Bachelor of Arts (BA) Degree with a Major in Sociology
Program Learning Outcomes for the BA Degree with a Major in Sociology
Upon completing the BA degree with a major in Sociology, students will be able to:
- Understand the functions of theory and its use in the social sciences. Students will be familiar with key social theorists in the field. Students will understand key theoretical concepts and be comfortable using them beyond the classroom.
- Gain a richer understanding of the social world, including class, race, gender, ethnicity, education, family, occupation, deviancy, health, and global citizenship as well as how the human social world impacts its environment.
- Apply sociological knowledge and training to understand theory and policy oriented around issues of human well-being in the US and globally, including how to understand the relationship between inequality and factors like race, class, gender, and education.
- Apply methodological, theoretical, and research skills to carry out empirical research projects.
Requirements for the BA Degree with a Major in Sociology
For general university requirements, see Graduation Requirements. Students pursuing the BA degree with a major in Sociology must complete:
- A minimum of 11 courses (33-34 credit hours, depending on course selection) to satisfy major requirements.
- A minimum of 120 credit hours to satisfy degree requirements.
- A minimum of 10 courses (30-31 credit hours, depending on course selection) taken at the 300-level or above.
- A maximum of 5 courses (15 credit hours) from study abroad or transfer credit. For additional departmental guidelines regarding transfer credit, see the Policies tab.
The courses listed below satisfy the requirements for this major. In certain instances, courses not on this official list may be substituted upon approval of the major’s academic advisor or, where applicable, the department's Director of Undergraduate Studies. (Course substitutions must be formally applied and entered into Degree Works by the major's Official Certifier.) Students and their academic advisors should identify and clearly document the courses to be taken.
Summary
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Total Credit Hours Required for the Major in Sociology | 33-34 | |
| Total Credit Hours Required for the BA Degree with a Major in Sociology | 120 | |
Degree Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | ||
| SOCI 101 | INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY 1 | 3 |
| or SOCI 231 | SOCIAL PROBLEMS | |
| SOCI 380 | SOCIAL THEORY | 3 |
| SOCI 381 | RESEARCH METHODS | 3 |
| Select 1 from the following: | 3-4 | |
| SOCIAL STATISTICS | ||
| QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES and QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS FOR SOCIAL SCIENCES: SOCIOLOGY LAB | ||
| Elective Requirements | ||
| Select 7 elective courses from departmental (SOCI) course offerings at the 300-level or above | 21 | |
| Total Credit Hours Required for the Major in Sociology | 33-34 | |
| Additional Credit Hours to Complete Degree Requirements * | 55-56 | |
| University Graduation Requirements * | 31 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120 | |
Footnotes and Additional Information
| * | Note: University Graduation Requirements include 31 credit hours, comprised of Distribution Requirements (Groups I, II, and III), FWIS, and LPAP coursework. In some instances, courses satisfying FWIS or distribution requirements may additionally meet other requirements, such as the Analyzing Diversity (AD) requirement, or some of the student’s declared major, minor, or certificate requirements. Additional Credit Hours to Complete Degree Requirements include general electives, coursework completed as upper-level, residency (hours taken at Rice), and/or any other additional academic program requirements. |
| 1 | Only one of these courses (SOCI 101 or SOCI 231) may fulfill major requirements. Neither course may be used to fulfill Elective Requirements. |
Policies for the BA Degree with a Major in Sociology
Program Restrictions and Exclusions
Students pursuing the major in Sociology should be aware of the following program restriction:
- As noted in Majors, Minors, and Certificates, students may not major and minor in the same subject.
Transfer Credit
For Rice University’s policy regarding transfer credit, see Transfer Credit. Some departments and programs have additional restrictions on transfer credit. Requests for transfer credit must be approved for Rice equivalency by the designated transfer credit advisor for the appropriate academic department offering the Rice equivalent course (corresponding to the subject code of the course content). The Office of Academic Advising maintains the university’s official list of transfer credit advisors on their website: https://oaa.rice.edu. Students are encouraged to meet with the applicable transfer credit advisor as well as their academic program director when considering transfer credit possibilities.
