battery of practical and analytical skills relevant for working in public and community setting, such as how to write reports; develop policy proposals;   present information orally and in writing; give presentations; analyse data; leadership skills

Access an applied and innovative programme with an exceptionally wide range of options reflecting the applied settings in which sociologists and policy makers work.

Structure

Quality

How we assure the quality of this programme

Further Information

• Current External examiners
• External examiner reports (available from UEL virtual learning environment (UELPlus or Moodle))

Highlights

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