Required Credit Hours/Tuition and Fees
- 30
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Curriculum
Requirements for the Master of Arts in sociology include 30 semester hours of graduate credit, distributed as follows:
Required courses (15 hours): SOC 500, 501, 515, 518, 592
SOC 501, 515, and 518 are taken in the first year to ensure a basic knowledge of sociological theory, methods and data analysis. SOC 592 is taken after completion of 18 hours, including 515, or with consent of the graduate program director. Students with exceptional research skills and experience may elect to be evaluated for conditional exemption from the SOC 592 requirement. If conditional exemption is granted by the Graduate Committee, the student will complete another approved course in the Plan of Study.
Students must receive a grade of B or higher in all required courses. Also, during the first 12 semester hours of graduate study, only courses with a grade of B or higher can be counted toward the degree.
Electives (9 hours): Students completing the thesis or internship exit requirements must complete 9 hours of electives, at least six hours of which must be sociology seminar courses at the 500-level. Students completing the comprehensive exam exit requirement must complete 15 hours of electives, 12 of which must be sociology seminar courses at the 500-level. For all options, up to three semester hours of 500-level electives may be taken in related fields outside sociology when approved by the graduate program director.
Thesis or Internship (6 hours): By the completion of 18 semester hours, and in consultation with the graduate program director, the student can select a traditional or applied research option: Six hours of SOC 599 (Thesis) or three hours of SOC 593A (Graduate Internship-Experience) and three hours of SOC 593B (Graduate Internship-Report). The internship comprises two parts: At least 140 hours of a supervised work experience in either a research or public service setting (SOC 593A), and a substantial, original written report concerning a sociological issue related to the internship (SOC 593B). Guidelines for the internship report are included in the department’s graduate student handbook. Normally, the thesis or internship options will not be taken until the student has completed at least 24 semester hours of coursework.
Comprehensive Exam Option (6 hours): Students who choose the comprehensive exam option will be required to take additional six hours of sociology graduate seminar electives and successfully complete comprehensive exams in three areas: Theory, methods and a subject area chosen by the student. For the Comprehensive Exam option, students choose a three-person committee to help develop and grade both a written and oral exam.
