Major in Sociology

Sociology is the study of societies. Sociologists examine social issues using empirical evidence and learn how to act as agents of social justice and change. Students gain critical thinking skills to understand the complexities of our current social world. Sociology represents one of CSU’s most popular majors. Sociology faculty members’ high quality, committed teaching regularly receives recognition and awards across the College of Liberal Arts and the University. Our undergraduate program offers solid training in social theory and research methods. Our high impact teaching practices include a popular internship, a criminology study abroad program in Prague and more.

Visit the department website for more details.

• Criminology and Criminal Justice Concentration
• Environmental Sociology Concentration
• General Sociology Concentration

To change your major to Sociology, you can either call the College of Liberal Arts Academic Advising Center at 970-491-3117 or send an email to cla_advising@colostate.edu. More information is available on https://advising.libarts.colostate.edu.

Learning Objectives

Student who successfully complete a major in Sociology will be able to: 

• Critique individualistic explanations of social phenomena by locating them within broader societal patterns. They will demonstrate their understanding of sociological concepts and theories, and apply them to better understand, evaluate, and foster social change in real-world settings.

• Formulate research questions and select the appropriate sociological research methodologies to answer them. They will apply this knowledge to collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data as well as evaluate information they encounter in scholarly sources as well as from a variety of media sources from their everyday lives.

• Analyze the links between individuals, societies, and systems with a focus on describing the ways gender, race, class, and other intersecting structures of power produce social inequalities. They will demonstrate their understanding of these relationships by examining the effects of social inequalities as well as evaluating actions, policies, and programs that can prevent or ameliorate them.

• Express sociological ideas clearly and effectively in written and oral contexts to a variety of audiences.

• Think critically by engaging in teamwork where they negotiate different perspectives thereby demonstrating an understanding of the complexity of the social world.

• Describe how their training as sociologists, academic experiences, and department mentoring provide them with a foundation to critically examine the social world and their own lives in a way that is relevant to their own career and personal pathway.

​​Career Paths: What can you do with a degree in Sociology?

Almost anything! Our graduates have incorporated their sociology degrees and training into rewarding and impactful careers around the world. Some specific career paths our majors and minors have taken recently: