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The sociology department offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in social research. This program prepares students to participate actively and responsibly in their local communities and in society at large. The major offers students the basic knowledge, skills and opportunities to begin graduate school or careers in a variety of fields.

Students who find human behavior interesting, puzzling, and worthy of study often choose to major in social research. Sociologists study what people do when they do things together, whether they are two people relating to one another as friends or entire nations interacting in a global system. They study the social significance of social class, race, ethnicity and gender discrimination and inequality. They investigate social processes such as deviant behavior, social control and conflict. They use the qualitative and quantitative research tools of sociologists and anthropologists. Social researchers gather empirical data that describe human institutions such as law, religion, education, the family and the health care system. They then formulate theories that understand, interpret and explain those institutions and processes.

A major in social research prepares an individual to gather, analyze and interpret data for organizations, businesses, and social service agencies. Students interested in a career as social researchers will acquire the theoretical background and research skills needed to pursue successful graduate study. Students interested in a teaching career may earn certification with a minor in sociology or through a concentration of specific courses. Regardless of a student’s career path the social research program prepares individuals for interesting lives as well as for intelligent participation in efforts to improve the world in which they live.

The course SOCY 124, Principles of Sociology, is a prerequisite for all sociology courses numbered 300 or above.