Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences
Studying at the Faculty of Sociology
The Bachelor’s degree programme in Social Sciences is designed as a programme that is both discipline-specific and interdisciplinary, covering sociology, political science and economics. Students acquire fundamental knowledge of the issues, theories and methods of the three disciplines mentioned, as well as the ability to apply and communicate this knowledge in various professional fields. Interdisciplinarity is therefore the central aspect of the study programme variants. The ability to analyse issues from multiple perspectives using social science theories and methods is a central part of the programme, which makes social scientists attractive to a wide range of professional fields.
Study programmes
Visualisations of the recommendations for planning your course of study, including guidance on specific subject combinations
Module Overview & Subject-Specific Regulations
Overview of modules and study requirements for each specialisation
Information from the examination office
- Teacher training: general information & BiSEd contact points
- Certificate of the Theory-in-Practice Course
- Application for a certificate via examination management
- Recognition of academic achievements
- Information on the Bachelor’s thesis
- Information on plagiarism from the resources provided by the University’s Ombudsperson for Research Misconduct.
Prospective students
- Study programme variants
It is also possible to study this degree programme with a teaching qualification for grammar schools and comprehensive schools (as a main or minor subject) or as a subject for secondary modern, secondary general, secondary and comprehensive schools.
Combined bachelor's degree in a specific subject area
In the interdisciplinary combined bachelor's degree programme at Bielefeld University, students study a major subject (90 credit points) alongside a minor subject (60 credit points). The major and minor subjects differ in terms of the scope and content of the programme. To strengthen your personal academic profile, the subjects are supplemented by the individual subsidiary subjects (30 credit points). You can also gain an insight into the subject through the current range of courses on offer .
We offer the following options:
Social Sciences as a main subject
In the first semesters, students are introduced to the fundamentals of sociology, political science and economics, as well as to the methods of empirical social research. In the following semesters, the perspectives of the social science disciplines are integrated and applied analytically during a placement. The third year of study is dedicated to students developing their own areas of specialisation through the selection of subject modules. The faculty offers an unrivalled range of options for specialisation within the subject modules. The following subject areas, amongst others, are available:
- Education and continuing education (for teacher training pathways)
- Theoretical sociology
- Organisations
- Labour, economics, social policy
- Transnationalisation, migration and development
- Gender Studies
- Media
Social Sciences as a minor subject
This option can be studied in combination with a major in another discipline. Students are taught the fundamentals of sociology, political science and economics. They have the same choice of subject areas as in the major.
Combined bachelor's degree with a teaching option
On the combined bachelor's degree with a teaching qualification option at Bielefeld University, students study a major subject (90 credit points) alongside a minor subject (60 CP). The major and minor subjects differ in terms of the scope and content of the programme. To strengthen your personal academic profile, the subjects are supplemented by the individual subsidiary subjects (30 LP).
We offer the following options:
- Major Subject (Advanced Secondary and Comprehensive Schools ('Gymnasium' and 'Gesamtschule'))
- Minor Subject (Advanced Secondary Schools and Comprehensive Schools ('Gymnasium' and 'Gesamtschule'))
- Subject (Secondary and Comprehensive Schools ('Haupt-', 'Real-', 'Subject (Secondary and Comprehensive Schools (Haupt-, Real-,Sekundar- and Gesamtschule))
The Bachelor’s degree programme in Social Sciences is designed as a programme that is both subject-specific and interdisciplinary, covering sociology, political science and economics. Students on the Social Sciences degree programme at Bielefeld University benefit from the vast array of current research topics, such as globalisation, poverty, new media, gender equality and migration. The Faculty offers support in developing career prospects through preparatory work placements and accompanying courses.
The Master’s phase serves, on the one hand, to acquire in-depth specialist knowledge in the social sciences and to integrate this knowledge across disciplines. On the other hand, it focuses on the development of skills, practical competencies and knowledge relevant to the profession. The subject-specific teaching module ‘Preparation/Reflection on the Teaching Experience Semester’ contributes to this. The Teaching Experience Semester combines the subject-specific and subject-didactic components of the programme.
bachelor construction kit
The bachelor construction kit provides an overview of the possible combinations of degree programmes and enables you to put together your Bachelor’s programme step by step to suit your individual needs – which is particularly useful given the varying application deadlines.
