The programme taught Duquesne University offers students a greater understanding of the social structures and processes that underlie our daily lives, and an awareness of the possibilities of social-scientific research for increasing our understanding of society.

Sociologists research topics as diverse as street crime and delinquency, corporate downsizing, how people express emotions, welfare, education reform, families, peace or war.  Sociologists understand social inequality, patterns of behavior, forces for social change and resistance, and how social systems work.

Careers

Many jobs draw upon sociological understanding and training. Sociologists enter the corporate, non-profit, and government worlds as:

• directors of research

• policy analysts

• consultants

• human resources managers

• and program managers.

Practicing sociologists may be called survey researchers, gerontologists, statisticians, urban planners, community developers, criminologists, or demographers.

Our graduates are employed as social work caseworkers, counselors, recreation workers, and administrative assistants in public and private social service agencies; as researchers in consulting firms and research universities, and in private, state or federal agencies.

Some of our graduates are law enforcement officers (at local, state or federal levels), probation, parole, or corrections officers; correctional counselors, or professionals in community corrections and other rehabilitative programs.

Other students work in agencies concerned with health care policy, the administration of homes and facilities for the elderly, the management of public and private services, and counseling of the aged.