Undergraduate Program in Sociology

The sociology program includes most of the major substantive areas of the discipline, ranging from face-to-face relations in families and friendship networks to the growth of cities, socioeconomic hierarchies, and complex organizations in a global context. Areas of faculty expertise include social psychology, deviance, criminology and delinquency, marriage and family, gerontology, demography, gender, minority relations, inequality, international development, medical sociology, sociology of religion, social research methods, and social theory. The department also offers a criminology concentration for sociology majors who wish to specialize in this area with courses in areas such as criminology, delinquency, law and policing, and corrections.

Courses in sociology fulfill Individual and Group Behavior Core Curriculum requirements in the Social and Behavioral sciences in Arts and Sciences and the University. Introduction to Sociology (SOC 1301) also fulfills the University’s Multicultural Core Curriculum requirement.

A student majoring in sociology must complete 30 hours in sociology, with at least18 hours at the advanced level. Required courses include core courses in sociological theory and research methods plus a senior seminar. A maximum of 9 hours of transfer credit may be accepted for the major.

Specific course requirements are as follows:
1. SOC 1301, 3391, 3392, and 4395.
2. Either SOC 3393 or 3394. Students expecting admission to graduate work in sociology should take both of these courses.

A minor in sociology consists of 18 hours, including SOC 1301. No more than 6 hours of transfer credit will be accepted for the minor.

Students must receive a grade of C or better in each sociology course if they wish it to count toward a major or minor in sociology or in the criminology concentration. The recommended prerequisite for all advanced courses is SOC 1301 or consent of instructor, unless otherwise indicated in the course description. Freshmen and sophomores who wish to take an advanced course are required to obtain the consent of the instructor in writing.

Teacher Education. Consult the College of Education section of the TTU catalog for teacher certification requirements.

Criminology Concentration. The sociology major with a concentration in criminology requires a total of 36 hours. Sociology majors who wish to specialize in the study of criminology and receive the notation “Criminology Concentration” on their transcripts are required to complete five three-hour courses (15 hours) with a grade of C or better from two groups of courses as specified below.
1. Two core courses as follows, both of which must be taken: SOC 3327 and 4325
2. Three alternate courses to be chosen from among the following: ANTH 2305, 4343; PSY 4384; SOC 3335, 3368, 3383, and 4327.