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Undergraduate: Sociology

  • Program Overview

    Sociology (SOC)

    Sociology is the systematic study of social life. It is based on the assumption that there are certain patterns to the way people live and think and that by studying their behavior and attitudes, these patterns can be discovered and explained. Sociologists investigate how the group influences behavior, from the smallest (a two-person relationship) to the largest (huge organizations, such as General Motors or the Catholic Church). Any­thing having to do with social behavior is the subject matter of sociology.

    The Bachelor of Arts program at Stony Brook seeks to develop in students both an understanding of a history of social thought and skills in the collection and analysis of social data. The core program includes one semester of Introduction to Sociology, one semester of sociological theory, one semester of research methods, and one semester of statistics.

    Students who have completed this program have attended graduate schools in sociology or related disciplines including social welfare and social work.  Many of our successful students pursued careers in advertising, marketing, and business management. Some graduates continue in the field of market research (studying for large companies what products people want to buy), demography (studying the population scientifically, as in the United States census), criminology (investigating the causes and nature of crime and criminal justice), urban planning, polling, and public opinion (like the Gallup or Harris Polls). We find many of our majors are successful in pursuing law programs and health professions fields, including medical school, nursing school and the clinical health sciences.

  • Degrees and Requirements

    Requirements for the Major in Sociology (SOC)

    The major in Sociology leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree. All sociology courses completed for the major, except those graded S/U, must be passed with a letter grade of C or higher. Excluding required courses, credit can be awarded for just one P graded course.  

    Completion of the major requires 39 credits, of which 27 to 30 credits are in Sociology courses.

    A. Study within the Area of the Major

    1. Required courses

    • SOC 105 Introduction to Sociology
    • SOC 201 Research Methods
    • SOC 202 Statistical Methods in Sociology or another allowed statistics course
    • SOC 361 Historical Development of Contemporary Sociology

    2. Sociology electives
    In addition to the required courses above, students must complete an additional 18 credits of coursework from among all sociology course offerings. 

    Note:
    Only six credits of independent study courses (SOC 447, 487, 488, 495, 496) may be used toward the requirements of 18 elective credits in sociology. 

    B. Study in Related Areas

    At least three courses (nine credits) chosen from one of the following related social sciences: Africana studies (only those courses with designator AFS), anthropology (only those courses with designator ANT), economics, history, linguistics, political science, psychology, and women's studies. Credits from applied social science professions such as social work, police science, education, and management science are not applicable. 

    C. Upper-Division Writing Requirement

    Sociology majors are expected to fulfill the upper-division writing requirement by the time of graduation. This requirement is met through SOC 361, the required Historical Development of Sociological Theory course, which also satisfies the SBC WRTD requirement.

    Notes for Transfer Students:

    1. The Department of Sociology requires that transfer students take at least 12 credits in sociology in residence at Stony Brook to complete the sociology major.
    2. No transferred sociology course with a grade lower than C is accepted for credit in the major.

    Honors Program

    The honors program is open to seniors majoring in Sociology who have maintained a g.p.a. of 3.50 in the major and 3.20 overall, and who have completed or are in the process of completing the methods and statistics requirement and the upper-division writing requirement. Students should apply for the honors program before the beginning of their senior year. With the approval of the sponsoring faculty member, the student must submit a written proposal for a major paper or research project to be completed during the senior year. Acceptance into the honors program depends on the approval of the proposal by the Department.

    In the senior year, the student enrolls in SOC 495 during the first semester and SOC 496 during the second semester, for a total of six credits. The student's major paper or research project must be completed no later than four weeks prior to the end of the second semester, to allow for possible revisions. It is read and evaluated by a committee consisting of the student's sponsor, one other Sociology faculty member, and one faculty member from another department.

    If the honors program is completed with distinction and the student has achieved a 3.50 gpa in all sociology courses and a 3.2 overall, honors are conferred.

  • Sequence

    Sample Course Sequence for the Major in Sociology

    For more information about SBC courses that fulfill major requirements, click here.

    FRESHMAN

    FALL Credits
    First Year Seminar 101 1
    WRT 101 3
    SOC 105 3
    SBC 3
    SBC 3
    SBC  3
     Total 16
     
    SPRING Credits
    First Year Seminar 102 1
    WRT 102 3
    SOC elective 3
    SBC 3
    SBC 3
    SBC
     3
     Total 16
     
    SOPHOMORE

    FALL Credits
    SOC 201 3
    SOC elective 3
    SOC elective 3
    SBC 3
    SBC
     3
     Total 15
     
    SPRING Credits
    SOC 202 or AMS 102 3
    SOC elective 3
    Social science elective 3
    SBC 3
    SBC
     3
     Total 15
     
    JUNIOR

    FALL Credits
    SOC 361 3
    SOC Upper-division elective 3
    Social science elective 3
    SBC  3
    SBC  3
     Total 15
     
    SPRING Credits
    SOC Upper-division elective 3
    SOC Upper-division elective 3
    SOC Upper-division elective 3
    Upper-division elective 3
    SOC elective 3
     Total 15
     
    SENIOR

    FALL Credits
    SOC Upper-division elective  3
    Upper-division elective  3
    Upper-division elective  3
    Social science elective  3
    SOC elective  3
     Total 15
     
    SPRING Credits
    SOC Upper-division elective 3
    Upper-division elective 3
    Upper-division elective 3
    SBC 3
    Upper-division elective 3
     Total 15

     

     

     

  • Contact

    Sociology (SOC)

    Major in Sociology

    Department  of Sociology, College of Arts and Sciences

    Chair: Tim F. Liao

    Director of Undergraduate Studies: Catherine Marrone

    Assistant to the Chair: Patricia Bremer

    Academic Programs Coordinator: Kelly A. Haller

     

    Social Behavioral & Science Bldg. S. 401

    Stony Brook, NY 11794-4356

    (631) 632-7700

    kelly.haller@stonybrook.edu

    Website: http://www.stonybrook.edu/sociology

    Minors of particular interest to students majoring in Sociology: Anthropology (ANT), Health, Medicine and Society (MHS), International Studies (INT), Political Science (POL), Women's and Gender Studies (WST)

  • Courses
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