Sociology with Criminology (with Integrated Foundation Year)

Why study BA Sociology with Criminology (with integrated Foundation Year) at Goldsmiths
Explore how societies are organised, and how people are united and divided. Within the context of modern forms of power, examine the nature of crime and criminality from a critical, sociological perspective.

• Sociology at Goldsmiths is internationally renowned for its inventive and imaginative approach to studying Sociology. If you do not have the required qualifications for degree-level study, our BA Sociology with Criminology (with Integrated Foundation Year) offers an alternative entry route.

• The foundation year introduces you to sociological ways of thinking about the world around you and will give you the resources to think critically and creatively about a wide range of contemporary social issues. It is closely aligned with our undergraduate programmes, teaching you a foundational knowledge of the subject and helping you develop the necessary academic skills. You will select the undergraduate degree you wish to study at the point of application but are able to change as you progress through the foundation pathway if your interests change.

• Learn about different sociological theories including life course sociology, cultural sociology, and material culture. An understanding of these theories will leave you well-placed to continue on to our degree programmes.

• Discover how history, gender, race, and class shape our lives.

• Learn directly from experts in small cohorts, so you won't just be a face in the crowd.

• Gain both subject-specific and transferable skills to prepare for undergraduate study and to enhance your career prospects

• Have the chance to continue your learning off-campus through possible visits to museums, archives or other cultural organisations to enrich your studies in the classroom

• Join our Sociology Society to be part of a forward-thinking community of students, and get involved in the academic life of the College by attending talks, events and film screenings

• Develop your academic skills by learning how to effectively communicate information, arguments, and analysis in written form. You will learn how to successfully deploy techniques such as source evaluation, critical judgment and referencing.

• You'll be taught by researchers at the cutting edge of criminological and sociological research on urban crime, control and security, and globalisation and crime.

• As part of a tight-knit group of students, you'll benefit from the support and expertise of your teachers throughout your degree.

• This Sociology with Criminology degree brings issues of social inequality and social justice to the foreground. You will learn how ‘race’, gender, class and nationality connect to crime and control.

• We are international in our outlook: you will learn about crime and control in the UK and beyond.

• You’ll be encouraged to take on a work placement that matches your interests and aspirations. You could find yourself supporting a victim of crime, attending court, or mentoring young people.

• Based in New Cross, a changing area of south London, we’ll take you on walking tours of the local area so you’ll be able to see how theories learnt in lectures apply to the local community.

• Studying at Goldsmiths means you’ll study in one of the world’s leading sociology departments. We've been rated top 20 in the UK for Sociology in the QS World University Rankings 2025.

Year 0 Foundation Year
Alongside direct preparation for an undergraduate degree in Sociology with Criminology, you will take two modules with our Centre for Academic Language and Literacies (CALL). These modules will help you develop the broader academic and research skills required for undergraduate study.

You'll take the following modules:
Reading and Writing Your World
Building Your Research World
Culture and Society in Postwar Britain
Our Lives through Objects
Empires, Nations and Lines on the Map: Postcolonial Perspectives on Global History

Year 1
The first year of this programme will introduce you to sociological knowledge and training, but it will also offer an understanding of criminology in the context of the nation-state.

You will take the following compulsory modules:
Modern Knowledge, Modern Power
Methods of Worldmaking 1
Crime, Control and the State
Culture and Society 1A
Culture and Society 1B
Imaginative Criminology

Year 2
The second year will give you the chance to explore crime and criminology in a global context, considering crime and global inequality, migration, international relations and trade, and state crimes and human rights. This learning will help to frame your third-year dissertation research.

You study the following compulsory modules, including The Goldsmiths Elective. This module is interdisciplinary, and gives you the opportunity to study another discipline from a list of relevant modules in other departments across the University.
Methods of Worldmaking 2
Crimes Against Humanity
Criminal Justice in Context
Philosophy and Methodology of Social Science
The Goldsmiths Elective

You'll then take 2 optional modules (30 credits) from across the Department of Sociology. You may also choose to complete the Goldsmiths Project module, which allows you to work on a group project with students from other departments to bring about positive societal change.

The list of optional modules is produced annually, and may include the following:
Law and Contemporary Society
Religion, Crime, and Law
The Making of the Modern World
Explaining Crime
Nationalism, Fundamentalism, Cosmopolitanism
Social Change and Political Action
Leisure, Culture and Society
London
Sociology of Culture and Communication
Culture, Representation and Difference
Migration in Context
The Sociology of Intimacy and Personal Life
Food and Taste
Knowledge and Subjectivity
Rationality and Its Discontents: Culture, Politics and Philosophy
The Goldsmiths Project

Year 3
Your final year will be a mixture of compulsory and option modules including an in-depth dissertation in a subject area of your choice.

You will take the following compulsory modules:
Dissertation
Confronting Climate Crisis
Identity and Contemporary Social Theory

You'll then take 4 optional modules (60 credits). This may include a Sociology Work Placement module.

Option modules offered recently include:
Race, Racism and Social Theory
Law, Identity and Ethics
Globalisation, Crime and Justice
Crimes of the Powerful
Privacy, Surveillance and Security
Visual Explorations of the Social World
Childhood Matters: Society, Theory and Culture
Thinking Animals
Migration, Gender and Social Reproduction

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

You’ll be assessed by a variety of methods that broaden your academic skillset, depending on your module choices . These include coursework assignments such as essays, presentations, critical commentaries, and personal reflections as well as seen examinations.