Reading during summer holidays

Hi
I’m starting uni at undergraduate level in politics and sociology this year and I wanted to know what essential books I should read before starting? I’ve already read a few sociological books but I changed my mind last minute about politics so have no clue as to what I should read. I’ve checked my unis reading list but it is not very long so wanted to know if anyone else had any tips on what I should read / skim read…
Thank you xx

Reply 1

username6098716

I previously started a politics degree, but withdrew after 2 months due to illness, this is my take.

If you must read, read anything with the term "political ideology/ideologies" to expose yourself to key areas/debates of political thought - this will come in handy. But, I suspect your degree requires lots of reading, so it's important to read in moderation and keep your mind fresh for when you start uni.

Personally, I would suggest focusing on developing your critical reading/thinking skills if your goal is to prepare for uni (assuming you're not strong in these areas). During my 2 months uni experience, the weekly reading was mostly academic journals where we had to interpret the meaning of texts, describe the author(s) main argument/points, provide counterarguments and engage in class debates.

Therefore, if you have strong critical reading/thinking skills or if you focus on this during the summer, you'll be at a good position when you begin your degree. For instance, you could regularly read a broadsheet newspaper with a keen eye for critical analysis. By doing this, you'll develop an approach to reading that is expected and stressed at uni.

Prerequisite knowledge in politics/sociology is not necessary in my view. However, critical reading/thinking skills are absolutely paramount for the type of degree you'll be doing. Good luck.

Reply 2

ExeterStudentRep

Official Rep

Original post by celeste07

Hi @celeste07! I have just finished my second year of BA Sociology at Exeter University but in my first year I studied Politics and Sociology, so hopefully I can offer a bit of help!

Before I came to uni I was also keen to do some pre-reading because I wanted to be super-prepared and know everything in advance that I possibly could. However, that is definitely not the expectation once you start university; students come from a variety of different academic backgrounds and many will never have studied the subjects before. A lot of university Politics and/or Sociology degrees reflect this expectation, with the first year usually offering introductory modules so that students are on a level playing field.

I think the above reply to your question raises very good points. There is no expectation for you to have a baseline existing knowledge of politics or sociology, and in my experience, my degree hasn't been about accumulating a vast subject knowledge to memory (as is often the way with GCSE/A level study), but rather is about honing your critical thinking skills, and applying this to specific subject areas that you find interesting.

With this in mind, my advice would be to read the things that genuinely interest you and that you could envisage yourself studying more. At Exeter (and I imagine at other universities too), I have had the option to make my essays very specific to things that I am passionate about: when I have shown my personal interest in a topic, for example by including specific readings outside of the reading list that I'd already read for fun, I've got some of my best marks!

Therefore, my advice would be not to worry too much about knowing everything there is to know in advance, but rather following your personal interests and passions. This could be any sociological/political books, articles or news stories that spark your interest. This should also help you find the fun in your subject, and help you figure out which areas of politics you're interested in if you'd previously been unsure.

Hope this helps!

Nina
University of Exeter Student Ambassador

Reply 3

sfp04

As per above, there’s no real need to do preparatory reading for politics; the course is always taught with an assumption of no prior knowledge (and A level politics does not bear much resemblance to the subject at uni level anyway), and furthermore, it’s quite unlikely (with the possible exception of some classic texts in political theory; see below) that you’ll be assigned any books to read cover-to-cover during your degree - will mostly just be articles and chapters.

That said, reading now certainly won’t do you any harm, and if you are keen here are some suggestions. I’ve divided them into two sections which correspond to the major divide in most politics degree - empirical political science on the one hand, and political theory/philosophy on the other.

For the former, the standard undergrad textbook is Clark, Golder and Golder’s Principles of Comparative Politics. In my opinion, it’s actually one of the best introductory textbooks in any subject I’ve come across, being well-written and striking a good balance between making contact with the literature and not being overly complex and dense. If you just want to see what uni politics is like, skimming through a few chapters that catch your interest may not be a bad idea. Alternatively, if you understandably don’t want to read a textbook over the summer, here are a few suggestions of influential and/or interesting books in the field (note: some can be quite challenging and dense in parts):
Why Nations Fail (Acemogula and Robinson): Examines one of the central questions at the interface of politics and economics, why some countries are rich and others poor. Probably the most readable book in this list, full of engaging case studies and examples.
Patterns of Democracy (Lijphart): Lijphart classifies democracies into two camps, consensus and majoritarian, and argues that consensus is better. Well-written, but has a lot of stats, tables and graphs.
Seeing Like A State (Scott): As its subtitle says, this is about “how certain schemes to improve the human condition have failed” and examines several disastrous attempts at utopian social engineering by authoritarian states, such as Soviet collectivisation and Tanzanian villagisation.
Brexitland (Sobolewska and Ford): A look at the factors, largely sociological, behind the Leave vote and subsequent divides over Brexit.

For political theory/philosophy, Adam Swift’s Political Philosophy and Jonathan Wolff’s An Introduction to Political Philosophy are both fantastic. Swift is more topic-based, while Wolff looks at specific historical thinkers. Will Kymlicka’s Contemporary Political Philosophy is also excellent, though pitched at a slightly higher level than Swift and Wolff. Many people recommend reading classic texts by famous historical political thinkers such as Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill and Marx as an introduction to political theory, though personally I do not think this would be as enjoyable as the above introductory texts. Most are pretty short, though (personally I think Mill’s On Liberty is probably the funnest read of these).

One book which spans this divide and looks at both political science and political theory is Adrian Leftwich’s What Is Politics? I haven’t read it, though it is often recommended.

Reply 4

CardiffUni Rep

Official Rep

Original post by celeste07

Hi there,

I've just completed my second year doing BScEcon International Relations at Cardiff University and haven't formally been given any summer readings or assignments - though my final year modules are not fully confirmed.

However, especially for politics, I would stay to stay updated on current affairs - especially for areas related to your upcoming modules so that you're informed about your degree and familiar with the context of what you're learning etc. I find listening to The Economist podcast to stay up to date, putting you in the best place before you start learning the theory etc.

Best of luck :smile: