Sociology

Sociology at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) offers a comprehensive exploration of social behavior, institutions, and societal change, equipping students with critical analytical skills to understand and address complex social issues. The programme provides a deep grounding in sociological theories and methods, combining rigorous academic training with opportunities for practical engagement and research. Students will study core areas such as social stratification, culture, social networks, inequality, governance, and social change, alongside specialized modules tailored to contemporary challenges facing global societies. The curriculum is designed to foster a nuanced understanding of diverse social phenomena, from local community dynamics to global social movements, preparing graduates for careers in academia, policy analysis, social research, public service, and beyond.

Throughout the programme, students engage with a wide range of qualitative and quantitative research methods, developing essential skills in data collection, analysis, and interpretation. They have access to state-of-the-art facilities, a vibrant academic community, and numerous opportunities for independent and collaborative research projects. The programme is delivered by leading scholars whose expertise covers a broad spectrum of sociological disciplines, ensuring an innovative and stimulating learning environment. Students are encouraged to critically evaluate social issues from multiple perspectives, fostering a commitment to social justice, equality, and ethical research practices.

The Sociology undergraduate programme at LSE typically spans three years for full-time students and may include optional placements or study abroad opportunities, allowing for practical experience and exposure to different cultural and social contexts. Graduates of the programme are well-equipped to pursue further academic study at postgraduate level or to launch careers across sectors such as government, international organizations, NGOs, journalism, and social research firms. The LSE's international reputation, extensive alumni network, and strategic location in London provide an unparalleled platform for emerging sociologists to develop their professional and academic ambitions in a global context.

Detailed Course Facts

• EUR 3847 Year (EEA)
• EUR 16632 Year (Non-EEA)

Home UK/EU £3,375 for the first year. Non-UK/EU £14,592 for the first year.

• English

Course Content

First year:

• Statistical Methods for Social Research
• Key Concepts in Sociology: An Introduction to Sociological Theory
• Key Issues in Contemporary Societies: An Introduction to Contemporary Sociology
• One first year option in sociology or in another department
• LSE100 (Lent Term only)

Second year:

• Issues and Methods of Social Research
• Sociological Analysis
• One second or third year approved sociology option
• A further second or third year approved sociology option or an option in another department
• LSE100 (Michaelmas Term only)

Third year:

• Sociological Project (10,000 word essay)
• Two approved second or third year sociology options
• One second or third year sociology option or one option in another department

First year

There are three compulsory courses. Key Concepts in Sociology will give you an understanding of the major sociological theories, and will introduce you to different approaches to conceptual analysis and development within our discipline. Key Issues in Contemporary Societies will provide an introduction to and overview of the most important current sociological research on contemporary societies in a comparative context. Statistical Methods for Social Research will introduce you to statistical methods and statistical reasoning, the place of statistics in the social sciences, and the nature and purpose of statistical methods.

The other course will be chosen from a selected list of courses offered by other departments at LSE.

Second and third years

There are two core courses in the second year. Issues and Methods of Social Research will teach the key issues and quantitative techniques that you need to grasp in order to design and conduct sociological research. Sociological Analysis provides students with an in-depth introduction to major alternative uses and applications of theory and methodology within sociological analysis. As the course develops, students will be introduced to a range of different conceptual approaches and qualitative methods.

In the third year you complete a Sociological Project which is an essay of about 10,000 words on a subject approved by the Department. This allows you to study a topic of interest to you in depth, usually by carrying out a piece of empirical research of your own. Your remaining courses are chosen from options offered within or outside the Department, most of which are based on current research.

Options

The following options are indicative of the range taught in the Department of Sociology.

