Course summary

Explore what unites and divides us, how we make sense of our relationships, and understand our place in the world around us. On Goldsmiths’ innovative BA Sociology programme, you’ll look at contemporary global events as you explore issues of social inequality, culture, power, and identity. Why study BA Sociology at Goldsmiths

• Studying at Goldsmiths means you’ll study in one of the world’s leading sociology departments. We are ranked joint 1st in the UK for research intensity in sociology (Complete University Guide Subject League Tables 2022) and ranked in the top 40 in the world by the QS World University Subject Rankings 2021.

• Sociology gives you the tools to understand the world, but also to think about how to change it for the better. You'll study current events to explore how social inequalities operate and how they might be overcome.

• You’ll take modules that explore how race, gender, social class, and disability affect our lives, how global social movements combat oppression, how historical processes such as colonialism continue to shape today’s societies, and how the climate crisis requires that we develop new ways of thinking and acting.

• You’ll be learning about popular culture, representation, multicultural society, and urban studies in the heart of southeast London. For example, if you take the ‘London’ option module you’ll be getting out on the local streets, taking photos and doing visual sociology yourself, rather than just reading about London in a classroom.

• Our staff teach their own specialisms – they're pioneers in their fields and write the books that are on reading lists across the country. You’ll be learning from sociological experts on diverse subjects such as childhood, race and racism, religion, health, crime, migration, and human rights.

• You’ll have the chance to pick from a wide range of exciting option modules so you can tailor your own pathway through the degree. Select from options such as: Sex, Drugs and Technology; Prisons, Punishment and Society; Why Music Matters for Sociology; Visual Explorations of the Social World; Food and Taste; Thinking Animals; and Law, Identity and Ethics.

• Our focus is on helping you to become the type of sociologist you want to be, so in your final year you’ll design your own project and carry out your own research based on what interests you most. Some recent topics include: South Asian youth and the quarter-life crisis, Conventional beauty standards and black women’s hair practices, Social media influencers as ‘digital capitalists’, The negotiation of responsibilities for British-Somali women students and Emotional labour in call centre work.

• Because you’ll be generating data of your own, conducting primary research, and analysing lots of evidence, you’ll be developing great transferrable skills and experiencing what it means to be a sociologist from day one.

• Our BA Sociology degree will equip you with a range of skills, including research, critical thinking and analysis, working with others, tackling inequality knowledgably, and project management.

• The skills and the knowledge you gain during the degree will enable you to pursue a diverse range of careers including public sector management, teaching, education consultancy, technical creative media arts, human rights NGOs, and environmental science occupations.