Course summary

This course is ideal for students interested in learning more about how to use numbers and data within sociology. It provides training in practical and analytical skills, which will enhance your career prospects and provide you with a strong platform for postgraduate study. No prior knowledge of statistical techniques is required. About two thirds of your studies will follow the single honours BSc Sociology course. You will study society's structures, forms of action and cultural arrangements and understand changes in social life. You will gain a thorough grounding in sociology, as well as opportunities to specialise in new areas of research conducted by academics at the forefront of the discipline. The remaining third of your course will provide interdisciplinary training in quantitative methods. In year one of the quantitative pathway we discuss how numbers and data are used to tell convincing stories in the media and social research. We consider what is meant by segregation and how it can be mapped and measured. Year two offers practical classes in social statistics and applied data analysis, which will develop your skills in numeracy and analysis and enable you to undertake your own individual research project in an area of quantitative social science in year three. In your fourth year we offer training in more advanced quantitative methods suitable for postgraduate research, while continuing to develop expertise and specialist knowledge in sociology. You will also have the opportunity to spend half a year studying abroad at a partner university. To find out more about studying abroad, visit Global Opportunities (https://www.bristol.ac.uk/global-opportunities/go-abroad/).