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Fall 2025 Undergraduate Catalog
Sociology, BA
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 Return to: Majors
Department of Sociology, College of Arts and Sciences
Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Arts in Sociology
Chair: Kathleen M. Fallon
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Catherine Marrone
Business Administrator: Lori Glubiak
Office
Social Behavioral & Science Bldg. S. 401
Stony Brook, NY 11794-4356
(631) 632-7700
Department Website
Minors of particular interest to students majoring in Sociology: Anthropology (ANT), Health, Medicine and Society (MHS), International Studies (INT), Political Science (POL), Women’s and Gender Studies (WST)
Sociology is the systematic study of social life. It is based on the assumption that there are certain patterns to the way people live and think and that by studying their behavior and attitudes, these patterns can be discovered and explained. Sociologists investigate how the group influences behavior, from the smallest (a two-person relationship) to the largest (huge organizations, such as General Motors or the Catholic Church). Anything having to do with social behavior is the subject matter of sociology.
The Bachelor of Arts program at Stony Brook seeks to develop in students both an understanding of a history of social thought and skills in the collection and analysis of social data. The core program includes one semester of Introduction to Sociology, one semester of sociological theory, one semester of research methods, and one semester of statistics.
Students who have completed this program have attended graduate schools in sociology or related disciplines including social welfare and social work. Many of our successful students pursued careers in advertising, marketing, and business management. Some graduates continue in the field of market research (studying for large companies what products people want to buy), demography (studying the population scientifically, as in the United States census), criminology (investigating the causes and nature of crime and criminal justice), urban planning, polling, and public opinion (like the Gallup or Harris Polls). We find many of our majors are successful in pursuing law programs and health professions fields, including medical school, nursing school and the clinical health sciences.
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Requirements for the Major in Sociology (SOC)
The major in Sociology leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree. All sociology courses completed for the major, except those graded S/U, must be passed with a letter grade of C or higher. Excluding required courses, credit can be awarded for just one P graded course. Completion of the major requires 39 credits, of which 27 to 30 credits are in Sociology courses. Study within the Area of the Major
Sociology electives
In addition to the required courses above, students must complete an additional 18 credits of coursework (of which 15 credits must be upper division) from among all sociology course offerings. Study in Related Areas
At least three courses (nine credits, of which 6 credits must be upper division) chosen from one of the following related social sciences: Africana studies (only those courses with designator AFS), anthropology (only those courses with designator ANT), economics, history, linguistics, political science, psychology, and women’s studies. Credits from applied social science professions such as social work, police science, education, and management science are not applicable. Upper-Division Writing Requirement
Sociology majors are expected to fulfill the upper-division writing requirement by the time of graduation. This requirement is met through SOC 361 , the required Historical Development of Sociological Theory course, which also satisfies the SBC WRTD requirement. Notes for Transfer Students:
- The Department of Sociology requires that transfer students take at least 12 credits in sociology in residence at Stony Brook to complete the sociology major.
- No transferred sociology course with a grade lower than C is accepted for credit in the major.
Sociology Honors Program
The honors program is open to seniors majoring in Sociology who have maintained a g.p.a. of 3.50 in the major and 3.20 overall, and who have completed or are in the process of completing the methods and statistics requirement and the upper-division writing requirement. Students should apply for the honors program before the beginning of their senior year. With the approval of the sponsoring faculty member, the student must submit a written proposal for a major paper or research project to be completed during the senior year. Acceptance into the honors program depends on the approval of the proposal by the Department. In the senior year, the student enrolls in SOC 495 during the first semester and SOC 496 during the second semester, for a total of six credits. The student’s major paper or research project must be completed no later than four weeks prior to the end of the second semester, to allow for possible revisions. It is read and evaluated by a committee consisting of the student’s sponsor, one other Sociology faculty member, and one faculty member from another department. If the honors program is completed with distinction and the student has achieved a 3.50 gpa in all sociology courses and a 3.2 overall, honors are conferred. SBC Courses
This table illustrates major courses that can also be used to fulfill SBC requirements. (See Note 1 & Note 2) | SBC Category | Required Major Courses | Optional Major Courses (see Note 3) | | ARTS | | | | GLO | | SOC 248, SOC 344, SOC 348, SOC 365 | | HUM | | | | LANG (see Note 4) | | | | QPS | SOC 202 | | | SBS | SOC 105 | SOC 200, SOC 204, SOC 243, SOC 247 | | SNW | | | | TECH | | | | USA | | | | WRT | | | | STAS | | SOC 315, SOC 340, SOC 395 | | EXP+ | | SOC 394, SOC 444, SOC 475, SOC 476, SOC 487, SOC 488 | | HFA+ | | | | SBS+ | SOC 361 | SOC 248, SOC 302, SOC 303, SOC 304, SOC 309, SOC 310, SOC 323, SOC 330, SOC 336, SOC 337, SOC 338, SOC 339, SOC 344, SOC 348, SOC 352, SOC 356, SOC 361, SOC 362, SOC 364, SOC 365, SOC 371, SOC 374, SOC 380, SOC 381, SOC 384, SOC 390, SOC 391, SOC 392, SOC 394 | | STEM+ | | | | CER | | | | DIV (see Note 5) | | SOC 247, SOC 302, SOC 310 | | ESI | SOC 201 | | | SPK | | SOC 458 | | WRTD | SOC 361 | SOC 459 | Note 1: Some course information may be subject to change. Please contact your major advisor for additional consultation. Note 2: For majors that require study in a related area or completion of a minor, visit the respective program’s “Major SBC Courses” page to view expanded SBC options. Note 3: Denotes any course in which students can choose from more than one option. These may include, but are not limited to, major electives, concentration/track/specialization courses, or calculus/physics/chemistry sequences. Note 4: CEAS majors, the Athletic Training major, the Respiratory Care major, and the Clinical Laboratory Sciences major are exempt from the LANG learning objective. Students enrolled in the major in Social Work are exempt from the LANG learning objective, but are required to enroll in and pass with a letter grade of C or higher the first semester of an elementary foreign language course numbered 111, or satisfy through alternate methods. Note 5: Students are responsible for completing the general education requirements published in the Bulletin that was current as of the first semester of matriculation (or rematriculation). The following student groups must satisfy the DIV learning objective as part of their degree requirements: - Freshmen who matriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
- Transfer students who matriculate in the Spring of 2020 or later
- Students who rematriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
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