(* half unit)

• Political Sociology: power in liberal-democratic and socialist societies
• Self, Others and Society: perspectives on social and applied psychology
• Gender and Society: gender relations and inequality
• Crime, Deviance and Control: crime and delinquency, mental illness and drug abuse as forms of deviancy
• Sociology of Health and Medicine: health, illness and the institution of medicine
• Evolution and Social Behaviour: socio-biology and human society, genes and behaviour
• Work, Management and Globalisation: contemporary perspectives on employment, labour markets, globalisation
• Sociology of Race and Ethnicity: dealing with key social divisions in the contemporary world; exploring the theory and history of racial and ethnic studies
• Societal Psychology: Theory and Applications: applying social psychology to real world situations

English Language Requirements

IELTS band : 7 CAE score : 80(Grade A) TOEFL paper-based test score : 627 TOEFL iBT® test : 107

To study at this university, you have to speak English. We advice you to

Requirements

Course requirement: GCSE Mathematics, grade C or above. A level Sociology is not a requirement

Usual standard offer: A level: grades A B BInternational Baccalaureate: Diploma with 37 points including 6 6 6 at Higher level
Other qualifications are considered.

English language requirements

Although it is not necessary to have the required grade in an acceptable English Language qualification when you make your application to LSE, if you are made an offer of a place and English is not your mother tongue, it is likely that you would be asked to obtain an acceptable English Language qualification as a condition of your offer.

The following qualifications are acceptable to LSE:

• GCSE English Language with a grade B or better.
• International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) English as a First Language with a grade B or better including the Speaking and Listening coursework component (Edexcel) or grade 2 in the optional speaking test (CIE).
• International English Language Testing Service (IELTS) academic test with a score of 7.0 in all four components.
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a minimum score of 627 in the paper test including 5.5 in writing and 50 in TSE, or 107 in the internet based test with a minimum of 25 out of 30 in each of the four skills.
• Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) with grade B or better.
• Cambridge Advanced Certificate of English (CACE) with a grade A.
• Cambridge English Language (1119) conducted overseas by the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate: B4 or better.
• O level (1120 Brunei, 1125 Mauritius A, 1127 Singapore) grade B or better.
• Singapore Integrated Programme (IP) Secondary 4 English Language grade B or better.
• Pearson Test of English (General) with a distinction at level 5 in both the written and the oral test.

Exceptions

If students offer the IGCSE in English as a First Language or O level (other than those specified above) and have been educated in the medium of English during their five most recent years of study (prior to 1 September 2011), then we will accept the qualification as sufficient evidence of English Language proficiency.

Please note that test scores must be achieved from one sitting of the relevant qualification. We will not accept individual component scores from multiple tests

Work Experience

No work experience is required.

Related Scholarships*

• Academic Excellence Scholarship

  "The Academic Excellence Scholarship can provide up to a 50 % reduction in tuition per semester. These scholarships will be renewed if the student maintains superior academic performance during each semester of their 3-year Bachelor programme. The scholarship will be directly applied to the student’s tuition fees."

• Access Bursary

  Bursary for UK students all subjects where the variable tuition fee rate is payable.

• Alumni Bursary

  Alumni Bursary for UK Undergraduate students

* The scholarships shown on this page are suggestions first and foremost. They could be offered by other organisations than London School of Economics and Political Science.

Funding

Financial support for 2011 entry

The School recognises that the cost of living in London may be higher than in your home town or country. Government support, in the form of loans and grants, is available to UK and some EU students, while LSE provides generous financial support, in the form of bursaries and scholarships to UK, EU and overseas students.

Government support

for students from England

Student loan for maintenance

The student loan for maintenance helps students pay living costs during term times and holidays. The maximum loan available for students studying in London and living away from their parents' home is currently £6,928.

Maintenance grants

The means-tested maintenance grant (currently worth up to £2,906) also helps students with living expenses during their time at university. The amount a student is eligible to receive is assessed by Student Finance England. The grant does not have to be repaid.

Special Support Grant

The special support grant replaces the maintenance grant for some students who during the course of the academic year, meet the conditions for being a 'prescribed person' under the income support or housing benefit regulations. Students who are likely to qualify include:

• Single parents
• Other student parents if they have a partner who is also a student
• Students with certain disabilities

Other students may be eligible for the Special Support Grant. You don't necessarily have to receive or even have applied for Income Support or Housing Benefit.

for students from elsewhere in the UK

Different financial support packages are available for students from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Students from these countries should refer to one of the following websites:

Student Finance Wales

www.studentfinancewales.co.uk

Student Awards Agency Scotland

www.saas.gov.uk

Student Finance Northern Ireland

www.studentfinanceni.co.uk

for EU students

Students from the EU are not usually eligible for UK Government financial support. However, EU nationals (or children of EU nationals) who have lived in the UK or islands for three years before the start of their course (ie, since 1 September 2008 for a course starting on 1 September 2011) may now qualify for a student loan and grants.

for overseas students

Students from outside the EU are not eligible to apply for UK Government funds. However, there is a range of funding available for overseas students from external agencies, bodies or your home government, details of which are available from your home government or nearest British Council office (www.britishcouncil.org/learning), or UKCISA (www.ukcisa.org.uk).

