Course Listings & Selected Syllabi

Please refer to the college undergraduate catalog for more detailed information.

Introductory Course

SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Development of sociological imagination through introduction and application of basic concepts incorporating global and comparative perspectives.
Syllabus - Soyer (Fall 2018)

Lower Division

SOC 201 The Family
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Family functions and interaction. Factors affecting stability and instability.

SOC 203 Education
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Education viewed cross-culturally and historically. Schools and colleges as social systems.
Syllabus- Bronstein (Fall 2019)

SOC 205 Religion**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Comparative study of religion in societies. Analysis of beliefs, myths, and sacred attitudes. 

SOC 207 Leisure, Recreation, and Sports**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Role and social organization of leisure and recreation in traditional and modern society.

SOC 209 Arts in Modern Society**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Art as universal social institution; an expression of symbolic world of cultural life.

SOC 211 Urban Sociology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. The relationships of space and society, with special attention to the nature and problems of urban life.
Syllabus - Oh (Fall 2005)

SOC 213 Political Sociology**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Power, authority, political ideologies, and patterns of participation. Articulation and resolution of political issues in contemporary societies.

SOC 215 Occupations and Professions**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Roles, structures, development of occupations and professions. Occupational socialization and professionalization.

SOC 217 Ethnic and Race Relations
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Dominant-subordinate relations among selected groups: Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, Jews, Indians, White ethnics.

SOC 218 Social Inequality
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Examination of social inequality in contemporary society from various empirical and theoretical perspectives focusing on class, ethnic, gender, and other determinants of stratification. Syllabus- Scannell (Fall 2019)

SOC 219 American Society
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Analysis of social structures and culture of the contemporary U.S.A.
Syllabus - Hammond (Fall 2019)

SOC 224 Sociological Theory
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. How to theorize. Classical and contemporary theorists and their contributions.

SOC 225 Seminar In Selected Problems of Sociology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Reading, discussion, and papers on significant problems in sociology.

SOC 231 Introduction to Social Work Profession**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Introduction to and critical analysis of social work profession in American society.

SOC 235 Community Organization and Action**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Evaluation of specific local and national action programs.

SOC 237 Social Welfare Policy**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Development of welfare institutions. Consequences of welfare services for client and community.

SOC 239 Child Welfare
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Historical and contemporary perspectives on the impact of poverty on children and the social policies that deal with it.

SOC 240 Introduction to Research Methods
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101.Discussion of various research techniques and strategies including the survey method, field research, experiments, and content analysis. Firsthand involvement in the collection of quantitative data. Syllabus- Tucker (Fall 2019)

SOC 241 Social Statistics
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Application of elementary statistical techniques. Introduction to statistical inference and sampling theory. Syllabus- Selzer (Fall 2019)

SOC 251 Interpersonal Behavior
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Study of interactional processes and the emergence and maintenance of selves and identities.

SOC 253 Deviance and Social Control
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SC 101. Theories of causation and analysis of particular types of deviance -- sexual, criminal, political.

SOC 255 Youth and Adulthood**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Youth and adult modes of adaptation, socialization, intergenerational relations, and career possibilities.

SOC 257 Sex and Gender Roles
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Sex role differentiation: femininity, masculinity, marriage, child rearing. Syllabus- Ward (Fall 2019)

SOC 259 Mass Media, Communication and Public Opinion**
3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Impact of mass media on public opinion and government action.

Upper Division

SOC 301 Medical Sociology**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Social and cultural factors related to health. Organization of health care services, social structure of the hospital.

SOC 307 Migration
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Economic, demographic, political and cultural factors influencing migration and the consequences of migration.
Syllabus - Pok (Fall 2019)

SOC 309 Social Movements and Social Change
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Analysis of emerging groups inducing or resisting social change often using unconventional means in historical and/or international perspective.
Syllabus - Lune (Fall 2019)

SOC 311 Population Dynamics**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Comparative analysis of fertility, mortality, migration trends, and related social factors. Syllabus- Pok (Fall 2019)

SOC 313 Consumer Behavior
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Individual and social perspectives on consumer decision making. Social patterns of consumption and consumer social movements.

SOC 314 Culture and Consumption
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 10. The structure and patterning of everyday life as
concerned with material well-being. Symbolic and moral dimensions of food and living arrangements, as well as commerce and the marketplace.

