Graduate Program in Applied Social Research (GSR)

The Department of Sociology offers an intensive program in social research leading to the Master of Science degree. The program is designed for individuals with a background in the social sciences who wish to pursue a career in research and related areas, as well as for those who wish to upgrade their research skills.

Hunter's MS in Applied Social Research Program is one of the top Sociology Masters' Programs in the U.S. And, it is one of a handful of programs in the world to offer courses in the emerging field of digital sociology.

Students wishing to learn more about the program are encouraged to attend one of the Open House Events (online).

Additional information on the program is available from the Graduate Bulletin of Hunter College. If you're considering a Master's Degree in Sociology or Social Research, you may want to have a look at the American Sociological Association's survey of student satisfaction here. And, you can view the entire study here.

Applying Social Research to the World Around Us

The Hunter College Department of Sociology offers the only graduate program in the United States leading to a Master of Science in Social Research (MSSR). Our program is distinctive in its focus on applied social research. What this means in practical terms is that students are trained in how to take what they've learned in sociology and apply it to the needs and demands they encounter in the world outside the classroom. This happens in a variety of settings, such as marketing firms, think tanks, non-profit and grassroots organizations, the health care industry, entertainment and social media companies. Alumni from our program work find employement in these fields as researchers, policy analysts, ethnographers, data scientists, and focus group leads.

Graduates of the program have gone on to work at: Comedy Central, ABC, Sesame Workshop, Cornell University Medical Center, Lifetime Television, the Ms. Foundation, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, McCann-Erickson Worldwide, Harris Interactive, the National Urban League, Warner Brothers, the New York Times, TBS/TNT, the Center for Disease Control, and Fox TV International.

Some of our students go on to puruse a PhD in sociology at schools such as the University of Wisconsin, Rutgers University, SUNY Stony Brook, The University of Maryland, Columbia University, NYU, Fordham University, Michigan University, the University of Iowa, and The Graduate Center-CUNY. Still other students have pursued graduate degrees in fields such as law and social work and communication.

The course work in the program is rigorous and prepares students in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Through both required core courses and electives, classes are designed to help students build their skills in critical thinking, research design, data mining, sampling, data analysis, interpretation and writing. Students can customize their area of specialization, with faculty guidance, through their choice of elective courses at Hunter College and through the constorium of CUNY campuses. 

All courses are scheduled in the evening.

If you have further questions, contact Program Director Professor Jessie Daniels. Her email is: jdaniels@hunter.cuny.edu.