Bournemouth University Social Sciences Insight Day
Firstly, the professor introduced some of the sociology-related courses available to us including sociology and criminology as well as sociology and anthropology just to name a few and asked for our understanding of what each subject involved. She then went on to tell us about a real life case she was involved in regarding the capability of foreign parents to adapt their parental methods to conform to our laws and standards based on many psychological and sociological factors (cultural differences as family is not universal etc.).
After this, we were split into two groups and walked across campus to see some of the buildings, this included a current health and social care building that has its own ambulance used for training as well as buildings that are being currently worked on and are set to open September 2020.
Once we returned, one group where taken to a classroom to learn more about psychology at university and its real life applications. After a brief overview of the courses offered, we were split again into groups to investigate a real life case involving a ransom note sent to a large dog food company. We were asked many questions to help us try to determine what kind of person/people would be able to commit this crime.
After lunch, the groups would swap activities so that we now went to our last talk of the day: social work. To start with, the speaker used more practical methods to get us involved (e.g. thanking your toes). Then, after being explained the affect social work could have on diminishing county lines if used properly and the other areas in society it can impact, we were given packs of cards where we had to match a term to a definition and then answer questions about the topic. The day was a good insight in Social Sciences and BU.
Sophie, Year 12
On Thursday, 30 of us attended an insight day at Bournemouth University. Firstly, we spoke to Dr Stephanie Schwandner-Sievers who is a lecturer for Social Anthropology. She explained the course and what kind of jobs we could get into if we took this course. She told us some stories of her own work that was quite interesting and inspired me to do further research into the course when I got home.
We went on a tour of the campus where we were able to see some of the student accommodation and where it was with regards to the different areas in Bournemouth like the beach and the lecture theatres. The rest of the day was two taster classes on social work and psychology.
In the social work class, we spoke about different types of jobs social work can provide and what you need to get on this type of course. In the psychology class we looked at the forensic section of the course. We were given a case on ‘Doggos’, a dog food brand, who had received a letter telling them they would put poisoned tins of dog food on their shelves if they didn’t pay them £100,000 every year for 5 years. In two groups we worked through the case and we had to come up with a rough idea of what we thought the person would be like. We were given different factors to help us figure out how to catch the criminal. We also looked at what you do on the course (for example, there is a 30-week placement as part of the course) and the options you have.
I found this day very beneficial as it allowed me to explore other courses that I wasn’t aware of before, like social anthropology, and I found out more details of the content of the courses. It also helped me think of what type of career I would like to go into and what course would be most tailored to me.
Bethany, Year 12