(BA) Bachelor of Arts
Social Sciences
Withdrawn
University of Essex
University of Essex
Sociology and Criminology
Colchester Campus
Honours Degree
Full-time
BA LY10JS
10/05/2023
Details
Professional accreditation
None
Admission criteria
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) code
Course qualifiers
A course qualifier is a bracketed addition to your course title to denote a specialisation or pathway that you have achieved via the completion of specific modules during your course. The
specific module requirements for each qualifier title are noted below. Eligibility for any selected qualifier will be determined by the department and confirmed by the final year Board of
Examiners. If the required modules are not successfully completed, your course title will remain as described above without any bracketed addition. Selection of a course qualifier is
optional and student can register preferences or opt-out via Online Module Enrolment (eNROL).
None
Rules of assessment
Rules of assessment are the rules, principles and frameworks which the University uses to calculate your course progression and final results.
Additional notes
None
External examiners
External Examiners provide an independent overview of our courses, offering their expertise and help towards our continual improvement of course content, teaching, learning, and assessment.
External Examiners are normally academics from other higher education institutions, but may be from the industry, business or the profession as appropriate for the course.
They comment on how well courses align with national standards, and on how well the teaching, learning and assessment methods allow students to develop and demonstrate the relevant knowledge and skills needed to achieve their awards.
External Examiners who are responsible for awards are key members of Boards of Examiners. These boards make decisions about student progression within their course and about whether students can receive their final award.
Programme aims
- To provide students with an understanding of the distinctive character of social sciences.
- To provide students with a knowledge of the main theories and concepts of sociology, economics and politics.
- To provide students with an interdisciplinary understanding of social sciences.
- To develop students capacity for critical enquiry, argument and analysis.
- To develop students capacity for independent learning.
- To provide students with the knowledge and skills to enable them to proceed to further study and research.
Learning outcomes and learning, teaching and assessment methods
On successful completion of the programme a graduate should demonstrate knowledge and skills as follows:
A: Knowledge and understanding
A1: An in-depth knowledge of key concepts and theories in sociology, economic and politics.
A2: A knowledge of the social, economic and political processes of governance and policy.
A3: A comprehensive understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of social sciences in
relation to social change
A4: An understanding of changing and diverse social practices, structures and cultures, and the relationships between individuals, groups and public and private sphere.
A5: A critical understanding of the relationship between theory, concepts and substantive
issues in social sciences
Learning methods
Students enhance the above intellectual skills primarily through the work they do for their
modules, although lectures and classes provide a means of teachers demonstrating these
skills through example. Preparation for classes involves the reading, interpretation and
evaluation of social sciences texts. Class tutors provide feedback on all student work
through comment and discussion. In addition, tutors also engage students outside the
classroom during office hours, appointments, and by email. Similarly the preparation of
essays and other assignments also develops the listed intellectual skills. Students are
provided with feedback on all assessed work and this is crucial to their intellectual
development. Their final year capstone projects are used to demonstrate independence and
originality in tackling and solving research problems, whilst also acting to advance their
capacity for self-directed knowledge and understanding. Additionally, final year students will have to attend the THINK seminars as part of the Applied Social Sciences module and write
short critical summaries about it.
Assessment methods
Outcomes A1 to A5 are assessed through coursework, which includes oral presentations and practical skills based assignments, as well as essays. In addition, the Applied Social Science Module (capstone) in the final year aims is to help students obtain a broad and deep understanding of the complexity of current challenges, while also developing a portfolio of different skills and experiences that will help with personal and career development.
B: Intellectual and cognitive skills
B1: An advanced ability to search, summarise and critically review social sciences literature.
B2: A critical ability to comparatively review competing theories and explanations
B3: An ability to develop a reasoned argument (b)
B4: An advanced ability to formulate researchable questions
Learning methods
Students enhance the above intellectual skills primarily through the work they do for their
modules, although lectures and classes provide a means of teachers demonstrating these
skills through example. Preparation for classes involves the reading, interpretation and
evaluation of social sciences texts. Class tutors provide feedback on all student work
through comment and discussion. In addition, tutors also engage students outside the
classroom during office hours, appointments, and by email. Similarly the preparation of
essays and other assignments also develops the listed intellectual skills. Students are
provided with feedback on all assessed work and this is crucial to their intellectual
development. Their final year capstone projects are used to demonstrate independence and
originality in tackling and solving research problems, whilst also acting to advance their
capacity for self-directed knowledge and understanding. Additionally, final year students will have to attend the THINK seminars as part of the Applied Social Sciences Module and write
short critical summaries about it.
Assessment methods
Each outcome is assessed through essays and reports. All five outcomes will be assessed
once more in the capstone project. Demonstration of advanced intellectual skills is a key
criterion in awarding distinctions for essays and dissertations.
C: Practical skills
C1: An advanced ability to retrieve relevant social sciences literature using library and online searches.
C2: A practical ability to summarise, evaluate and review sociological, economic or political arguments, texts and findings.
C3: A practical ability to summarise, evaluate and review sociological, economic or political literature
C4: A comprehensive understanding of the principles of interdisciplinary research design,
and an understanding of the merits of different methods
Learning methods
In the Applied Social Sciences Module students learn to conduct literature searches and
reviews and to work on various aspects of the social sciences enquiries, typically found in a
research proposal. Throughout the degree practical skills are developed through
preparation for classes, preparing essays and other assessed assignments, and giving
presentations. Students receive detailed feedback on all their coursework and
presentations. Students who have a particular interest in extending or deepening their
practical sociology, economic and politic skills may do so by choosing from a range of
methods modules offered by each of the three departments when deciding on their optional
modules.
Assessment methods
All the modules assess an understanding of C1 through C4, the full range of these skills is
assessed in the marking of the final Capstone Project
D: Key skills
D1: An advanced ability in presenting ideas and evidence to others orally, in a clear and concise manner and an advanced ability to present ideas and evidence to others in writing, in a clear and concise manner
D2: An ability to collect and present materials using information technology
D3: An ability to analyse quantitative data in order to design a research project when choosing research method as a pathway
D4: A good self-direction and originality in tackling and solving problems
D5: An ability to refine understanding through discussion and present findings in a collective way
D6: An essential understanding of how to plan, set appropriate time scale and assess feasibility of projects; a keen awareness of the need to reflect on their own work and respond constructively to the comments of others
Learning methods
Key skills are taught and learned throughout the course through a range of strategies, such
as requiring students to give oral presentations, through giving them specific assignments
such as carrying bibliographic and web searches, through specific writing assignments and
essays, and through class discussion, class and essay preparation, oral presentations and a
portfolio. Students learn to manage their own research projects through the support and
advice of supervisors. They are given feedback on all their coursework and on their
dissertation research and are encouraged to reflect on their own work and improve on it.
Students also have the opportunity to develop skills in working in groups through their
participation in the classes for every module.
Assessment methods
Key skills are assessed throughout the degree through continuous assessed coursework.
Oral communication skills (D1) and IT skills (D2) are specifically assessed on the capstone
project, and written skills (D1 and constructive response by coursework and the dissertation.
Basic numeracy skills (D3) to analyse quantitative data are assessed in all research method
modules taught by each department if the students follow that pathway. The BA capstone
project is an overall assessment of all skills, namely communication, research management,
problem solving skills and improving learning and performance.