Honours - Sociology

Honours

The primary objective of Honours in Sociology is to provide students with the intellectual and technical skills required to undertake a higher degree by research. More generally, the Honours course provides students with a challenging and stimulating intellectual experience that will add an important edge to your career prospects.

Career

The Honours degree provides prospective employers with evidence of a significantly higher demonstrated competence than found in graduates with a first degree. The study of Sociology at Honours level is an indication that a student, or prospective employee, has the ability to research independently, identify and synthesise complex issues, and mount cogent and persuasive analyses as well as understand survey material.

You will demonstrate that you have the skills necessary to be successful in both the public and private sectors and in non-government organisations (NGOs). Our graduates have secured employment in diverse occupations and professions across a wide range of organizations.

Honours thesis

Your thesis topic will be developed in conjunction with your supervisor. Your supervisor is there to direct your thesis research and the overall theoretical, methodological and conceptual themes that emerge from your own work. Beyond that, the scope of your thesis is entirely up to you (provided of course you fit in with the prescribed ethical guidelines established by Deakin University). This means that ideally, any Coursework requirements should reflect this intention. This will enable you to allow your ideas and conceptions of theoretical, methodological and practical issues to evolve over the course of the year. Research skills are enhanced through the compulsory social research unit.

What is involved?

The Sociology Honours course is made up of 4 credit points of coursework and a 4 credit point thesis. Part-time students complete the four coursework units in their first year, and the thesis in their second year.

Finding a topic

It is important, for your own motivation, that you write on a topic or examine or analyse a problem which interests you. This topic must, however, be viable. This means that the sources it requires must be readily available and not too large to make the task beyond the scope of a dissertation of this length.

You should be able to research and write your thesis in six months if you are a full-time student, or one year, if you are part-time. Your choice of topic must be refined in discussions with the academic staff in your discipline area. The Honours Coordinators will refer you to the member of staff whose interests most closely align with your own.

Humanities and Social Sciences supervisors

Further information

Further information including units of study can be found in the Deakin course search.

Contact details

Dr Vince Marotta
Honours Course Adviser - Sociology