- Entry requirements and application
The study programme variants outlined here are aimed at applicants who wish to develop and explore the social sciences – understood as the history, change and development of society and the individuals within it – within an integrative model comprising sociology, political science and economics, whilst setting their own areas of specialisation. The programme is aimed at school leavers and those who have completed vocational training and have obtained the necessary qualifications for entry to a Bachelor’s degree programme.
Gemäß BPO § 4 erhält zum Bachelorstudium Zugang, „wer über eine Hochschulzugangsberechtigung verfügt. Zulassungsbeschränkungen (Festsetzung von Höchstzahlen von Studienplätzen) bleiben unberührt. Die Einschreibung wird ebenfalls versagt, wenn die Studienbewerberin oder der Studienbewerber in dem gewählten Studiengang oder in einem verwandten oder vergleichbaren Studiengang eine nach der Prüfungsordnung erforderliche Prüfung endgültig nicht bestanden hat (§ 50 Absatz 1 lit. b) HG). Verwandt oder vergleichbar sind Studiengänge dann, wenn das Modul in welchem die Prüfung endgültig nicht bestanden wurde, in dieser oder einer gleichwertigen Form ebenfalls Bestandteil des Studiengangs ist, für den die Einschreibung begehrt wird.“ Nach den Fächerspezifischen Bestimmungen für das Fach Sozialwissenschaften gibt es über die Zugangsvoraussetzungen gemäß BPO keine weiteren Bestimmungen. Im Turnus kann das Studium nur im Wintersemester aufgenommen werden.
- Further study options
Upon successful completion of their Bachelor’s degree, graduates can either enter the workforce straight away or continue their higher education to broaden and deepen their knowledge. Students aiming for a career in teaching complete the four-semester Master of Education (M.Ed.) programme after their Bachelor’s degree, which is a prerequisite for a teaching career.
The Master of Education courses are designed as a continuation of the relevant Bachelor’s programmes with a focus on teacher training. They are therefore aimed at students who wish to become teachers at secondary schools, comprehensive schools and mixed-form schools and who have successfully completed the relevant Bachelor’s programmes.
MA degree programmes offered by the Faculty, MA degree programmes at the University
However, the degree programme is also open to students with a different specialisation (those aiming for a different teaching qualification, those choosing different subjects, or students with a subject-specific focus). The prerequisite is that students demonstrate further academic achievement to compensate for any differences in content compared to the Bachelor’s degrees in the teacher training variants. This ensures, amongst other things, the permeability mentioned in the programme objectives between the teacher training and subject-specific profiles available at Bachelor’s level.
- Career prospects
Academic
© Bielefeld University The Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences prepares students for a wide range of highly diverse career paths. Traditional fields of work for social scientists include (1) business: companies, PR and advertising agencies; (2) politics/administration: public administration, associations, professional bodies, political parties, trade unions, churches; (3) media: radio and television, newspapers, publishing houses; and (4) educational and research institutions. In these contexts, job roles and expectations are often not precisely defined; they vary and require—but also allow for—flexibility. Particularly when it comes to analysing and developing practice-oriented guidelines, insights from various social sciences may prove more useful than a monodisciplinary perspective.
Leadership positions, specialised roles or work in academia and research generally require a master course; for research, a PhD is usually also required. The sectors in which social scientists find employment are wide-ranging, as the degree programme does not qualify students for a specific career path but rather equips graduates with the skills to enter various professional fields. Students develop an individual profile over the course of their studies. The key skills acquired during the degree programme contribute to future professional success: on the one hand, these are fostered through the various forms of assessment; on the other hand, a high degree of independent work and commitment is expected, as well as the ability to present complex issues as simply as possible.
Teacher training
© Bielefeld University The Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences, in the study programme variants leading to a teaching qualification, is intended to provide foundational knowledge of subject-specific pedagogy which, on the one hand, prepares students through the course content for work in out-of-school political education and youth work, and, on the other hand, is in demand in school-based educational institutions. For teacher training, a subsequent Master of Education degree is required.
For the Master of Education, in addition to the standard professional fields in mainstream schools (state grammar schools, comprehensive schools, lower secondary schools, secondary modern schools, primary schools), municipal and private schools, a wide range of institutions providing second-chance education, adult education centres and extracurricular programmes are also primary areas of employment. However, the excellent specialist qualifications can also open up career opportunities in the social sciences within the private sector. Furthermore, the Master’s degree qualifies graduates for a relevant PhD, which in turn opens up further career opportunities.
- Degree programme check
