The Master of Science degree in Sociology is designed to prepare graduates with the skills necessary to enter the professional workforce as sociologists or to pursue further study at the doctoral level. Students have the opportunity to acquire a knowledge base in sociological methods, theory and in areas of growing community concern, including health, aging, religion, socioeconomic development, gender issues, and race and ethnic relations. They will have the necessary research skills to define social issues and problems, select data collection techniques, establish appropriate analysis methods, develop statistical reports, and undertake policy analyses for businesses, governmental agencies and nonprofit organizations. 

Admission

Students applying for unconditional admission must satisfy University-wide and College-wide graduate admission requirements and be recommended for admission by the Graduate Program Committee of the Department of Sociology. Applicants must have completed 18 semester credit hours of undergraduate courses, 12 of which must be at the upper-division level in sociology or related areas, including a course in research methods or statistics.  Applicants must have a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the last 60 hours of undergraduate and graduate work.  

Students who do not meet these criteria may be admitted conditionally or on probation as degree seeking depending on the nature of the deficiency. Admission as a special graduate student may be considered by the Graduate Program Committee upon request of the applicant. Admission as a special graduate student does not guarantee subsequent admission as a degree-seeking graduate student; such students must reapply for degree-seeking status.

Application Deadlines

Deadlines for Fall admission are July 1 for domestic/permanent resident applicants and April 1 for international applicants.

Spring admission deadlines are November 1 for domestic/permanent resident applicants and September 15 for international applicants.

Summer admission deadlines are April 15 for domestic/permanent resident applicants and February 15 for international applicants.

Degree Requirements

The minimum number of semester credit hours required for the degree, exclusive of coursework or other study required to remove deficiencies, is 36.  This includes 9 semester credit hours of core courses, including:  SOC-5003 (Sociological Theory), SOC-5063 (Research Design), and SOC-5073 (Quantitative Research Methods); 21 semester credit hours of prescribed electives from the remaining sociology courses listed in the catalog [3 credit hours may be an approved non-sociology course]; and  6 semester credit hours of Internship or Thesis. 

Degree candidates must complete the following requirements:

A: 9 semester credit hours of core courses:

• SOC 5003 Sociological Theory
• SOC 5063 Research Design
• SOC 5073 Quantitative Research Methods

B: 21 semester credit hours of prescribed electives from the following courses:

• SOC 5033 Qualitative Research Methods
• SOC 5043 Evaluation Research
• SOC 5053 Professionalization Seminar
• SOC 5073 Quantitative Research Methods
• SOC 5083 Advanced Quantitative Research Methods
• SOC 5123 Family Contexts and Social Change
• SOC 5133 Sociology of Health and Health Care
• SOC 5143 Demography and Community Trends
• SOC 5173 Religion, Health and Mortality
• SOC 5203 Social Stratification
• SOC 5213 Race and Ethnic Relations
• SOC 5223 Mexican Americans: Community, Culture, and Class
• SOC 5233 Sociology of Gender
• SOC 5253 Border Studies
• SOC 5263 Cultural Studies
• SOC 5323 Sociology of Childhood
• SOC 5333 Language and Society
• SOC 5343 Education and Reproduction of Inequality
• SOC 5353 Crime and Delinquency
• SOC 5363 Theory Building and Methods
• SOC 5403 Social Movements
• SOC 5423 Social Psychology
• SOC 6043 Immigration and Society
• SOC 6063 Health and Health Disparities
• SOC 6143 Sociology of Religion
• SOC 6903 Topics in Advanced Sociology
• SOC 6973 Special Problems*

*This has included such classes as How to Publish in Sociology; Political Sociology, and Public Sociology

Students may take up to 6 credit hours of non-sociology graduate level courses with approval from the Department Chair and Graduate Advisor or Record.

C: 6 semester credit hours consisting of one of the following options:

• Thesis Option: This option is available only with permission from an instructor, the Graduate Advisor of Record, and after the completion of 24 semester credit hours. Option includes completion of an oral comprehensive exam (i.e., successful thesis proposal defense).
• Internship Option: Students may participate in an internship after completion of 18 semester credit hours (which must include the core courses). Internships offer work-oriented experiences in local organizational settings where the principles, theories, concepts, and methods of the discipline can be applied. A research paper under the supervision of assigned faculty is required, including completion of an oral comprehensive exam (i.e., successful internship proposal defense).
• Exit Exam Option (Written Comprehensive Examination): The Master’s degree exit exam must be taken in the final semester of the student’s program if this completion option is selected. Students who select this option are required to take the written comprehensive examination and complete two additional electives (6 hours).

Graduate Handbook

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More Information

For more information, contact:

Joanne Ford-Robertson, Graduate Advisor of Record
Master of Science in Sociology Program
Phone: 210-458-6239
Email: joanne.fordrobertson@utsa.edu

UTSA Department of Sociology
One UTSA Circle
San Antonio, TX  78249

You may also visit UTSA’s Graduate School web site.