Sociology is the scientific study of social structure, social inequality, social change, and social interaction that comprise societies. The sociological perspective examines the broad social context in which people live. This context shapes our beliefs and attitudes and sets guidelines for what we do.

The curriculum is structured to introduce majors to the sociology discipline and provide them with conceptual and practical tools to understand social behavior and societies. Areas of study include small groups, populations, inequality, diversity, gender, social change, families, community development, organizations, medical sociology, aging, and the environment.

Major Requirements

Major: Sociology

Degree Type: B.A. or B.S.
Required Degree Credits to Graduate: 120

General Education Requirements for Baccalaureate Degree

• A list of approved general education courses is available here .
• General education courses may be used to satisfy requirements for both general education and the major, minor, and program emphases, where applicable. Students should carefully review the major, minor, and program emphases requirements for minimum grade restrictions, should they apply.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Communication (C)		12
ENGL 110	College Composition I
ENGL 120	College Composition II
COMM 110	Fundamentals of Public Speaking
Upper Division Writing †
Quantitative Reasoning (R) †		3
Science and Technology (S) †		10
Humanities and Fine Arts (A) †		6
Social and Behavioral Sciences (B) †		6
Wellness (W) †		2
Cultural Diversity (D) *†
Global Perspectives (G) *†
Total Credits		39

*	May be satisfied by completing courses in another General Education category.
†	May be satisfied with courses required in the major. Review major requirements to determine if a specific upper division writing course is required.

Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences

Degree Requirements                                                                            

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Degree – The completion of a minor program of study, a second major, or a second degree is required.                                                                            

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) Degree – Second year language proficiency at college level required.

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences College Requirements

An additional 9 credits are required by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences for all Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degree programs of study, except the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, the Bachelor of Music degree, Bachelor of Landscape Architecture degree, and the Bachelor of Science in Architecture degree:

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
AH&SS College Requirements
Courses used to satisfy any general education requirement cannot be used to also count toward the AH&SS College Requirements. A minimum of three credits is required in each of the 3 following areas for a total of 9 credits. Choose only those courses with the prefixes listed for each area. A course with the WGS prefix can only be used in one area.
Area One: Humanities		3
ARB, ENGL, FREN, GERM, HIST, HUM, PHIL, RELS, SPAN, or WGS
Area Two: Social Sciences		3
ANTH, CJ, COMM, EMGT, POLS, SOC, or WGS
Area Three: Fine Arts		3
ARCH, ART, ENVD, LA, MUSC, or THEA
Total Credits		9

Major Requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Sociology Core Requirements
ANTH 111	Introduction to Anthropology (May satisfy general education category B and D)	3
SOC 110	Introduction to Sociology (May satisfy general education category B)	3
SOC 340	Social Research Methods	3
SOC 341	Social Research Methods Laboratory	1
SOC 422	Development Of Social Theory	3
SOC 489	Senior Capstone In Sociology	1
STAT 330	Introductory Statistics (May satisfy general education category R)	3
Core Perspecitve Courses	See areas listed below	21
Students are REQUIRED to complete the anchor course from each area plus an additional 9 credits from any of the four areas.
Total Credits		38

Core Perspective Courses

Completion of the anchor course from each area plus an additional 9 credits from any of the four areas is required to complete the core perspectives requirement.

Area One: Social Structure

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
SOC 233	Sociology of Organizations and Work (ANCHOR )	3
SOC 401	Sociology of Religion	3
SOC 404	Community Assessment	3
SOC 417	Sociology of the Family	3
SOC 426	Sociology of Medicine	3
SOC 427	Public Health Law and Policy for Non-urban, Rural and Frontier Areas	3
SOC 443	International Disasters	3
SOC 465	Applied Demographics	3

Area Two: Social Inequality

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
SOC 235	Cultural Diversity (ANCHOR)	3
SOC 410	Social Inequality	3
SOC 412	Sociology of Gender	3
SOC 424	Feminist Theory and Discourse	3
SOC 445	Special Populations in Disasters	3

Area Three: Social Change

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
SOC 115	Social Problems (ANCHOR) Either course serves as the anchor	3
or SOC 116	Global Social Problems
SOC 403	Sociology of The Great Plains	3
SOC 405	Community Development	3
SOC 407	Deviant Behavior	3
SOC 431	Environmental Sociology	3
SOC 439	Social Change	3
SOC 440	Sociology of Aging	3

Area Four: Social Interaction

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
SOC 214	Social Interaction (ANCHOR)	3
SOC 416	Sociology Through Literature	3
SOC 418	Social Psychology	3
SOC 441	Death and Dying	3
Total Credits		12

Minor Requirements

Sociology Minor

Minor Requirements

Required Credits: 18

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Core Courses
ANTH 111	Introduction to Anthropology	3
SOC 110	Introduction to Sociology	3
Required Courses: Select two of the following:		6
SOC 115	Social Problems
or SOC 116	Global Social Problems
SOC 214	Social Interaction
SOC 233	Sociology of Organizations and Work
SOC 235	Cultural Diversity
Major Electives: Select any two sociology courses at the 300-400 level		6
Total Credits		18

Minor Requirements and Notes

• A minimum of 8 credits must be taken at NDSU.
• Emergency Management majors who wish to complete this minor must complete 9 unique Sociology credits (i.e. courses that were not completed for the major of EM).