Departmental Transfer Credit Guidelines
Students pursuing the major in Sociology should be aware of the following departmental transfer credit guideline:
- No more than 5 courses (15 credit hours) of transfer credit from U.S. or international universities of similar standing as Rice may apply towards the major.
Additional Information
For additional information, please see the Sociology website: https://sociology.rice.edu/.
Opportunities for the BA Degree with a Major in Sociology
Academic Honors
The university recognizes academic excellence achieved over an undergraduate’s academic history at Rice. For information on university honors, please see Latin Honors (summa cum laude, magna cum laude, and cum laude) and Distinction in Research and Creative Work. Some departments have department-specific Honors awards or designations.
Departmental Honors Program
The Sociology Department Honors Program is designed to provide sociology majors with the opportunity to sharpen their research skills and deepen their understanding of the discipline through a 2-to-3 semester program of directed independent research and writing. The program also offers the opportunity for formal recognition, through Departmental Honors, of those undergraduates who have demonstrated unusual competence in sociology by successfully completing a sustained independent research project. Small grants for honors thesis research are generously supported by the Chandler and Ian Davidson Scholars Program.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Departmental Honors Program, students must have:
- Taken at least 4 sociology courses beyond SOCI 101 Introduction to Sociology, including SOCI 381 Research Methods. If their project requires statistical analysis, students should also complete SOCI 382 Social Statistics (or SOSC 302 Quantitative Analysis for the Social Sciences) before beginning their research.
- An A- (3.67) GPA in all sociology courses taken.
Application Process
- During their junior year, students should consult with members of the faculty about a potential thesis topic. Through these conversations students should both narrow their research question, and identify a faculty member who is willing to serve as their thesis advisor. The student will then work with their thesis advisor to develop a full research proposal of their proposed honors thesis project.
- Once a thesis advisor has been identified and has approved a student’s project, the thesis proposal should be submitted to the Sociology Undergraduate Advisor by April 1st of the student’s junior year. The proposal should be 3-5 pages in length. Make sure the proposal includes a signature from the faculty advisor indicating their approval.
- The Undergraduate Advisor and Sociology Undergraduate Committee will evaluate the merits of the proposed thesis projects, and provide official departmental approval in coordination with the advising faculty. Some students may be asked to make revisions to their proposals before final approval. If approved, the student may register for the Directed Honors Research course (SOCI 492) in the fall of their senior year under the supervision of their advisor, and may begin work on their thesis with permission and support of their thesis advisor.
Program
Students in the Honors Program register for two successive semesters in Directed Honors Research (SOCI 492 and SOCI 493). As part of this course, students meet regularly with the other thesis writers and the faculty member overseeing the honors thesis program (typically the Undergraduate Advisor). Students should also schedule regular meetings with their thesis advisor.
Together with their advisor, the student should plan a timeline for the completion of data collection, analysis, and the submission of written work. This timeline should include the deadline for when the thesis draft will be sent to the second-reader on the student’s thesis committee. All students must have at least one tenured or tenure-track faculty member in the Sociology Department as part of their thesis committee (advisor or second-reader), but the second reader may be external to the department. In addition, we encourage thesis writers to block off time in their weekly schedule to work on their thesis, as though it was a regularly scheduled class. This helps ensure that students have the bandwidth to make consistent progress throughout the year.
Students normally begin by conducting a thorough review of the relevant literature, formulating hypotheses that grow out of the literature review, and proposing a research design that clearly describes how the data for the project are to be collected and analyzed. Students will then work with their advisor to complete an IRB application for their research project over the summer between their junior and senior year, so they are prepared to begin work in the fall. The research itself is typically carried out in the fall semester of the senior year. Then, in the spring semester, the data is fully analyzed, and students write up their thesis into the same format as a journal article. The finalized thesis is read and evaluated by the advisor and second reader, and then students present their work as part of an oral defense at the end of the spring semester in front of the sociology faculty and their peers.
Program Timeline
- A first draft of the final thesis must be turned in to the thesis advisor and second-reader no later than March 1st of the student’s senior year.
- After receiving feedback on the project, the student will have until April 1st to submit a final draft of the senior thesis to their committee.
- A short presentation (10-15 minutes) of the final thesis project must be given to the full sociology faculty by the end of the spring semester.
Additional Information
For additional information, please see the Sociology website: https://sociology.rice.edu/.