LSE financial support

for UK students

LSE Bursary

The LSE Bursary is available for students from low-income backgrounds (from England and Wales) and is worth up to £7,500 over a three-year programme. The value of the LSE Bursary is linked to students' (or their family's) income levels, which will be assessed when calculating the maintenance grant. The maximum LSE Bursary of £2,500 per year is awarded to those students with the lowest residual income. These Bursaries do not have to be repaid.

LSE Discretionary Bursary

The LSE Discretionary Bursary is available for new LSE students (from the UK and the EU) who face exceptional financial needs, including, for example, caring responsibilities, financial need related to disability or an unavoidable requirement to live at home. The value of the award may vary according to need. These Bursaries do not have to be repaid.

LSE Scholarships

Each year LSE awards a number of scholarships - funded by private or corporate donation - to UK applicants to the School. The number, value, eligibility criteria and type of awards vary from year to year. Awards are made on the basis of financial need and academic merit.

Stelios scholarships

Four Stelios scholarships, currently worth £5,444 per year, are available for UK students applying for business subjects at LSE.

Access to Learning funds

Registered UK students from low-income households can apply directly to LSE for Access to Learning funds. These funds are designed for students who may need extra financial support for their course, and are provided by the Government to assist with living expenses.

for EU students

LSE Discretionary Bursary

The LSE discretionary bursary is available to EU students. For information about this bursary and how to apply, please see the section on LSE financial support for UK students.

LSE scholarships

LSE offers a number of undergraduate scholarships of varying amounts each year to EU students.

Stelios scholarships

Six Stelios scholarships, currently worth £5,444 per year, are available for EU students applying for business subjects at LSE.

for overseas students

LSE undergraduate support scheme

The LSE undergraduate support scheme (USS) is designed to help overseas students who do not have the necessary funds to meet all their costs of study. In 2008, the School disbursed nearly £1 million in entrance awards available to self-financing students of all nationalities. This financial aid is available only for study at LSE. If you are made an offer of admission, we will advise you on how to apply to the USS online. This system is able to provide an immediate indication of an applicant's eligibility for assistance. In the first instance, you will be assessed on the basis of your financial circumstances. Awards are renewable for each year of your course. Applications will be considered between the end of February and the middle of August.

LSE scholarships

The School offers a limited number of undergraduate scholarships of varying amounts each year for overseas students.

The Sociology program at the London School of Economics and Political Science offers students a comprehensive understanding of social structures, behaviors, and change. It is designed to equip students with analytical skills and theoretical knowledge necessary to examine complex social issues. The program covers a wide range of topics, including social theory, stratification, social inequalities, urban sociology, family, gender, race, class, and globalization. Students are encouraged to develop critical thinking abilities and methodological skills through quantitative and qualitative research methods, enabling them to undertake independent research projects. The curriculum incorporates cutting-edge research and provides opportunities for interdisciplinary study, reflecting the university’s commitment to addressing contemporary social challenges. The program is suitable for those interested in careers in research, policy analysis, social services, or further academic study. As part of LSE’s vibrant academic community, students benefit from dedicated faculty support, access to extensive libraries and research resources, and engagement with a diverse student body from around the world. The program typically includes lectures, seminars, workshops, and presentations, fostering an interactive learning environment. Graduates of the program often proceed to doctoral research, work in government or NGOs, or enter roles in media and consultancy that require expert social analysis. The program’s strength lies in its blend of theoretical foundations and practical application, preparing students to analyze and influence social issues at local, national, and global levels. The degree is awarded as a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Sociology after three or four years of study, depending on the chosen study pathway.