Bachelor of Science in Politics and Sociology

at University of Bristol - Clifton Campus United Kingdom

The course is designed for students who seek to broaden their knowledge on the economy and understand the linkage with accounting. Therefore, it combines two courses, economics and accounting.

The economics aspect provides students with insight into economic institutions (eg banks), actors, and policies that underpin and influence the financial market. The accounting aspect explores accounting institutions (eg audit firms), accounting regulations, and accounting techniques that are used by and support organisations that actively participate in and outside the market.

This course is unique as it offers students access to an interdisciplinary perspective that includes psychology and sociology. Students learn from academic experts in the field, who work with businesses in the financial industry. The knowledge acquired from the field is used to design and shape the curriculum, thereby enabling students to keep abreast with commercial and contemporary issues.

This course provides students with rewarding opportunities to participate in a summer internship and the Bristol PLUS Award. You'll also benefit from the Professional Liaison Network, which runs a professional mentoring scheme with alumni, insight talks and internships.

The course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) by way of exemptions from some professional examinations enabling students to fast-track their careers. 

Previously, graduates have gone on to work for the Bank of England, JP Morgan, UBS, PwC, KPMG, EY, Microsoft, IBM and many other blue-chip organisations.

This course combines politics and international relations with the study of French, the first language of some 90 million speakers around the world. This provides a valuable skill set ideally tailored to the increasingly globalised workplace.

You will study the politics of individual countries and governments and the relationships between countries, communities and individuals.

Politics is organised around three themes:

• Political theory
• Comparative and national politics
• International relations.

In French, you combine advanced study of the language with cultural, literary and historical units. You spend your third year abroad, which enables you to refine your language skills and cultural knowledge and gain valuable work experience. For further details on year abroad opportunities please see Global Opportunities.

Both schools encourage strong synergy between research and teaching, resulting in a vibrant learning environment as staff respond in their teaching to new research. This course combination offers an enriching experience with exciting intellectual challenges.

Childhood studies at Bristol provides you with a holistic understanding of children, childhood and adolescence, combining elements of education, psychology, law, social work and social policy.

This course is ideal for students interested in learning more about how to use numbers and data within childhood studies. It provides training in practical and analytical skills, which will enhance your career prospects and provide you with a strong platform for postgraduate study. No prior knowledge of statistical techniques is required.

About two thirds of your studies will follow the single honours Childhood Studies course, where you will consider childhood in the contexts of families, peers and society at both a national and international level. Within a framework of children's rights, you will consider their participation and protection and the provision of services for children and young people.

The remaining third of your course will provide interdisciplinary training in quantitative methods. In year one of the quantitative pathway we discuss how numbers and data are used to tell convincing stories in the media and social research. We consider what is meant by segregation and how it can be mapped and measured.

Year two offers practical classes in social statistics and applied data analysis, which will develop your skills in numeracy and analysis and enable you to undertake your own individual research project in an area of quantitative social science in year three.

If you enjoy the satisfaction of applying real-world mathematical knowledge and are interested in a career in finance, this practical course will help you stand out to top employers.

Our lecturers are passionate about their subject, with modules informed by cutting-edge research; you'll learn statistical skills from leading mathematicians.

Shape your degree to suit your interests and pick from an extensive range of topics alongside your core units in Financial Mathematics and Financial Risk Management.

The first year provides a broad background in pure, applied and statistical mathematics via a range of compulsory units. You'll cover material in lectures and small-group tutorials, with the freedom to explore a range of topics in collaboration with your personal tutor and fellow students.

From year two you will focus more on units that relate to statistics for use in finance, although there is still scope to take some units from other areas.

As you move through the course you will gain academic independence, moving from small-group tutorial teaching in year one to an optional, independent project in your final year.

Econometrics is the application of statistical methods to data to estimate economic models. It is used by economists to verify or disprove theories and analyse the impacts of policies and events on the health of the economy. This course combines the study of economics and econometrics with a wide range of optional units. 

Econometrics is a vital tool for economists because, unlike natural sciences, where controlled experiments are used to determine the effect of one thing on another, it is impossible to hold the economy constant while tinkering with a single variable. Econometrics provides the scientific means to overcome the issue using empirical observations.

Alongside mandatory modules in econometrics and the applied economics dissertation, you will select from a wide range of optional modules from within the Schools of Economics, Finance and Management during all three years of your degree.

The Study Abroad course extends your degree to four years, with your third year spent studying economics in English at a top-ranking university in Europe or farther afield before returning to Bristol for your final year. This course allows you to combine the challenging, broad academic content of all our economics degrees with an overseas dimension that reflects the international nature of the economy.

This MSc will prepare you for a public health career in settings such as health services, government, research and the not-for-profit sector. You will gain core skills and knowledge that are applicable for public health work in the UK and internationally. These include critically appraising evidence, analysing and interpreting data, research methods, and applying methods to protect health, prevent ill-health and improve health services. The programme is suitable for students from clinical and non-clinical backgrounds.

The MSc covers the principles and practice of public health, health improvement, health protection, epidemiology and statistics, research methods and evaluation, health economics, ethics and healthcare services. You will learn from public health professionals, including colleagues from Public Health England, local government and the National Health Service, in addition to research-led teaching from multidisciplinary academic experts.

The MSc in Nuclear Science and Engineering will prepare you for a career in industry or academia by providing a thorough grounding in the science and engineering that underpins today’s nuclear energy systems. It combines the strengths of our science and engineering faculties with an established program of nationally recognised industrial research through the Bristol-Oxford Nuclear Research Centre. The MSc offers a unique multidisciplinary experience and is a key part of the South West Nuclear Hub.

It has been developed and delivered in partnership with industry, including a focus on nuclear professionalism. After completing the program, you will be familiar with the nuclear industry and its unique safety culture, which will prepare you to enter the industry or continue in academia.

The MSc offers numerous opportunities to collaborate with partner institutions, such as Institute Polytechnique de Grenoble (INP), École Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers (ENSAM), the Materials Ageing Institute (MAI) and Hitachi-GE Internships.

Jacobs and EDF Energy sponsor some of our research projects, giving students a bursary towards their study, as well as a three-month research project and a mentor.