Thank you for considering an application
To apply you’ll need to:
- Make note of the Queen Mary institution code: Q50
- Make note of your chosen course UCAS code:
Politics and Sociology
- L2L3 — BA (Hons)
- L23L — BA (Hons) with Year Abroad
- Click on the link below:
Have further questions? How to apply | Entry requirements
Politics and Sociology
2 study options
Politics and Sociology BA (Hons)
Key information
- Degree
- BA (Hons)
- Duration
- 3 years
- Start
- September 2025
- UCAS code
- L2L3
- Institution code
- Q50
- Typical A-Level offer
- Grades ABB at A-Level. Excludes General Studies and Critical Thinking.
Full entry requirements (including contextual admissions) - Home fees
- £9,535
- Overseas fees
- £25,000
Funding information
Paying your fees
Politics and Sociology with Year Abroad BA (Hons)
Key information
- Degree
- BA (Hons)
- Duration
- 4 years
- Start
- September 2025
- UCAS code
- L23L
- Institution code
- Q50
- Typical A-Level offer
- Grades AAB at A-Level. Excludes General Studies and Critical Thinking.
Full entry requirements (including contextual admissions) - Home fees
- £9,535
- Overseas fees
- £25,000
Funding information
Paying your fees
Overview
The personal is political: explore the links between politics and the social structures of the modern world.
This exciting degree examines the relationship between the social and economic structures of societies and political change. Drawing on a range of political and social theories, we examine why in an age of increasingly high living standards, many people feel disenchanted and alienated.
- Learn about how our individual lives are connected to global developments such as climate change, migration, and the advancement of digital technology but also colonialism, industrialisation, and religion
- Discuss how race, sexuality, gender, class, and religion shape social dynamics and how these differences relate to inequalities, globally as well as locally
- Understand how people create social change in their everyday lives rather than just through political mobilisation and institutions
- Reflect on what might hold a society together despite all our differences and how it changes over time
- Understand why political institutions and politicians find it so difficult to change the economy, culture, and environmental habits
- Rethink the role of nonhuman beings – such as animals and plants - in world politics
You’ll learn from the School’s expert academic staff, who specialise in areas such as race, gender, class, citizenship and globalisation. Their teaching will give you a thorough understanding of sociopolitical issues, and help you to make sense of the world we live in.
Structure
You can complete your Politics and Sociology degree in three or four years. If you choose to do a year abroad this will take place in Year 3 and Year 3 modules will instead be studied in Year 4.
Year 1
Compulsory:
- Thinking Politically: Introduction to Concepts, Theories and Ideologies
- Global Sociology
- Political Analysis
- Politics in Action
Choose from:
- Background to British Politics
- Global Histories
- 15 credits from another School
Please note that all modules are subject to change.
In each year you may also choose some modules from outside the School of Politics and International Relations.
Study options
Apply for this degree with any of the following options. Take care to use the correct UCAS code - it may not be possible to change your selection later.
Year abroad
Go global and study abroad as part of your degree – apply for our Politics and Sociology BA with a Year Abroad. Queen Mary has links with universities in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia (partnerships vary for each degree programme).
Find out more about study abroad opportunities at Queen Mary
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Studying Politics and Sociology at Queen Mary has fundamentally changed the way I think about the world and the experiences of both myself and the people around me. I've learned so much about how politics affects our societal well-being, and how I can harness a knowledge of political tradition to help make our world a better place for all of us.
Teaching
Teaching and learning
You’ll receive approximately 8 to 12 hours of weekly contact time, in the form of formal lectures and small group seminars. The seminars are designed to generate informed discussion around set topics and may involve student presentations, group exercises and role-play as well as open discussion.
You’ll complete a further 20 hours of independent study per week.
Assessment
Students are assessed by a combination of coursework and written assessments. A few modules are assessed by coursework only.
Resources and facilities
The School offers excellent on-campus resources to aid your studies, including:
- events throughout the year such as public debates, film nights and book launches which attract diverse audiences and offer networking opportunities
- the Mile End Institute, a major policy centre that specialises in contemporary British politics, featuring regular high-profile speakers
- the Centre for European Research, which welcomes students and academics interested in learning and researching all matters relating to Europe.
Entry requirements
| A-Level | Grades ABB at A-Level. Excludes General Studies and Critical Thinking. |
| IB | International Baccalaureate Diploma with a minimum of 32 points overall, including 6,5,5 from three Higher Level subjects. |
| BTEC | See our detailed subject and grade requirements |
| Access HE | We consider applications from students with the Access to Higher Education Diploma. The minimum academic requirement is to achieve 60 credits overall, with 45 credits at Level 3, of which 15 credits must be at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit or higher. Applications are considered on a case by case basis. Due to the high volume of applications, we do not make offers of study purely on the basis of meeting grade requirements. |
| GCSE | Minimum five GCSE passes including English and Maths at grade C or 4. |
| EPQ | Alternative offers may be made to applicants taking the Extended Project Qualification. For further information please visit: qmul.ac.uk/undergraduate/entry/epq |
| Contextualised admissions | Our standard contextual offer: BBC at A-Level. Our enhanced contextual offer: BCC at A-Level. More information on our contextual offer criteria can be found on our contextualised admissions page. Please note that General Studies and Critical Thinking are excluded from any A-Level offer and cannot be considered. |
| A-Level | Grades AAB at A-Level. Excludes General Studies and Critical Thinking. |
| IB | International Baccalaureate Diploma with a minimum of 34 points overall, including 6,6,5 from three Higher Level subjects. |
| BTEC | See our detailed subject and grade requirements |
| Access HE | We consider applications from students with the Access to Higher Education Diploma. The minimum academic requirement is to achieve 60 credits overall, with 45 credits at Level 3, of which 15 credits must be at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit or higher. Applications are considered on a case by case basis. Due to the high volume of applications, we do not make offers of study purely on the basis of meeting grade requirements. |
| GCSE | Minimum five GCSE passes including English and Maths at grade C or 4. |
| EPQ | Alternative offers may be made to applicants taking the Extended Project Qualification. For further information please visit: qmul.ac.uk/undergraduate/entry/epq |
| Contextualised admissions | Our standard contextual offer: BBB at A-Level. Our enhanced contextual offer: BBC at A-Level. More information on our contextual offer criteria can be found on our contextualised admissions page. Please note that General Studies and Critical Thinking are excluded from any A-Level offer and cannot be considered. |
Non-UK students
We accept a wide range of European and international qualifications in addition to A-levels, the International Baccalaureate and BTEC qualifications. Please visit International Admissions for full details.
If your qualifications are not accepted for direct entry onto this degree, consider applying for a foundation programme.
English language
Find out more about our English language entry requirements, including the types of test we accept and the scores needed for entry to the programme.
You may also be able to meet the English language requirement for your programme by joining a summer pre-sessional programme before starting your degree.
Further information
Funding
Loans and grants
UK students accepted onto this course are eligible to apply for tuition fee and maintenance loans from Student Finance England or other government bodies.
Scholarships and bursaries
Queen Mary offers a generous package of scholarships and bursaries, which currently benefits around 50 per cent of our undergraduates.
Scholarships are available for home, EU and international students. Specific funding is also available for students from the local area. International students may be eligible for a fee reduction. We offer means-tested funding, as well as subject-specific funding for many degrees.
Find out what scholarships and bursaries are available to you.
Support from Queen Mary
We offer specialist support on all financial and welfare issues through our Advice and Counselling Service, which you can access as soon as you have applied for a place at Queen Mary.
Take a look at our Student Advice Guides which cover ways to finance your degree, including:
- additional sources of funding
- planning your budget and cutting costs
- part-time and vacation work
- money for lone parents.
Careers
Our graduates are highly employable, with invaluable political knowledge and research, analytical and communication skills that open doors to a huge variety of roles. They move into domestic and international careers both inside and outside the political sphere – predominantly in government, policy research, education, journalism, media and business. Combining politics with sociology gives you the potential to apply your political knowledge in the community, public and third sectors.
Recent graduates from the School of Politics and International Relations have been hired by:
- AMAR
- House of Commons
- Labour Party
- PwC
- Scodie Deyong
- UK Home Office
Career support
While studying with the School of Politics and International Relations you'll have access to bespoke career support every step of your degree, including one-to-one academic guidance, tailored workshops and external speakers on topics such as careers in public affairs and working in parliament.
Our careers team can also offer:
- specialist advice on choosing a career path
- support with finding work experience, internships and graduate jobs
- feedback on CVs, cover letters and application forms
- interview coaching.
Learn more about career support and development at Queen Mary.
Data for these courses
Politics and Sociology - BA (Hons)
Politics and Sociology with Year Abroad - BA (Hons)
The Discover Uni dataset (formerly Unistats)
About the School
The School of Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary is invested in high-quality teaching, and we pride ourselves on our friendly and informal approach. Our staff are active researchers with diverse interests, from British politics to the Middle East, which is reflected in our teaching and the breadth of our programmes.
Our location in one of the world’s greatest capital cities is hard to beat. Home to the nation’s Parliament, political think tanks and economic powerhouses, London is where all the action takes place. We host a range of high-profile speakers on campus, and offer students regular contact with Westminster, Whitehall and the third sector through our events.
Students can also take advantage of the Mile End Institute, a major policy centre based at Queen Mary which brings together policymakers, academics and local communities to address national political challenges.
