Sociology

Daphne A. John, Associate Professor of Sociology and Chair
Rick Baldoz, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Wesley Hiers, Vst. Assistant Professor of Sociology
Greggor Mattson, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Christine Parris, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Christi Smith, Vst. Assistant Professor of Sociology
Veljko Vujacic, Associate Professor of Sociology
Clovis L. White, Associate Professor of Sociology

Sociology is concerned with the study of social phenomena-the self, groups, community solidarity, economic and political behavior, inequality, culture and values, social organization, institutions-in societies of various types and levels of development. The question of how groups, societies, and larger social systems change or remain the same over time frames work in the discipline. The department curriculum reflects the breadth of the discipline and responds to the variety of student interests. The curriculum addresses the educational objectives of students who wish to: (1) study for advanced degrees in Sociology as preparation for careers in teaching or research; (2) apply Sociology in the professions such as law or urban planning; (3) apply Sociology in public policy or social service agency work; (4) utilize Sociology to contribute to majors in other disciplines such as psychology, anthropology, history, or political science; (5) learn the ways in which the sociological imagination can increase and enrich one’s participation in society. These different objectives may suggest different courses or combinations of courses so students thinking about majoring in the department should consult an advisor early in their decision process.

Major

A major in Sociology consists of the following:

A minimum of 9.5 courses (nine full courses and one half course) in the department, including an introductory
sociology course.
   a. Required courses: 301, 302 and 303. Students are strongly advised to take these courses by the end of their junior year, since advanced courses assume knowledge of material covered in them. Those considering Honors should know that they must have completed 301 and 302 courses to be eligible for the program.
   b. STAT 113, or STAT 114 or STAT 213 must be taken before or while enrolled in SOCI 301/302.
   c. At least one course from the three core analytic areas (see Distribution Requirements below).
   d. At least one seminar in Sociology.
   e. The 9.5 courses required for the major may include only one introductory course.
   f.  A First Year Seminar offered by a Sociology faculty counts toward the major but is not considered a substitute for an introductory course.
   g.  Courses in which a student has earned a letter grade lower than a C- or P cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the major or minor.
Courses in many other disciplines add strength to a major in Sociology. The particular pattern of courses chosen will vary, depending on the plans and interests of the student. The pattern should be worked out in close consultation with the major advisor.

Distribution Requirements:
A major in Sociology should include at least one course from the three analytic areas which are the basis for organization of the field (i.e. for a total of three courses). The three core analytic areas are Social Organization, Inequality, Stratification, and Power; Microsociology/Individuals and Society; and Historical, Comparative, and Transnational Change. Below are listed the core analytic areas and the courses both currently and previously offered, within each area.

Distribution Requirements

A major in Sociology should include courses from the various analytic areas which are the basis for organization of the field. The three core analytic areas are Social Organization, Inequality, Stratification, and Power; Micro-Sociology; and Historical, Comparative, and Transnational Change. Below are listed the core analytic areas and the courses, both currently and previously offered, within each area.

Each major should take at least one course from the three analytic areas.

Social Organization, Inequality, Stratification, and Power

The following courses have been approved for this area. Not all of these courses will be offered every year. See below for a list of the courses offered in 2015-2016.

SOCI 214 - Social Movements
SOCI 215 - Contemporary Asian American Experience
SOCI 224 - Sociology of Sport
SOCI 227 - Sociology of Gender
SOCI 229 - New Immigrant Destinations
SOCI 235 - Gender Stratification
SOCI 243 - Urban Sociology: The City as a Growth Machine
SOCI 250 - Sociology of Popular Culture
SOCI 252 - Moral Markets: Economic Sociology
SOCI 254 - Political Sociology
SOCI 256 - Social Orders & Disorders
SOCI 258 - Security, Secrecy, and Spectacle: Surveillance Society Since 9/11
SOCI 262 - Making Race & Ethnicity in the United States
SOCI 264 - The American Family: Comfort, Conflict and Criticism
SOCI 267 - War and Peace? How War Shapes Education, Health, and Citizenship
SOCI 270 - Race & Ethnicity in the Americas: the Comparative Social Significance of Skin Color, Culture, and Descent
SOCI 275 - Enacting the Law
SOCI 277 - Race & Ethnic Relations
SOCI 284 - Environmental Sociology
SOCI 305 - Feminist Research Methodologies
SOCI 314 - Unequal Education
SOCI 321 - Racializing the City: the Political Economy of Equality &
Exclusion in the U.S. Urban Context
SOCI 335 - Sociology of Globalization
SOCI 348 - Constructing Immigrant Communities
SOCI 350 - School and Punishment
SOCI 356 - Censorship and Silencing
SOCI 371 - Intersectionality: Race, Class & Gender Analysis
SOCI 378 - Sociology of African American Community
SOCI 406 - Seminar: Gender and the State in the Middle East and North Africa
SOCI 420 - Social Inequalities: Class, Race, and Gender
SOCI 422 - Seminar: Racism & Inequality in the United States: Alternative Perspectives
SOCI 428 - Education and The Limits of Law
SOCI 438 - Seminar: Coal, Communities and Culture
SOCI 442 - Censorship & Silencing
SOCI 443 - Generations of Youth: Relationship, Work, Culture, and Communication
SOCI 445 - Seminar in Urban Sociology: Housing America
SOCI 450 - Beyond Margins versus Mainstream: How We Manage Contradictory Categories

These courses will be offered in 2015-2016:

Micro-Sociology: Individuals and Society

The following courses have been approved for this area. Not all of these courses will be offered every year.

