School of Liberal Arts

Departmental E-mail: sociolog@iu.edu

Departmental URL:  liberalarts.indianapolis.iu.edu/departments/sociology

(Please note that when conferring University Graduate School degrees, minors, certificates, and sub-plans, The University Graduate School’s staff use those requirements contained only in The University Graduate School Bulletin.)

Curriculum

Curriculum
Courses
Faculty

Master of Arts Degree

Admission Requirements

Five undergraduate sociology courses (or approved equivalents, with no more than two of the latter) with a total grade point average of at least 3.0 (on a scale of 4.0); two samples of writing (a 500-750-word statement of purpose and a sole-authored report or term paper); official transcripts; and three letters of reference. International applicants are required to take the TOEFL. The GRE general test is not required.

5-year BA/MA in Sociology Admission Requirements

5-year BA/MA in Sociology: The dual accelerated BA/MA in Sociology (thesis and nonthesis track options), which is available to Sociology majors only, allows students to complete a BA and an MA in five years instead of six. The program consists of three years of undergraduate coursework, a fourth year of combined undergraduate and graduate coursework, and a fifth year of exclusively graduate coursework.

1. Admission and Continuation Requirements
   1. IU Indianapolis Sociology Major
   2. Completed at least 60 credit hours overall and 12 hours in the major, including:
      1. SOC-R100 (Introduction to Sociology), and
      2. SOC-R359 Introduction to Sociological Statistic
   3. Minimum GPA of 3.3 (B+) overall and a 3.5 (B+/A-) in their major coursework.
   4. All graduate courses counting to the BA major in year four (senior year) must be completed with a grade of B or higher to continue in the graduate program in year five.
2. Declaration of Intent to Pursue the BA/MA Degree and MA Application Process
   1. Junior Year Three: Eligible students submit internal sociology department
      1. Declaration of Intent to Pursue the Accelerated Degree to the Sociology Director of Graduate Studies.
   2. Senior Year Four: Students provisionally approved for the accelerated program will apply for admission to the MA program through the graduate school. As part of the application process, students are required to submit:
      1. Two faculty letters of recommendation (at least 1 from a member of the IU Indianapolis Department of Sociology faculty),
      2. a personal statement, and
      3. a single-authored writing sample.

Course Requirements

Course Only Option: A total of 30 credit hours, distributed as follows: 12 credits of basic sociology courses (sociological theory [R556, R557, or approved equivalent], quantitative methods [R551] or approved equivalent, qualitative methods [S659 or approved equivalent], and sociological statistics [R559 or approved equivalent]); 12 sociology credits with the option to focus these in medical sociology; 6 credits of electives (any graduate courses approved by the University Graduate School). (An undergraduate statistics course [R359 or the equivalent] is a prerequisite for R559).

Thesis Option: A total of 36 credit hours, distributed as follows: 12 credits of basic sociology courses (sociological theory [R556, R557, or approved equivalent], quantitative methods [R551] or approved equivalent, qualitative methods [S659 or approved equivalent], and sociological statistics [R559 or approved equivalent]); 12 sociology credits with the option to focus these in medical sociology); 9 credits of electives (any graduate courses approved by the University Graduate School); 3-6 in thesis credits. (An undergraduate statistics course [R359 or the equivalent] is a prerequisite for R559). 

5-year BA/MA in Sociology (Course Only or Thesis Option): A total of 18 undergraduate credit hours and 30 graduate credit hours, distributed as follows: R100 Introduction to Sociology, R359 Sociological Statistics, R351 Research Methods OR R355 Social Theory, and 9 undergraduate credits of electives taken in Years 1-4, 6 hours of core* graduate credits and 6 hours of graduate electives in Year 4, and 18 hours of graduate courses including 6 hours of core courses and 12 hours of graduate electives. Students on the thesis track will complete an addition 6 credit hours of thesis coursework (S569 M.A. Thesis) by the end of summer Year 5.

*Core graduate courses: R551 Quantitative Research Methods, R556/7 Advanced Sociological Theory, R559 Advance Statistics, S659 Qualitative Methods

Grades

Students must maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.0 (B) in all coursework.

Ph.D. Minor

Students who are candidates for the Ph.D. degree in other departments may obtain a minor in sociology at IU Indianapolis. The intent of the minor is to develop multidisciplinary skills, exposing students to theories and methods outside their major department. The Ph.D. minor in sociology has an unstructured curriculum that can provide students with a foundation in basic areas in sociology and the opportunity to study advanced sociological theory, qualitative and quantitative research methods, and statistics.

Course Requirements

• Four sociology courses at the 500 level or above, totaling 12 credits.
• An average grade of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or above in these courses.
• No more than one individual readings course.
• At least half of these courses must be taken at the IU Indianapolis campus.