WELCOME TO GRADUATE STUDIES IN SOCIOLOGY AT SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY

Sociology students study "social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior" so that they may become better able to apply the knowledge they gain to make people's lives better (American Sociological Association 1999: 1).  Undergraduate students receive a basic liberal arts education that make them qualified for a number of entry-level positions in the fields of criminal justice, human services, and business.  Graduate student education delves more deeply into the study of humans' social lives.

Masters students receive advanced training in theory, methods, and the practical application of sociological knowledge.  At South Dakota State University, masters students may go down any one of three academic tracks¾thesis, applied, and non-thesis options.  Students traveling down all three tracks take advanced courses in sociological theory and methods; only the details vary.  For instance, those opting for the thesis option write a thesis; the others do not.  Students opting for the applied option specialize in a career field¾applied research, criminal justice, demography, family studies, and community planning & development.

PhD students at SDSU delve even deeper into the understanding of social conditions and behavior.  Not only are they exposed to additional theory and methods courses, such as symbolic interaction, theory construction, evaluation research, and advanced statistics, they also specialize in two of the following areas¾cultural ecology, demography, family studies, social deviance, and social organization.  Advanced sociological training has three general applications¾teaching, research, and sociological practice, and our students develop the skills necessary to do all three.

Students can better plan and track their graduate program once they are aware of the social milieu in our department.  Indeed, our expectations are outlined in Graduate Studies in Sociology: A Guidebook to Graduate Programs in Sociology.  Information on financial aid is also available.  We also provide a study guide for PhD students nearing the end of their program; this guide helps structure the studying for comprehensive exams.