Some advice please re university courses thanks in advance

[MUM2BLESS]

My son is in year 13. He is now studying Math, sociology and geography. He was going to drop sociology in year 13 but his highest mark was in sociology.

Is there a course which you can use sociology and maths? Please excuse me as this is new to me (university). He is not sure whether to study maths or sociology. Can you study both?

What could these subjects lead to job wise?

Your advice is appreciated thanks!!!

I don't know about these specific subjects, but wonder why he wants to drop one subject now? He will stand a much greater chance of getting into university, whatever his chosen subject, if he takes three A levels rather than two.

What advice has his school / college given him?

People who know more should be along (I am also relatively new to all this) but as a starting point to know what's out there ds suggests looking at LSE (London school of economics) courses as one likely to combine maths with social sciences.

If you want sociology based with maths apparently it's a BSC he should look at.

Also suggests market research is one place that combination could lead, large companies look for sociologists to work with statisticians and psychologists to identify market forces in retail industries.

My understanding is he needs three A level subjects minimum (most do 3 A2’s and 1 AS) to get into uni so shouldn't be dropping anything.

Hopefully you’ll get more knowledgeable answers soon.

UCAS (the website applications are done through) have a course search. search.ucas.com/

He can use this to search for courses that interest him and see which universities offer them. It may be some offer joint honours in sociology and maths.

However, to do well at university level, you need to really enjoy your subject. If he was thinking of dropping sociology, does he really want to be studying it for the next three years?

Sorry VegasIsBest did not explain it properly.

Hew was taking maths, chemistry, geography and sociology. Was going to drop sociology but dropped chemistry instead as it was the lowest grade subject.

Thank you all so much for your advice. Will come back if I need any further info or help.

He has always enjoy sociology. It does involve lots of writing though.

Keele is probably the best of the universities that offer a joint degree in Maths and Sociology.

All sociology degrees have an element of maths as they have to teach statistics as part of modules on research methods. Some depts offer more advanced stats modules than others though, so this is something to look out for.

Sociology degrees feed into a huge range of careers. My students go onto graduate training schemes at a wide range of top companies. It is also a great degree for careers in public sector (NHS, civil service, local council etc). Many also go on to law conversion, primary teaching and social work training.

LSE recommend sociology students to have studied History, English, Govt and Politics and not necessarily Sociology! They also take AS results into account and GCSE breadth of study and expect to see some A*s. if this is not DS's profile, then this may not be a good place to look. Basically do a course trawl at UCAS. Look at the best universities. LSE for example says its minimum offer is AAB. You can get into some top universities to do Sociology with less than that. You just need to do a lot of looking and decide if you want a city University or are happy to be on a campus in the middle of nowhere. Sometimes the place where you will be happy is of more importance than the exact course combining subjects. Also you need to get a move on as most university open days have taken place! He would possibly struggle to do a maths degree as he is not doing further maths. Again,some universities may not be too fussed, but some will. Start looking on the Internet at each course in detail to see if he fits what they are looking for. Getting your applications in early is a good idea, ie from mid October to mid November. Early bird catches the worm as some universities decide very quickly if they want you or not.

With the exception of medicine and Oxbridge the timing of the UCAS application should not matter, as long as its in before the January deadline.

It will make no difference to a university application if he submits his form through UCAS on the last day or the first day - universities are required to give the same consideration to all applicants within the time range of the process. So he has plenty of time to consider.

It sounds to me like he may benefit from looking at something entirely different. - something he's not thought of yet - potentially psychology, or anthropology perhaps. I personally cannot see how maths and sociology are a good fit together at university level. I can see how sociology needs statistics - but not the type of maths that degree level would offer.

My suggestions for figuring this out would be to look at one or two universities it's big social science departments - maybe Birmingham or Leeds would be a good start - and browse through their pages to get a feel for what's possible.

What are his predicted grades in the subjects he's carrying on to A2?

Geog is a great all round subject and I'd highly recommend it.

Probably the best place right now is Edinburgh but fees are different in Scotland. Southampton is always good for practical side due to the O.S. being there. Durham, Manchester, Bristol, Sheffield and Leeds also top class.

Beckandcall Birmingham closed their sociology dept (again). Although the degree is still offered it has few specialist staff there, and most of the options included in the degree are from different depts now.

There is a very complicated history to this (some of which can be seen here).

But the bottom line is few sociology academics would consider a post at Birmingham.

How about psychology as a degree that uses both?

Have a look at this site
I found it really helpful in that you can search by all sorts of different criteria - less rigid than the UCAS site. You have to register, but don't get hassle from them.

Sociology is rather in decline in British universities, quite a few departments have closed or shrunk in the last 10-15 years. I love the subject, it's such a pity.

My main advice is to either do something vocational or something you love at uni. If he loves sociology then do that at the highest rank department he can get in to. Being good at maths will always stand you in good stead in the social sciences.

But as the other posters have said look at other social sciences i.e. psychology, political science, actually economics might be a good choice as it combines elements of social thinking with maths....

Thanks creamteas. - I wasn't up to date on that. But what I was really trying to get across was the idea of browsing through the offerings of a faculty/school in a big civic uni social science dept to see what else is offered OTHER THAN sociology...... I'm not sure from the OP's words that her DS is really that struck on sociology, given that he was about to give it up........

Sociology is rather in decline in British universities

Not sure where you get this idea from?

I am a sociology lecturer and although there have been one or two dept closures (which happens in all disciplines), in other places the we are expanding!