Sociology : Your skills

Studying sociology develops your understanding of how society is organised and how we experience life. The skills and knowledge you develop throughout your course will often focus on the human activities and relationships that connect individuals, groups and institutions and are relevant to a wide variety of careers. You will have developed ideas relating to a range of human and societal issues including the economy, work, gender, race, social inequalities, social norms, deviance, the social environment, organisations, religion, class, relationships and health.

Additional skills gained as a sociology graduate include:

• appreciating the complexity and diversity of social situations;
• applying sociological theory to society's organisations including schools, shops, hospitals and offices;
• researching, judging and evaluating complex information; 
• making reasoned arguments orally (in tutorials and presentations) and in written work;
• strong IT skills gained through the presentation of projects and dissertations;
• knowledge and understanding of research methods, analysis and statistical techniques;
• developing opinions and new ideas on societal issues;
• working collaboratively with others; 
• using effective methods to communicate your ideas and conclusions;
• statistical and other quantitative techniques; 
• the ability to understand, scrutinise and re-assess common perceptions of the social world; 
• relating sociological knowledge to social, public and civic policy;
• understanding ethical implications within sociology and assessing the merits of competing theories; 
• organising your work and meeting deadlines.

Consider the skills developed on your course as well as through your other activities, such as paid work, volunteering, family responsibilities, sport, membership of societies, leadership roles, etc. Think about how these can be used as evidence of your skills and personal attributes. Then you can start to market and sell who you really are, identify what you may be lacking and consider how to improve your profile. Take a look at job application advice for some useful tips.