
- UCAS course code
- RL31
- UCAS institution code
- M20
Course description
Sociology and languages are inherently tied.
No study of society can ignore language, and no study of language can be removed from its specific social context.
You will be challenged to think about the nature of the social worlds in which we live and about how language and culture build and inform such worlds.
You will study social life and social change, from the reproduction of inequalities in relation to social categories (such as race, class or gender), to the way that wider cultural contexts shape intimate relationships.
You will develop advanced language skills and learn about the cultures and histories related to that language.
In the third year of this four-year course, you will undertake a period of residence abroad, studying or working in a country that speaks your language of study.
Our aim is to help you develop analytical, investigative and linguistic skills, training you to become independent thinkers and researchers with the confidence to work in both English and another language.
Aims
- To offer a coherent curriculum in sociology that is strongly informed by leading contemporary research.
- To impart knowledge and understanding in sociological theory and methods allowing them to progress to further study.
- To develop advanced communicative skills in French based on a sound understanding of the structures of the language.
- To build knowledge and understanding of several contemporary or historical aspects of the cultures or societies where French is spoken.
Special features
Residence abroad
You can study and/or work for up to a year in a country or countries relevant to your chosen language to improve your communicative language skills in a native-speaker environment.
Collaborations and partnerships
The University has links with language and cultural institutions across the city, including:
- HOME - international and contemporary art, theatre and film;
- Alliance Française - home of French language and culture.
Societies
The University is home to over 30 international and language-related student societies offering a breadth of cultural activities and experiences.
Teaching and learning
- written and oral examinations;
- presentations;
- coursework (which may include library research, linguistic fieldwork and data collection, or web-based research);
- and, in your final year, the option of writing a dissertation based on a research topic of your choice.
Course content for year 1
Students take a total of 40-60 credits in Sociology.
You will study our core Sociology unit, SOCY10440 Researching Culture & Society. In addition, you will study optional units (total 20-40 credits), such as:
- SOCY10441 Media, Culture and Society;
- SOCY10462 Global Social Challenges.
You will also study an additional 60 credits of Modern Language and Culture course units in your modern language subject.
You will take only the language units relevant to your level of language in each year of study.
Course units for year 1
The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.
Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/optional |
---|---|---|---|
French Cultural Studies | FREN10070 | 20 | Mandatory |
Identity in Modern France | FREN10150 | 20 | Mandatory |
French Language 1 | FREN51011 | 20 | Mandatory |
French Language 2 | FREN51022 | 20 | Mandatory |
French Language 3 | FREN51030 | 20 | Mandatory |
Researching Culture and Society | SOCY10440 | 20 | Mandatory |
Crime and Society | CRIM10001 | 20 | Optional |
Environment and Society | SOCY10202 | 20 | Optional |
Inequalities in Contemporary British Society | SOCY10401 | 20 | Optional |
Contested Foundations of Social Thought | SOCY10421 | 20 | Optional |
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Course content for year 2
Students take a total of 40-60 credits in Sociology.
You will study one of the following core Sociology units (total 20 credits):
- SOCY20091 Qualitative Social Research Design & Methods;
- SOST20012 The Survey Method in Social Research.
In addition, you will study optional units (total 20-40 credits), such as:
- SOCY20501 Social Thought from the Global South;
- SOCY20012 Sociology of Popular Music;
- SOCY20962 Racism and Ethnicity in the UK;
- SOCY20232 Sustainability, Consumption and Global Responsibilities.
You will also study an additional 60 credits of Modern Language and Culture course units in your modern language subject.
Course units for year 2
The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.
Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/optional |
---|---|---|---|
French Language 4 | FREN51040 | 20 | Mandatory |
French Language 5 | FREN51050 | 20 | Mandatory |
Qualitative Research Design & Methods | SOCY20091 | 20 | Mandatory |
The Survey Method in Social Research | SOST20012 | 20 | Mandatory |
Explaining Crime and Deviance | CRIM20412 | 20 | Optional |
Race and Empire in the French-speaking World | FREN20562 | 20 | Optional |
Temptations of the Tragic: Love and Death in French Literature | FREN20681 | 20 | Optional |
Media, Performance, & Digital Culture in Contemporary France | FREN21211 | 20 | Optional |
Gender and Sexuality in French Cinema | FREN21332 | 20 | Optional |
Pragmatics: Meaning, Context, and Interaction | LELA20291 | 20 | Optional |
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Course content for year 3
Course content for year 4
Students take a total of 40-60 credits in Sociology from course units such as:
- SOCY30920 Dissertation A (20 credits) or SOCY30930 Dissertation B (40 credits);
- SOCY30061 Urban Sociology;
- SOCY30091 Changing Social Attitudes;
- SOCY30141 Body and Society;
- SOCY30181 Sociology of Cultural Participation and Cultural Policy;
- SOCY30191 Material Culture: The Social Life of Things;
- SOCY30241 A Sense of Inequality;
- SOCY30042 The Sociology of Human-Animal Relations.
You will also study an additional 60 credits of Modern Language and Culture course units in your modern language subject.
Course units for year 4
The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.
Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/optional |
---|---|---|---|
French Language 6 | FREN51060 | 20 | Mandatory |
Introduction to Interpreting: Context, Skills and Modes | ELAN30242 | 20 | Optional |
Dissertation in French Studies | FREN30000 | 40 | Optional |
Art, Culture and Activism in France in the Age of Social Media | FREN30732 | 20 | Optional |
History and Memory in Francophone Cinema | FREN30831 | 20 | Optional |
Exoticism & Orientalism in C19th France: French Romantics and Local Colour | FREN30872 | 20 | Optional |
Sociology of Human Animal Relations | SOCY30041 | 20 | Optional |
Body and Society | SOCY30142 | 20 | Optional |
Secrets, Lies & Mass Deception | SOCY30152 | 20 | Optional |
Material Culture: The Social Life of Things | SOCY30191 | 20 | Optional |
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Additional fee information
Facilities
The University of Manchester Library is one of only five National Research Libraries and one of the best-resourced academic libraries in the country. It includes:
- more than 4 million printed books and manuscripts;
- more than 41,000 electronic journals;
- 500,000 electronic books;
- several hundred databases.
The Alan Gilbert Learning Commons is a state-of-the-art study and learning centre in the heart of the Oxford Road campus featuring:
- exclusive group learning rooms;
- flexible break out and workspaces with multimedia facilities;
- 400 fixed workstations with live update availability information so you don't have to wait;
- printing, scanning and photocopying;
- Wi-Fi access throughout the building, including outdoor café areas;
- charging stations to charge laptops, tablets and smart phones;
- online and group workshops on library and information literacy, academic and study skills workshops, and career and employability skills clinics.
The University Language Centre is home to language resources including:
- a new interpreting suite;
- purpose-built recording rooms and resources for over 70 languages;
- multilingual word processing, language learning software;
- and extensive support and advice for learners.
Learn more on the Facilities page.