Course Catalogue

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Dissertation in Sociology

6 compulsory group contact hours in the third year, and 2 compulsory group contact hours, plus up to 9 hours of additional optional training and access to 4 hours of drop in sessions, and individual supervision in the third and fourth years.

Mandatory Entry Requirements

Entry to Honours Sociology requires a grade point average of 12 (Grade C) over Sociology 2A and Sociology 2B as a first attempt and D3 or better in Sociology 1A and 1B.

None

None.

Three pieces of work contribute to the final assessment of this module:

■ A 1,500 word dissertation proposal, submitted at the end of the Junior Honours year (15%)

■ A 10 minute oral presentation, given in the middle of the Senior Honours year (10%)

■ A 12,000 word dissertation, submitted at the end of the Senior Honours year (75%)

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below.

The general aims of the course follow from the departmental aim of developing a sound knowledge and critical understanding of the academic disciplines of Sociology. In keeping with this, the Honours programme as a whole aims to help you develop increasingly advanced conceptual and analytical skills within the disciplines of Sociology. The dissertation option aims to:

■ allow you to integrate different aspects of your previous study of sociology and thus consolidate your grasp of the discipline(s)

■ encourage you to develop intellectual independence and originality by choosing your own subject of study and defining its nature and scope

■ give you a grounding in practical research skills, as well as skills in project management, which will be good preparation for further study and/or research, as well as useful in gaining entry to and succeeding in many other occupations and careers

By the end of this module students should be able to:

■ identify a topic worthy of sociological inquiry

■ critically analyse and evaluate existing knowledge on that topic, through a review of relevant literature

■ formulate a coherent and answerable set of research questions

■ identify an appropriate research strategy and method, taking due account of any practical, political and ethical issues affecting the conduct of their research

■ collect and analyse relevant empirical evidence from fieldwork and/or secondary/documentary sources

■ draw appropriate conclusions from their analysis

■ write up a logically structured and properly referenced research report

Students must meet the guidelines set out in the Faculty regulations.