If you’re thinking of a career in business or of pursuing an MBA, strongly consider earning your bachelor’s degree in sociology.
Entering the business world or working on an MBA requires you have strong communication and analytical skills. Employers look for individuals who have the ability to synthesize information, creative thinkers, and people who are effective at working with people in group settings. Moreover, all major corporations and many other businesses have market research departments.
When you diversify your skill set with the knowledge a sociology degree provides, you can be as competitive, if not more, than other undergraduate majors. Indeed, some of the nation’s largest companies actively recruit non-business majors because of the depth and breadth of knowledge non-business majors have and because businesses today must deal with many social issues: diversity in the workplace, communication, globalization, management-employee relations.
Undergraduate sociology courses teach you written and oral communication skills as well as how to conduct and interpret empirical research. Specifically, the research methods sequence in the department — Research Methods in Sociology (SOC 317) and Quantitative Techniques in Sociology I (SOC 321) — will teach you how to read, evaluate, and conduct research. Our advanced methods and statistics courses will help you further develop your quantitative skills. These skills are especially crucial for individuals interested in working in a company’s market research area or for those who must evaluate their company’s performance.
Social Inequality (SOC 340) instructs students about workplace policy (for example, your rights as a worker and guidelines governing employer action) as well as how the workplace and organizations affect worker outcomes. Sociology of Professions and Occupations (SOC 343) teaches students about theories of the workplace, facts on the structure and order of workplaces, and about the causes and consequences of workplace hierarchy.
Fun fact: MBA students hail from all disciplines. For example, in 2004, at one of the nation’s top MBA programs, 13 percent of MBA graduates were social science majors, and 21 percent were liberal arts majors.
A degree in sociology can be particularly useful for careers in the criminal and juvenile justice fields, including law enforcement, probation/parole, and corrections. Agencies hiring in these fields are placing increased emphasis on well-developed social skills and an understanding of individual and group behavior, including sensitivity in dealing with diverse populations. A grounding in social research methods and statistics that is provided through a sociology degree are also particularly useful in the criminal and juvenile justice fields.
- Research Methods in Sociology (SOC 317)
- Quantitative Techniques in Sociology I (SOC 321)
Sociology coursework provides a solid basis for a wide variety of educational, administrative, and student services careers. In K-12 settings, sociology majors often become teachers, building and district administrators, or research consultants on educational issues. Careers in higher education open to those with undergraduate sociology training include college admissions officer, alumni relations, student services professional, and career counselor.
Sociology students specifically interested in teaching should be aware that they will need to be certified. Becoming a teacher or administrator, particularly in a public school, generally requires college coursework geared toward teacher preparation beyond the sociology BA, such as an MA or MS in teaching (either elementary or secondary).
Whether or not you acquire an advanced degree, as a sociology major you will develop skills that will help you be successful in an education-related career. Discuss your future plans with your advisor and other faculty members when drawing up your course schedule.
There are many sociology courses that could help you prepare for an education-related career. Plan your coursework with your particular goals in mind. If you are interested in becoming a career counselor at a college or university, for example, you should take courses such as Sociology of Professions and Occupations (SOC 343) and Social Inequality (SOC 340).
Future teachers would benefit from coursework on such topics as Sociology of Education (SOC 346), The Family (SOC 351), and Urbanization and Community Organization (SOC 433). You might also want to seek out related coursework in other disciplines.
In addition to classes, internships, work study positions, research assistantships, or volunteer work related to your specific career goals are valuable investments in your future. For example, students who wish to become teachers could seek out summer internships working in academic-oriented summer programs for youth. Many non-profit organizations are also likely to have paid or volunteer opportunities that would provide relevant experiences. Volunteering as a tutor or youth mentor would also provide valuable experiences for those seeking teaching careers. If you wish to become a consultant in educational settings, seek opportunities to become a research assistant on faculty research projects for credit. Work study positions in admissions or student services can also help you determine if obtaining a long-term career in one of these areas would be right for you.
Understanding the critical association between societal well-being and environmental quality has its origins in sociology and the sub-discipline of environmental sociology.
Courses related to environmental sociology will prepare you for employment in a variety of private and public agencies with an environmental mission, including local and state departments of ecology, community recycling programs, environmental action groups, consulting firms, lobbying organizations, and international non-governmental organizations.
WSU courses expose you to a balance of sociological theory, empirical research methods and substantive investigations. Sociology faculty teaching these courses are known for their research on the environmental impacts of technology, the effects of international trade and investment on environmental degradation, and militarism and environmental inequality.
Students interested in studying environmental sociology should take regularly-offered courses such as:
- Sustainability and Society (SOC 332)
- Globalization (SOC 415)
- Society and Technology (SOC 430)
- Urbanization and Community Organization (SOC 433).
Students are also encouraged to interact with our environmental sociology faculty through their other course offerings or participate in their research projects for other opportunities to study environmental sociology.
If you are interested in research, graduate study in environmental sociology enables you to explore the various forms of interaction between human societies and the environment, focusing on the social dimensions of the surrounding natural and human-made environments. For example, you could seek to understand environmentalism as a social movement, the ways in which societal members perceive of environmental problems, and the origins of human-caused environmental degradation.
The inequitable social distribution of environmental hazards is another central area of research at WSU and examines the processes by which socially disadvantaged populations come to experience greater exposures to a variety of environmental hazards. These environmental inequities are investigated at the individual level as well as at the community level, national level, and global level.
Students interested in graduate study in environmental sociology are encouraged to inquire about our graduate program’s historically prominent focus in environmental sociology, as well as other environmental sociology and environmental studies graduate programs in the United States.
Find out more at:
- Sociology at WSU and our environmental sociology research
- American Sociological Association: Environment & Technology Section list of U.S. graduate programs.
Sociology is a science viewing ethical and moral issues through secular lenses. For students who are comfortable with this approach, sociology can provide a strong background for a faith-oriented career and leadership positions.
Sociologists have been interested in religion and moral culture since the beginnings of the discipline. Early sociologists sought to understand the origins and consequences of moral cultures. Courses such as Development of Social Theory (SOC 310), Social Deviance (SOC 360), and Criminology (SOC 361) provide students with a sociological view of how groups enforce moral values and the reasons that people follow group norms or disobey them.
The WSU Department of Sociology also offers a range of courses that may be useful preparation for a counseling role. For example, course such as The Family (SOC 351), Social Inequality (SOC 340), and Sociology of Aging and the Life Course (SOC 356) provide understanding of diverse life situations.
What skills will increase the likelihood that you will get into the law school you prefer?
What skills will help you succeed professionally once you complete law school?
How can you develop and demonstrate those skills?
The best preparation for law school is academic excellence. Law schools consider an applicant’s LSAT score, GPA, and personal statement.
The LSAT is an exam that all law school applicants are required to take. It does not test knowledge of the law or criminal justice system. Instead, it is designed to evaluate students’ ability to think analytically. This means that the content of the courses you take is not as important as their rigor. The best preparation for getting into law school is to take the most difficult courses you can with the most demanding professors.
If you develop strong skills in analytical thinking, applying abstract ideas to new situations, problem solving, reading of difficult material, and writing, you are more likely to be a strong applicant. These skills are not only important for getting into law school: they also are important for succeeding as a law student and as an attorney.
We recommend students interested in a legal career specialize in the research and analysis track. This specialization trains students to think abstractly and to apply abstract ideas to new empirical situations. Courses that emphasize writing are also extremely valuable. For example, you might consider a minor in English or philosophy to develop your reading and writing skills.
If you are interested in particular kinds of law—environmental law, family law, labor law, corporate practice, and so forth—then you should take substantive courses that will give you a background in those areas. For example, to prepare for family law, you might take Sociology of the Family (SOC 351). Similarly, to prepare for a career in environmental law, consider enrolling in Sustainability and Society (SOC 332) and other regularly-offered environmental sociology courses at WSU.
