Courses explore such topics as family, power, religion, culture, deviance, and discrimination. They probe the construction and consequences of diversity and inequality, looking at race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, and other indices of difference.?Students become immersed?in the study of social reality, analyze social structures and processes,?and come away with a greater understanding of social change, global and local diversity, and the power of culture as a shaping force.

Independent research and study abroad are popular among sociology majors.?Students have studied family and gender in Florence, Italy, examined perceptions of gay and lesbian college students, and researched the factors that affect high school graduation rates for teen mothers.?

These and other experiences are excellent preparation for graduate study and careers in fields such as law, human services, education, business, and public policy.

Students will demonstrate:

  • comprehension of the power dynamics that produce stratification and inequality across time and space through the social and cultural processes? that inform human interaction and the extent to which institutions? could shape these processes
  • ability to describe key sociological theories and concepts , explain the development of these theories and concepts in their specific historical contexts, and apply them in explaining past and current social phenomena
  • ability to design a research project? that is theoretically grounded and? based on a thorough literature review, and to apply key qualitative or quantitative methods of data collection and analysis used in sociology complete that project, and to critically evaluate these approaches? strengths and limitations, and ethical and political implications
  • mastery of skills in writing (including proper citation), reading, speaking, and utilizing electronic media grounded in the discipline of Sociology.