SOCI 203 - Desire to be Modern: Sociology of Sexuality
SOCI 222 - Social Psychology: A Sociological Approach
SOCI 229 - New Immigrant Destinations
SOCI 238 - Gender and Sexuality in the Middle East and North Africa
SOCI 403 - Seminar in Social Psychology: African-American Personality
SOCI 426 - Alcohol and Culture: Social Control Under the Influence

Historical, Comparative, and Transnational Change

The following courses have been approved for this area. Not all of these courses will be offered every year. See below for a list of the courses offered in 2015-2016.

SOCI 203 - Desire to be Modern: Sociology of Sexuality
SOCI 220 - Cyberspace and Social Relations
SOCI 230 - Social Change & Political Transformation in Eastern Europe
SOCI 233 - Gender, Social Change, Social Movements
SOCI 238 - Gender & Sexuality in the Middle East and North Africa
SOCI 241 - American Urbanism: From Hogtown to Smogtown
SOCI 252 - Moral Markets: Economic Sociology
SOCI 262 - Making Race & Ethnicity in the United States
SOCI 267 - War and Peace? How War Shapes Education, Health, and Citizenship
SOCI 270 - Race & Ethnicity in the Americas: the Comparative Social Significance of Skin Color, Culture, and Descent
SOCI 305 - Feminist Research Methodologies
SOCI 318 - Chinatown as an American Space
SOCI 321 - Racializing the City: the Political Economy of Equality & Exclusion in the U.S. Urban Context
SOCI 335 - Sociology of Globalization
SOCI 338 - Prostitution and Social Control: Governing Loose Women
SOCI 340 - Nationalism, Culture, and Politics Under and After Dictatorship: Spain and Yugoslavia in the Twentieth Century
SOCI 342 - Immigration and Globalization: Spaces, Places and Crossings
SOCI 350 - School and Punishment
SOCI 362 - Partition, War, Dislocation: Mid-20th Century South Asia and Historic Palestine
SOCI 414 - Seminar in Rural Sociology: “Rednecks”, Cowboys, and Country Queers
SOCI 422 - Seminar: Racism & Inequality in the United States: Alternative Perspectives
SOCI 428 - Education and The Limits of Law
SOCI 431 - Society Through Literature and Film
SOCI 450 - Beyond Margins versus Mainstream
SOCI 977 - The Birth of Modern Politics: The Case of 19th Century Britain
SOCI 978 - State, Nation, Empire: The English/British Case

These courses will be offered in 2015-2016:

Minor

The minor in Sociology consists of the following:

A minimum of 5 full courses in the department which must include:
An introductory course (but not more than one).
Either Sociology 301/302 (Social Research Methods) or Sociology 303 (Social Theory).
Courses in which a student has earned a letter grade lower than a C- or P cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the major or minor.

Honors

The department invites a number of qualified majors to participate in the Honors Program. To be eligible, students must have completed Sociology 301/302 by the end of their junior year. Senior Sociology Majors are asked to submit a written proposal (to the department chair) to participate in the Sociology Honors Program at the end of their junior year. Students are not formally accepted into the Honors Program until the research proposal is approved by the department. The level of Honors is determined by the thesis grade, assessment of oral presentation of the project and major GPA.

Off-Campus Programs for Credit

Students are encouraged to broaden their educational experience by taking advantage of off-campus programs, preferably sometime during their junior year. A maximum of 3 courses may be applied toward the major and require prior approval of the department. A program of special interest for Sociology majors is the GLCA Philadelphia Center.

Transfer of Credit

Students who transfer sociology courses taken at other institutions may, with the approval of the department, apply certain of such courses toward the major or minor. No transfer courses will substitue for the required Sociology 301, 302, and 303 which must be completed at Oberlin College. The transfer of credits may be subject to the transfer of credit fee. Requests to transfer courses taken at other institutions are evaluated on an individual basis. Generally, transfer credit shall not exceed 3 full courses.

Private Reading

Students who have completed available courses in a subject may schedule a reading course in that subject during their junior or senior years. In some instances, reading courses in subjects not offered in the department may also be arranged. No more than one reading course may be scheduled in any semester, or more than two during an undergraduate program. Each private reading course will be the equivalent of one-half course (2 credits).

First Year Seminar Courses

FYSP 118 - Through the Looking Glass
FYSP 163 - She Works Hard for the Money: Women, Work, and the Persistence of Inequality
FYSP 191 - Social Justice in the US

Introductory Courses

Any of the following courses serves as a prerequisite for upper-level courses.

Survey Courses in Specializations

Advanced Courses in Specializations

Senior Seminars

These seminars are designed to integrate theory, methods, and the core analytical areas by linking the specific seminar topic to broader sociological issues. They serve as capstones for the sociology major.