London uni for sociology

[changer121]

Does anyone have experience of UCL or lse for sociology/psychology.
Dd is very keen on a London uni but I've heard that the social side can be difficult because of the high number of foreign students?
We don't live far away and she could commute in but we aren't sure if she would be more limited doing that or living in halls .
Thanks

At Durham of all places. I mean that's proper slumming it, academically....

Haha it’s almost like proper universities view it as a proper subject 😂

OP I know neither are London but my dd really liked the sociology courses at York, Durham and Lancaster. My other child is doing social sciences at Manchester and their Sociology Dept is also v good.

Jeez, are people still harking back to the BT "but you got an ology!" advert from the 80's?! Your comment is quite ironic really as it displays quite a level of stupidity.
Sociology is a well established academic discipline, not something cooked up by slackers in the 70's. I mean even Radio 4 has a weekly sociology programme (Thinking Allowed with the wonderful Laurie Taylor who is a sociologist).

sociology is consistently in the top "unemployable" list of degrees. I actually have an A level in sociology and an "ology" degree. I've done ok for myself I suppose but I didn't get 3 A*'s! I wouldn't encourage my kids to do same.

Not when it's from blooming LSE, for goodness sake!

@jojo2202 actually the offer holders day at York (for Sociology) talked at some length about the breadth of careers that their graduates have gone into. Realistically it opens the same opportunities as any other non vocational degree. Yorks figures for employability gave no cause for concern.

I would argue that the world needs more sociologists and that we should be encouraging young people to spend time developing critical thinking and unpicking the problems with society and seeking to make the world a more equal place.

I know that humanities / social sciences are not so in vogue as economics / finance / marketing but they are very important and - in much the same way as Philosophy- develop vital critical thinking skills which are prized in industry.

Anyway you can encourage your children to do whatever you want but it is rather disrespectful posting comments like your earlier remark re 3 x a stars - I imagine these young people are more then capable of making their own kind up!

Mind not kind!

There's always a thread hijack in HE. So very tedious.

Roehampton and UEL are good for psychology and I think have good numbers of local students

beg to differ. Employers are also increasingly blind recruiting.

That debate is not relevant to the OP's question.

God, this board! I don't think I've read a thread on here lately that hasn't been derailed by someone bleating on with snobbish biased sneery opinions.

Wow
I've just come back and this has grown legs!

To clarify dd is only interested in London universities

She is going to study what she wants to and we have no doubt she will give it her all and the most vital thing for her and us is that she studies something she loves and will enjoy.

She is the youngest of 4 siblings so we are not new to uni experiences but none of her siblings have studied near home so thank you for the help with that and it's interesting to know that many do commute in certainly after the first year.
I was just worried as I'd read some foreign students aren't interested in mixing so didn't want her to struggle socially.

She hasn't decided on her course but it is definitely looking at sociology or psychology.
She can then do a law conversion if she does psychology but again all up in the air.

Thanks so much for the help

I got three As at A level and did sociology (there were no A stars back then) 😀

Can you link to the lists that it's consistently in? I've just had and none of the lists of least employable degree subjects included sociology...

Computer science is one of the worst for employment, although you'd never think it going by Mumsnet.

I can believe it. I have a tenant in her late 20s with a CS degree from a RG University and what was considered a good job in a data analysis role. Not any more. She has survived three rounds of redundancy and the colleague who asked for a pay rise was laughed at. Former colleagues tell her it is bleak on the job market with lots of good experienced people chasing very few jobs. (I did not ask for a rent increase!)

The LSE usefully gives you average salaries after 15 months and the various roles people might go in to. Sociology is £25,000 which sounds pretty normal for a graduate. Economics is £45,000.

She could do a law conversion course if she did sociology too. It wouldn't hinder her (though OP I know you're not the one on this thread being snobby about the discipline!)

If you do a law conversion, you have to consider what legal employers think. Plus what area of law DD might want.

From the 15 month LSE salary quoted for Sociology - that’s low for them! I wonder what the grads are actually doing? A teacher in London after NQT earns quite a bit more than that. A law trainee - a lot more. Therefore , on average, the earnings are low for an elite university. How many international students do sociology at LSE? I do agree though, that if DD wants to do it, LSE and UCL are worth targeting and Kings of course.

IFS looked at earnings, degree taken and universities. These are salaries at age 30. Sociology and Psychology are well down the list. This might reflect that few people become psychologist and everyone is trying to get the same jobs in the workplace as other grads. This might be what the other poster was referring to? It more or less mirrors what LSE say. Clearly salaries change and individuals outstrip their degree/university choice. LSE and UCL gives DD a decent chance in whatever she wants afterwards.

OP, I would ignore some of this. DS studied economics and is now looking for a job. I keep trying to convince him that as long as you earn enough, and he will as will your DD, quality of life is more important.

I would take an interesting Civil Service or Local Government job over banking or law any day.

The average LSE sociology grad gets a perfectly good graduate salary. And if she chooses to teach because she wants to, good on her.

Avoid King's

What is “enough”? It’s is now a high wage!

Sadly most people without parental backing never think they earn enough. They are constantly worried about buying a house and the expense of children. If the DD wants to do law, why not? Not everyone can spend years and years as a student without giving a thought about future living costs. The hardest hit at the moment are the under 40s. Earning well makes people happier than having significant money worries. Only the well off have the luxury of constant happiness in all areas of their lives.