• Foundation courses (Introductory SociologySOC [151 and 152]; Sociological Analysis [SOC 202]; Sociology and Social Theory [SOC 212]). These courses provide an introduction to sociological reasoning.

• Topical courses (all sociology courses 221 and above). Courses in this category examine many of the topical areas in which sociology makes a contribution to our knowledge of society and social processes. Nonmajors may have a special interest in courses in this category that correspond to the intellectual concerns of departments and programs with which the Department of Sociology maintains formal or informal ties: Psychology; African American Studies; the Science in Society Program; the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program; and the College of Social Studies. Similarly, students should note the applicability of many of these courses to work in anthropology, art, economics, government, history, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, religion, theater, and other disciplines.

• Research courses (listed below). These are topical courses that culminate in a research paper. As research-oriented courses, they guide students in the application of sociological reasoning to specific empirical and theoretical problems. They may double as topical courses.

Major program. Introductory Sociology (SOC 151 or, in certain cases, SOC 152) is required for admission to the major. Each major is assigned a faculty advisor with whom the student works out a program of study. Majors must complete 10 courses (including SOC 151).  The courses must be distributed as shown in the following table.

Normally, the foundation course requirements are fulfilled at the beginning of the program. At least one research course is taken toward the end of major studies and is to be integrated with the student's plans for a senior essay or thesis.

Exceptions to the requirements for the major may occasionally be made but only insofar as they suit the purposes of a coherently integrated program of study. For example, students may apply as many as three electives taken outside the Department of Sociology toward the topical course requirement. Transfer students are encouraged to evaluate their transfer credit with the department chair at their earliest convenience. All exceptions must be approved in writing by the student's faculty advisor.

The program is designed to help students attain both broad knowledge and confident skill in sociological reasoning and argumentation. All sociology majors must enter their senior year having taken a minimum of three courses within the Wesleyan Sociology Department. This includes at least one of the two required courses (Sociological Analysis [SOC 202] or Social Theory [SOC 212]). In preparation for senior research projects, majors are expected to take Sociological Analysis by the end of the seventh semester, at the latest. Beginning with the class of 2006, second-semester seniors may not be admitted to SOC 202.

This process culminates in the completion of a senior research project, either essay or thesis, required for all majors. The senior essay consists of a major research paper (normally at least 25 pages). SOC 305 and SOC 324 offer structured opportunities for the development of the essay, but it may also be written in a research course or a tutorial; in every case, the essay goes through substantial revision before its approval.

Students planning to write an honors project must have taken a minimum of four courses in the department by the end of junior year, including Sociological Analysis (SOC 202), and must have maintained an A- average in their departmental courses.

Students are invited to explore these possibilities with their faculty advisor early in the fall of the junior year. Those selected to write a senior thesis will be excused from the research essay requirement, though not from the research course requirement. Senior thesis tutorials (SOC 409/410) may count toward the topical course requirement if the integrity of the overall program is thus enhanced.

Ordinarily, education in the field, independent study, or a tutorial may count toward the major; students may take an additional tutorial to prepare a senior essay and two additional tutorials to prepare an honors thesis.  However, TA credits may not count toward the major and must be taken Credit/Unsatisfactory.

Majors and nonmajors alike are advised that the Public Affairs Center Data Laboratory is readily available to all sociology students. The department maintains a comprehensive archive of sociological data for use in student research projects. And in addition to the extensive sociological holdings in Olin Library, the department has a library of important reference works. Occasionally, financial assistance is available for students engaged in research. The department periodically awards the Robert S. Lynd Award for outstanding senior essays written in sociology courses, the Herbert H. Hyman Prize for outstanding senior theses on a sociological topic, and the Anna Julia Cooper Prize to a student of overall excellence.

Study abroad is fully compatible with completing the major, but students who plan to go abroad for a semester are expected to discuss with their major advisors how such studies will fit into their overall academic plans before finalizing their plans.

In planning their programs, students should examine the department's memorandum of courses to be offered in future years or omitted in a given year. Students in urgent need of courses omitted in a given year should consult members of the department about the possibility of tutorials. Other information about the sociology major is available in the department office, Public Affairs Center 122.

Double majors. Students also may have double majors, for example, history and biology or anthropology and English. All the requirements of the two majors must be met, except when faculty representatives of the two departments approve alterations in a student's program. Please consult with the department chair or a department advisor.

Education-in-the-field credit. Students, whether majors or nonmajors, seeking education-in-the-field credit must provide the department, in advance, with an acceptable prospectus of their work and assurance of professional guidance during the field experience. Students must submit research papers based on this experience. These papers should refer substantially to sociological literature pertinent to their field experience.