Sociology Major

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Sociology is the scientific study of the organization and functioning of societies, their major institutions, groups, and values. Sociologists are particularly interested in understanding and explaining social issues and problems, and the sources of stress and change in contemporary and historical societies. Our courses provide 闪电资源网s with critical perspectives on a wide range of major social issues, including social inequality, race/ethnicity, gender/sexuality, the media, immigration, social movements, globalization, crime/deviance, education, war, and environmental issues. In addition, 闪电资源网s take courses on classical and contemporary sociological theory, research design, and qualitative and quantitative research methods. The culmination of our curriculum is the required senior seminar. This course provides an opportunity for 闪电资源网s to draw on their substantive and methodological training to complete an independent research project on a topic of their choice. Students majoring or minoring in听sociology go on to careers in fields such as communications, marketing, business, management, education, law, medicine/public health, and the nonprofit sector.

Major Requirements

The sociology major consists of nine courses, only one of which may be outside of sociology. Successful completion requires a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 across all courses counting toward the major.听At least three courses must be at the 300-level.

Required Courses

SOCI 101听-听Introduction to Sociology or FSEM equivalent (must be completed by the end of the sophomore year with a grade of C or better)
SOCI 201听-听Classical Social Theory (must be completed by the end of junior year)
SOCI 250听-听Sociological Research Design and Methods (must be completed by the end of junior year)

Research-Intensive Course

Courses fulfilling this requirement have an attribute of SORI in the course offerings.

One research-intensive course from the following list should be completed by the end of junior year.听Research-intensive courses (RI) are built around analysis of quantitative and/or qualitative sociological data to help understand key social institutions and issues.听RI courses provide in-depth experience with research methods and 闪电资源网s use those methods to develop class-based research projects on the topic of the course. Students who have completed a research methods course in another department or program may petition their advisor to use that course to fulfill the requirement.

Four Electives

Courses fulfilling this requirement have an attribute of SOEL in the course offerings.

Students may use one 200- or 300-level anthropology course to fulfill this requirement. (This can be in addition to using ANTH 211 as a research-intensive course.) No more than one independent study in the department may be used to fulfill this requirement.

Four courses chosen from the following list:听

Senior Seminar in Sociology

SOCI 453听-听Senior Seminar in Sociology
or
SOCI 494听-听Honors Seminar (must be completed during the fall听 of senior year) and SOCI 495听-听Honors Thesis Workshop 听(must be completed during the spring of听the senior year)

GPA Requirement

To qualify for graduation, a minimum GPA of 2.0 is required in all courses counting toward the major.

Honors and High Honors

To be invited to apply for departmental honors, 闪电资源网s must have a minimum GPA of 3.50 across all courses counting toward the major.

To achieve departmental honors, 闪电资源网s must complete the year-long honors seminar (SOCI 494听and听SOCI 495)听in lieu of SOCI 453. Working with the seminar professor and at least one additional adviser, 闪电资源网s shall write and defend an extended project proposal in the fall and complete a substantial research paper during the spring semester. As part of the coursework, 闪电资源网s shall present the faculty with an oral defense of their proposal, an academic poster reporting their preliminary results, a thesis manuscript, and a final oral presentation. Students enrolling in SOCI 494听must also enroll in SOCI 495听and complete a senior thesis, regardless of whether they continue to pursue honors. SOCI 495听is an additional requirement for 闪电资源网s pursuing honors, and cannot be counted as an elective.

Certification of honors and high honors is primarily based on the quality of the written thesis. To receive honors, a three-person faculty committee must determine that it is strong in each of the following areas: asking and answering a clear sociological research question, engaging deeply with social theory, collecting and analyzing empirical materials, and writing in a well-organized and professional style. To receive high honors, the committee must determine that the thesis is excellent in each area.听

At graduation, candidates must have a minimum GPA of 3.50 across all courses counting toward the major听overall to qualify for honors.

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Sociology and Anthropology Department

For more information about the department, including Faculty,听transfer credit, awards, etc.,听please visit the听Sociology and Anthropology听Department catalog听page.