Skip to header Skip to Content Skip to Footer
A student smiles for the camera as she writes in a book

Sociology, B.A.

Addressing Global Concerns Through Education, Collaboration and Service
  • 95%

    Graduates Employed or Enrolled in Graduate School Within 6-Months

  • 82%

    Alumni Would Recommend a Degree from this Program

  • 32nd

    “Best Public College Value” National Ranking by Kiplinger

Explore Human Behavior

Sociology is the study of social life, social change and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the structure of groups, organizations, and societies and how people interact within these contexts.

Since all human behavior is social, the subject matter of sociology ranges from the intimate family to the hostile mob; from organized crime to religious cults; from the culturally specific aspects of race, gender and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture; and from the sociology of work to the sociology of sports.

Few fields have such broad scope and relevance for research, theory and application of knowledge.

Graduates work as:

Caseworker duties include assessing client needs, listening to concerns, evoking motivation to change, problem-solving, information giving, referrals to community agencies and coordination of care providers.

The primary function of a legal coordinator is to work with lawyers and other members of a law services team to manage the flow of data within the team.

Project managers are responsible for planning, organizing, and directing the completion of specific
projects for an organization while ensuring these projects are on time, on budget and within scope.

Clinical data managers are responsible for collecting data from a variety of medical research projects, such as pharmaceutical trials. They make sure data are collected and reported accurately and securely.

Learn To

Develop critical thinking skills

Learn how we socially relate to one another

Collect and analyze social data

“ This summer I applied for a job here at UNCW in the Division for University Advancement; and partially because I was able to market myself as SPSS proficient, I was hired! ”
Allison Kiglics ’16 Prospect development analyst, UNCW
Sociology, B.A. Program Overview

Career Opportunities

Sociology can provide you with many distinctive perspectives on the world, generating new ideas and critiquing established ideologies. The field also offers a range of research techniques that can be applied to virtually any aspect of social life: street crime and delinquency, corporate downsizing, how people express emotions, welfare or education reform, how families differ and flourish, or problems of peace and war.

Because sociology addresses the most challenging issues of our time, it is a rapidly expanding field whose potential is increasingly tapped by those who craft policies and create programs. Sociologists understand and analyze social inequality, patterns of behavior, forces for social change and resistance, and how social systems work. Sociology is an exciting discipline with expanding opportunities for a wide range of career paths.

A sociology degree can be combined with a teaching licensure program through the Watson College of Education, enabling you to teach social studies after graduation.

Learn More about Teaching Licensure

Choose Your Concentration

General Sociology

You will complete the core courses and choose an additional 24 hours of sociology courses in such areas as socialization and the life course, population and ecology, social institutions, social inequality and social change, and deviance and social control. In their senior year, general sociology students complete their own semester-long research project under the direction of a sociology faculty member.

Public Sociology

Public Sociology involves taking sociology beyond the boundaries of the university: it "seeks to bring sociology to publics beyond the academy, promoting dialogue about issues that affect the fate of society" (Burawoy 2004). In the Public Sociology Program, you will learn how to use sociology to inform real-life social issues.

Go to the Department of Sociology

A woman stands among shelves stocked with food in the Hawks Harvest food pantry

Sample Courses in Sociology

Table shows sample courses for this program
SOC 250 Issues in Social Justice
SOC 260 Poverty Studies
SOC 304 Popular Culture
SOC 321 Immigration & U.S. Society
SOC 337 Medical Sociology
SOC 355 Social Movements
SOC 415 Globalization & Development
See The Full Curriculum

How Do I Major in Sociology?

For more information, contact the Department of Sociology and Criminology - soccrm@uncw.edu.

Explore More Program
Details

Learn more about the
Department

  • Related Programs

    International Studies

    Focuses on social transformation and innovative responses to seemingly intractable global problems.

    Learn More International Studies B.A.

    Psychology

    Outstanding undergraduate program that is strongly committed to the involvement of undergraduate students in the research process.

    Learn More Psychology B.A.

    Social Work

    Prepares students to make a difference in the world through direct practice with individuals, couples, families and communities; policy analysis and advocacy; and social work research.

    Learn More Social Work BSW

  • Graduate Programs to Consider Next

    Sociology & Criminology M.A.

    Designed for students who combine a passion for public service with the desire to develop the skills necessary to address contemporary social problems and issues.

    Learn More

    Data Science, M.S.

    Collaborative effort between departments, the larger academic community and the business community that emphasizes computational-based applications.

    Learn More

    Applied Gerontology, M.S.

    Prepares professionals to improve the well-being of older adults, as advocates, direct service providers, educators/trainers, administrators, marketers and product developers, program planners, evaluators, researchers, and more.

    Learn More