Sociology (SOCI)

Program Option: B.A.

Sociology is the study of human social behavior through examination of interpersonal relationships and social structures. It combines scientific and humanistic perspectives to understand culture, deviance, the family, gender roles, bureaucracy - in fact, any facet of life that involves others.

Sociology is an empowering discipline, giving its students useful intellectual tools for their personal as well as public lives. As a sociology major, you will graduate with valuable skills in three important areas: communication (especially written), data collection and analysis, and an understanding of social and organizational structure.

A sociology major prepares you for a variety of careers, in business, demography, law, human services, urban planning, public health, criminal justice, government service and many other areas. Many students continue their education in graduate school or in law or other professions. Recent sociology majors have pursued careers as a director of information and technology, as a legal assistant specializing in immigration law, as a freelance website writer and community project coordinator, as a college professor and as a juvenile correctional worker. If you are interested in teaching sociology in the secondary schools, we recommend you pursue a social studies major.

You are encouraged to investigate career possibilities through internships, and many sociology majors complete an off-campus internship as part of their course work. Internship sites vary greatly, depending on your area of interest. Recent students have interned with the Minnesota AIDS Project, Jane Addams School Neighborhood House, Chrysalis, Hennepin County Juvenile Center, the Minnesota House of Representatives and Minnesota Jobs with Peace. Many students interested in pursuing a career in law intern in law offices as undergraduates.

St. Kate's sociology faculty members are excellent teachers who also have a broad range of expertise and research interests, including specialties in deviance and inequality, the sociology of war and peace and the sociology of medicine.


See also: Education - Social Studies with Grades 5-12 Teaching Licensure (for those interested in teaching sociology in secondary schools)

Major Requirements:

Eight courses (32 credits) in sociology, including:
SOCI 1000 Principles and Concepts of Sociology
SOCI 2100 Research Methods in Sociology
SOCI 3700 Social Theory

Required supporting courses :
An approved course in statistics, such as PSYC 2050 Statistical Methods in Psychology, or ECON 2200 Statistical Analysis for the Social Sciences, or ECON 2250 Statistical Analysis for Decision Making, or MATH 1080 Statistical Analysis

Recommended supplementary course work:
Sociology international study, independent study, internship or research
Courses in history, political science, psychology and women's studies

The Sociology Department extends departmental honors to those graduating majors who earn a 3.67 grade point average in sociology courses.

Membership in Alpha Kappa Delta, the international sociology honor society, is offered to students who meet the following criteria (extracted from the AKD Handbook , Article III, Section 3):

1. Must be an officially declared sociology major or demonstrate a serious interest in sociology within an official program of the host institution.
2. Must be at least a junior (third year) by standards of the host institution.
3. Must have accumulated the equivalent of an overall GPA of 3.0 (by a four point scale where: A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F=0) and rank in the top 35% of their class in general scholarship
4. Must have maintained the equivalent of a 3.0 GPA in sociology courses taken at the host institution prior to initiation.
5. Must have completed at least four regular courses in sociology prior to initiation (exclusive of extension or courses graded pass/fail).

Sociology majors satisfy the Writing Requirement for Majors by completing SOCI 3700. You complete the Liberal Arts and Sciences Core Writing Requirement with three other writing-intensive courses (CORE 1000 or 2000, CORE 3990 and another writing-intensive course in another department).