For additional information about pursuing careers in law after earning your sociology degree, visit these resources:
Most healthcare careers do not require a bachelor’s degree in the biological sciences. The vast majority, however, do require skills in effective social interaction, critical thinking, and problem solving.
Your ability to communicate effectively with people from diverse economic, social, and ethnic backgrounds plays a major role in how successful you will be as a physician, nurse, health educator, hospital administrator, veterinarian, or other healthcare professional.
An undergraduate degree in sociology provides you with the opportunity not only to develop these skills through written and oral course projects, but also by understanding the social influences that enable effective interpersonal and organization communication to occur. Courses such as Intersections of Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality (SOC 300), Medical Sociology (SOC 334), Development of Social Theory (SOC 310), Social Psychology (SOC 350), and Society and Technology (SOC 430) are especially helpful in developing these skills.
Medical and health professionals work in a social environment and must make a wide array of decisions that are influenced by political, cultural, economic and ethical factors. Having a background in sociology provides important tools to effectively address diverse situations such as providing culturally relevant health care, how best to influence sexually active teens to practice safe sex, how to prevent kids from buying cigarettes from neighborhood markets, how best to staff a hospital with limited resources, or how influence legislators to vote for health care reform legislation.
Graduates of the WSU sociology program have pursued careers as doctors, nurses, medical social workers, and public health educators. Their BA in sociology also helps improve their qualification for administrative and advocacy careers in health-related non-profit organizations, mental health services, substance abuse centers, public and private hospitals, and with veterans affairs.
In recent years, there has been an explosion in the number of non-profits working on issues from the environment, to healthcare, to child welfare. These organizations may consist of one or two people, or may employ hundreds. They provide a variety of career opportunities for sociology majors.
Non-profits need people who are flexible and have diverse skills. While some non-profits are large, bureaucratic organizations, others are very small. In these small workplaces, employees must be generalists. A single individual might be responsible for maintaining a membership database, writing a quarterly newsletter, and updating the organization webpage. These organizations require people who are versatile, can solve problems, and who can work on different kinds of tasks.
One type of job in non-profit organizations is grass-roots organizing. Many non-profits are grass-roots organizations: they seek to motivate members of the public to take action on a particular issue. These groups need organizers, people who can help to develop a membership base, run telephone banks, and so forth. They need people who can engage others in the issue the non-profit is working on and get others involved.
An area in which demand is growing, and likely will continue to grow, is fund-raising (also known as development). Non-profits need to raise money in order to fulfill their mission. Without money, they cannot do their job. Non-profits will hire college graduates to work on development tasks such as helping to plan fund-raising events, running direct-mail campaigns or membership renewal campaigns, and so forth. These positions tend to have good upward mobility. As new employees become seasoned, develop skills, and demonstrate their abilities and good judgment, they can be given more opportunities for increased direct donor contact and grant writing.
Communications positions are another option. Non-profits often lack people with good communication skills who can do outreach to the public and media. These positions require good writing and interpersonal skills.
In general, non-profits look for people who have demonstrated an interest in a social issue. This need not be the exact issue the non-profit works on, but applicants will be seen more favorably if they have shown commitment to something related.
Non-profits need reliable employees who are self-starters. In the non-profit world there is always more to be done than can possibly be completed. They want people who are willing and eager to work hard, be responsible, and pay attention to details. Employees who come into an organization and demonstrate reliability and good judgment will have opportunities for advancement.
How can a sociology major prepare you for these kinds of positions?
Sociology courses, our internship program, and the Sociology Club all provide opportunities for you to develop important skills and to demonstrate to potential non-profit employers that you have what they are looking for.
First, courses that focus on understanding human behavior and social interaction, as well as contemporary social issues, will provide good intellectual background. The Social Psychology (SOC 350) course will help you understand human motivation and social interaction. Other courses can teach you about substantive areas. For example, if you are interested in health issues, you consider taking Medical Sociology (SOC 334).
Good grades, of course, will help to demonstrate to potential employers that you are responsible. Writing skills are always in demand for letters, webpages, and newsletters, so consider taking as many courses that emphasize writing as you can. You many want to consider minoring in English in order to improve your writing skills. In addition, our methods and statistics program will provide you with basic skills that non-profits looking for generalists are likely to value.