SOC W315 Work and Society
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Work in market economies, mechanisms of control and sources of stratification, gender and ethnic factors, role of education and trade unions.
Syllabus - Hammond (Fall 2008)

SOC 317 Class, Status, and Power
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Inquiry into the empirical and conceptual relation between the fundamental sociological constructs ‘class,’ ‘status,’ and ‘power’ through a case study of the upper class in the United States. Review of current research and relevant theoretical approaches.

SOC 318 Sociology of Human Rights in Latin America
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Types of societies in which human rights are respected or violated with special emphasis on Latin American regimes in the last two decades. Human rights and diversity—the rights of women and minorities. Movements to protect human rights. The emphasis is on actual social conditions which foster or impede the observance and protection of human rights.

SOC 319 Criminology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Criminal behavior, arrest, and punishment. Problems of definition, administration of criminal justice. Syllabus- Nelson (Fall 2019)

SOC 320 Law, Society and Civil Rights
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. This course examines from a sociological perspective the concept of law, and legal institutions and their relationship to society and culture, concentrating on the struggle for civil rights in America.

SOC 321 Sociology of Organizations
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Organization, structure, and processes; relationship between individual and organization.
Syllabus - Lune (Fall 2011)

SOC 325 Seminar In Selected Problems of Sociology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: permission of instructor. Reading, discussion, and papers on significant problems in sociology.
Syllabus - Oh (Spring 2006)
Syllabus - Oh (Fall 2006)
Syllabus - Hammond (Spring 2010)

SOC 331, 332 Field Placement and Independent Study
4 cr. each. Prereq: permission of instructor. Supervised work in a community service agency 1 full day or 2 half-days a week each semester.
Syllabus - Bruner (Fall 2019)

SOC 345 Sociology of Knowledge, Science & Technology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Systematic analysis of the social basis of knowledge, with particular reference to scientific knowledge.

SOC 350 Qualitative Research Methods
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 221 or 223. An introduction to the most prevalent qualitative research approaches used in applied social research and sociology, including documentary analysis, participatory observation, ethnography, in-depth interviews, focus groups and related methods.

SOC 360 Feminist Social Theory
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101; PD/C. Introduces students to feminist theory developed by women from Western, Third World and other countries.

SOC W361 Development and Modernization
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101; Examines the effort of poor countries to achieve economic development, and the possible outcomes of that effort.
Syllabus - Hammond (Spring 2011)

SOC 362 Sociology of Islam
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Introduction to Islam as religion and culture with emphasis on how misconceptions have permeated our understanding of Islam. Analysis from a historical perspective which serves as a framework for comprehending Islam’s dogma, rituals, and legal system.

SOC 361 Development and Modernization
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Examinations of models of social change with a special focus on developing countries.
Syllabus - Hammond (Spring 2006)

SOC 363 Social Change and Social Planning**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101. Process of development of institutions, communities, and nations.

SOC 371, 372 Independent Study
1 or 3 cr. each sem. Prereq: permission of instructor. Completion of reading list and written assignment as proposed by student in consultation with full-time faculty sponsor.

SOC 425 Seminar in Selected Problems of Sociology
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: permission of instructor. Reading, discussion, and papers on significant problems in field of sociology. Syllabus- Hardie (Fall 2019)

SOC 441 Advanced Research Methods**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 241 and 341. Evaluates strategies and instruments available to sociologists.

SOC 461 Comparative Ethnic and Race Relations**
3 hrs, 3 cr. Prereq: SOC 101 and 217. Patterns of inter-group relations in various countries. Consequences of partition, separatism, pluralism, assimilation.

SOC 470 Capstone  Prereqs: Soc 101, Soc 224, Soc 240 and Soc 241 (or stat equivalent)

SOC 471-472 Honors
3 cr. each sem. Prereq: SOC 101 and permission of department. Independent research under direction of member of department. Honors paper.

SOC 473-474 Honors Seminar
3 cr. each sem. Prereq: permission of department. Honors paper.

SOC 498 Internship
hrs to be announced, 3-6 cr. Prereq: SOC 221 or 223, major in sociology and perm of supervising full-time faculty. Placement of qualified sociology majors off campus in professional non-social service internship settings. Credits are based on analytic internship report, number of hours worked and evaluation by faculty.
Read more about SOC 498 ››

** Course is offered sporadically