Sociology
Photo: Eudes Lopes
Sociology offers a cutting edge undergraduate major for students interested in the social dimensions of politics, economics, history, psychology, and demography. Professors in the department study wide-ranging topics, including: the immigrant experience and immigration policy, the 21st century corporate firm, religious diversity, the mass media, school shootings, affirmative action, and growing up with a single parent. The sociological perspective on all of these subjects tends to look at things from below, rather than from above, using a wide variety of statistical, ethnographic, and historical methods. Sociology majors benefit from a smaller major where they receive individual attention from faculty. It is also one of the most diverse majors in the university, attracting students committed to an environment of respect and acceptance. Sociology majors tend to do extremely well in applying to a wide range of graduate programs from medicine to law to business because professional schools are increasingly looking for intellectual diversity and sociology provides a valued perspective in the contemporary professions. In addition, students who major in sociology go into a wide range of fields from investment banking to law to education, activism, and the non-profit sector.
What Students Say
• What is sociology?
• What can you learn from it?
• What is it like being a sociology major?
• What are common misconceptions about sociology majors?
• What kind of internships and international experiences have sociology majors had?
• How will sociology majors save the world?
• Why would anyone want to date a sociology major?
What is sociology?
• What can you learn from it?
• What is it like being a sociology major?
• What are common misconceptions about sociology majors?
• What kind of internships and international experiences have sociology majors had?
• How will sociology majors save the world?
• Why would anyone want to date a sociology major?
What is sociology?
Sociology is the study of society, or, more specifically, of how human interactions shape our environment, our communities, and ourselves.
Sociology is a lens through which we observe diverse, and often unnoticed, aspects of our world. Within the general discipline are subfields that serve a range of individual interests; among the Princeton faculty, economic sociology, urban sociology, cultural sociology, immigration, and political sociology are of particular emphasis. These subfields are explored both quantitatively and qualitatively, requiring thinking in scales ranging from a single city block to a global social structure.
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What can you learn from it?Depending on his or her course selection and personal interests, each person will gain something different from the discipline. Sociological study can occur at a purely theoretical level or address particular social phenomena (such as healthcare, economic failures, racism, or poverty).
Studying sociology gives us a unique perspective on not only our surroundings but on ways to address issues or problems in poicies that affect society. Sociology teaches us to challenge everyday assumptions and to dig deeper into why people interact the way they do, why socioeconomic breakdowns look the way they do in different societies, or why people organize and categorize themselves into distinct groups (among many other important questions). In life after college, sociology provides us with a framework through which to understand and address social issues.
Studying sociology provides us with a broad understanding of how the world around us is structured, maintained, and changing, and this understanding can lead to a heightened awareness of our everyday activities and what our role within our community is and can be. Every day, we get some kind of aha! moment, revealing a hidden side of the world we thought we knew and a sense of empowerment and responsibility.
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What is it like being a sociology major?
The sociology department is full of famous and accomplished sociologists, who serve as an incredible resource to students in the department. Many are also great teachers, approachable and very willing to advise students on both course and independent work.
The course offerings for undergraduates can sometimes be a bit slim, but this changes from semester to semester, and you will always find fascinating courses on a variety of topics. The dynamic of the professors make the courses great and even the general intro course that may not excite you is often important to junior independent work, so pay attention!
In the department office, Cindy is wonderful! She works in the SOC office and is always around to offer administrative support with a smile. She is the HEART of the Sociology department!!
Sociology is not an "easy" major. While the subjects we study deal with the ordinary, it's precisely this mundanity that makes the discipline so intellectually challenging. Sociological genius occurs when the extraordinary emerges from the everyday, when generalities are drawn from the complexity of human interaction, and when true empathy is created in an increasingly self-centered society.
In addition, sociology cannot end in the classroom — you cannot glean "all there is to know" in the lecture hall. The independent work is your academic identity and, in many ways, the most important part of your learning experience. While we can get the basic blueprint for sociological investigations from our courses, the real learning comes from interaction and going out and trying it on your own, which reflects the department's ability to foster proactive inquiry and diverse experiences for majors.
Sociology students are so diverse, that it is difficult to say that there is a specific kind of field that we are attracted to, in terms of internships. We all contribute a great deal to our department, including what we do for the summer.
Some people pick sociology because they are interested in public interest endeavors and non-profit organizations. For example, one senior would like to be a lawyer some day, but her internships now focus on non-profits and helping out in communities. Last summer, she worked for PUPP (Princeton University Preparatory Program) and mentored a group of high school students preparing to apply to selective colleges and universities. This summer, she was in Mexico working for a non-profit service organization that was started by Princeton alumni.
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Sociology majors learn how to challenge assumptions. They look at issues from all angles and never settle for the easy explanation. They merge quantitative data analysis (looking at patterns in groups/societies/ communities) with qualitative data (interviewing/ observing actual people) to paint a rich and comprehensive picture of the issue at hand.
With these tools, sociology majors are equipped to bring a unique perspective to solving critical issues we face locally, nationally, and internationally, and can provide insight to policies that have the potential to change lives for the better. Making smart policy decisions requires a fine tuned sociological perspective.
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We are naturally empathetic, so we can give you what your friends don't know you need; we face enduring social problems with fearless optimism, so we know what we want and will not hesitate to get it; and our discipline is one of the few that tries to understand the infinite complexities of love (see: The Art of Loving – Erich Fromm), so we know what we're going into.