Second, our internship program provides the opportunity to obtain course credit for work experiences. Internships with non-profit organizations can be very, very important for opening doors in the non-profit world. Participating in an internship at a non-profit demonstrates interest, something non-profits care about. In addition, it allows you to demonstrate that you are reliable and have good judgment. Internship supervisors can provide recommendations to potential non-profit employers that will carry weight.
Third, the Sociology Club provides WSU students with the opportunity to get experience with activities like event planning. Club activities are student-driven and student-led. Event planning at this level has many similarities to even planning done by development personnel in non-profit organizations. Planning events, publicizing them, making arrangements for them, getting a good turn out; all of these are skills that a good development person needs. If you take advantage of these kinds of opportunities as an undergraduate student, you will be in a better position to demonstrate to potential employers that you have relevant experience and are responsible.
There are two principal routes to working on public policy issues: work for a non-profit organization that seeks to influence policy or get involved in the political system, working for politicians and other policy makers (and eventually, perhaps, running for office yourself).
Young people can have a surprising influence. For example, if you visit congressional and senate offices in Washington D.C., you will see very important positions being held by people under 30. Within a year or two of being hired, one can have very important responsibilities. State government offers many opportunities as well.
These jobs require an understanding of public policy issues and the ability to think critically and analytically about those issues. They also require good communication skills, both written and verbal. General courses that help students develop tools to think rigorously about social problems, their causes, and their potential solutions include Introduction to Sociology (SOC 101), Social Problems (SOC 102), Development of Social Theory (SOC 310), Social Inequality (SOC 340), as well as our numerous methodology courses.
Take courses on the specific issues you are interested in, too. For example, if you’re interested in the environment, you might take any one of our environmental sociology courses. Courses in crime or deviance are relevant for drug policy. Keep in mind that when you take a course in specific areas like the environment and crime & deviance, you will learn skills that you can apply to other areas as well.. Generally speaking, any course that emphasizes the relationship between social institutions and policy will help you develop skills that you can transferred to other policy issues, too.
Internships are a great way to move into the world of public policy. Some of our students participate in state legislative internships in Olympia. Internships are not only good work experiences: you will often develop contacts who can provide introductions to organizations and offices who are looking to hire.
A bachelor’s degree in sociology is an ideal course of study for students interested in working with public and not-for-profit human and social service agencies. Such agencies work with youth, families, the elderly, and communities in addition to specialized populations needing services for mental health concerns, substance use, rehabilitation, and domestic violence.
Sociology courses like these provide you a better understanding of how individuals behave in families, groups, and communities:
- Social Inequality (SOC 340)
- Social Psychology (SOC 350)
- The Family (SOC 351)
- Sociology of Education (SOC 346)
- Sociology of Food (SOC 336)
- Urbanization and Community Organization (SOC 433)
These and other sociology courses help you better understand the interconnectedness of social life by exploring the roles that history, public policy, cultural norms and values have on human social behavior.
The Social Inequality course invites students to critically engage with topics vitally important to working in human and social services, including trends in income inequality, social mobility and education, inequality in the workplace, and inequality in the criminal justice system.
The Social Psychology course prepares students to understand the social influences on personal identity, interpersonal interactions, and relationships.
The Family course provides a unique perspective on understanding trends in family structure, and helps students understand the family in its social, political, and economic contexts.
The Urbanization and Community Organization course offers an opportunity to experience two learning environments: the interactive classroom and the community. Community service-learning enables students to enhance their understanding of community by applying scholarly work discussed in class to community work done over the course of the semester. Reciprocally, community service experiences provide “real life” examples of course materials.
If you are interested in pursuing a career in human and social services, look for job titles such as human or social services specialist, child life specialist, juvenile probation officer, community development specialist, mental health advocate, and case manager.
Many of our students find work in these areas after earning their BA degrees, while others find that their sociology training provides preparation for entrance into graduate programs in social work (MSW), public health (MPH) and public administration (MPA).