Eleven courses are required for the major in sociology (at least 33 semester hours). Ordinarily, these courses will be distributed as follows (any exceptions to these requirements must be approved by the Undergraduate Advisor Sergio Chavez).
A SURVEY OF THE FIELD
- SOCI 101 (formerly SOCI 203) Introduction to Sociology
THEORETICAL APPROACHES
Students are required to take at least one course that offers a systematic analysis of alternative theoretical perspectives.
- SOCI 380 (formerly SOCI 250) Social Theory
- SOCI 383 (formerly SOCI 275) Feminist Social Thought
RESEARCH METHODS
A) The following research methods course is required which provides a general understanding of the tools that sociologists use to study the social world.
- SOCI 381 (formerly SOCI 290) Research Methods: This course provides hands-on experience with both the quantitative and qualitative methods of sociological research. Sociology majors who are thinking about doing Honors research are urged to take this course no later than the fall semester of their junior year.
B) Students should take one of these courses:
- SOSC 302 Quantitative Methods: Introduction to quantitative methods and analysis that emphasizes the practical use of statistics to address research questions in the social sciences. Includes univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analysis in correlational and experimental designs. Lab component involves discipline-specific applications and use of statistics software for data analysis.
- SOCI 382 (formerly SOCI 298) Social Statistics: This course provides students with the skills they need to analyze quantitative data in order to answer sociological research questions and to test hypotheses. Students learn sample description, sampling and probability, sampling theory, and how to make inferences from samples to populations. They learn to apply common univariate statistics for description, and bivariate and multi-variate statistics for testing relationships. Because most statistical analysis is done with the aid of computers, this course also focuses on common statistical packages.
AREAS OF SUBSTANTIVE INTEREST
The remaining courses (to reach a minimum total of eleven courses in all) should be chosen from the list of Courses Offered
Sociology Minor Requirements
Six classes are required for a minor in sociology (18 semester hours).
- Required Classes: SOCI 101, Introduction to Sociology; 1 methods course (SOCI 381 or SOCI 384) OR theory course
- Elective Classes: 4 electives (12 credits), including at least one 400-level class.