Bachelor of Arts (BASS)

BASS Sociology and Criminology

Study crime and its relationship to human behaviour today.
  • Duration: 3 or 4 years
  • Year of entry: 2025
  • UCAS course code: LM39 / Institution code: M20
  • Key features:
  • Study abroad
  • Industrial experience

Full entry requirementsHow to apply

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Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,535 per annum (subject to Parliamentary approval). Tuition fees for international students will be £26,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

Scholarships and bursaries, including the Manchester Bursary , are available to eligible home/EU students.

Some undergraduate UK students will receive bursaries of up to £2,000 per year, in addition to the government package of maintenance grants.

You can get information and advice on student finance to help you manage your money.

Course unit details:
Engaging With Social Research

Course unit fact file
Unit code SOCS10111
Credit rating 20
Unit level Level 1
Teaching period(s) Semester 1
Available as a free choice unit? No

Overview

Disciplined enquiry: the range of approaches to researching a social problem (in particular social inequality) in the social sciences.

Pre/co-requisites

SOCS10111 pre-reqs

THIS COURSE IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO BA (Hons) SOCIAL SCIENCES STUDENTS.

Aims

  • to introduce students to a variety of different kinds of social science research
  • to equip students with the skills to summarise and critically evaluate empirical social research
  • to develop students' skills to use the resources of the library to identify research literature relevant to a particular topic
  • to examine the research process, from problem formulation to disseminating results
  • to gain a comparative understanding of different disciplinary approaches to a particular social problem

Learning outcomes

On completion of this unit, successful students will be able to:

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

Student are expected to:

  • gain a greater awareness of the range of social science approaches, including their strengths and limitations
  • identify some of the multiple ways that social scientists construct theoretical arguments
  • understand how social science research is both used and misused
  • gain knowledge on the various theoretical and methodological approaches social scientists have in relation to the specific theme of 'social inequality'.

PRACTICAL SKILLS

Students are expected to:

  • construct a bibliography
  • reference written work appropriately
  • use library resources effectively
  • construct an argument in written form

TRANSFERABLE SKILLS AND PERSONAL QUALITIES

Students are expected to:

  • communicate effectively both in writing and orally when summarising arguments
  • differentiate between strong and weak arguments
  • work effectively in small groups in tutorials
  • learn to read critically

Teaching and learning methods

Lectures - including Study Skills classes - and tutorials.

Assessment methods

  • 2 x 400 Word tasks (25%);
  • 1 x 1,500 word final essay (75%);

Feedback methods

You will receive informal verbal feedback continuously throughout the course from your tutor within tutorials. Students are also invited to make office hour appointments with their lecturers to receive feedback and discuss their progress.

Recommended reading

Bryman, Alan (2008) (3rd edition) Social Research Methods, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gilbert, Nigel, ed. (2008) Researching Social Life, (3rd edition), London: Sage

Study hours

Scheduled activity hours
Lectures 22
Tutorials 10
Independent study hours
Independent study 166

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Valentina Zagaria Unit coordinator

Additional notes

Information
Length of Course: 11 weeks

 

 

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