Best Sociology Colleges in California

The CSUN Sociology Department was started in 1958 and offers undergraduate sociology majors four different degree options. There is a general sociology degree, or students may choose to concentrate their studies on either criminology and criminal justice, social welfare and social justice, or work and society. In addition, the 21 full-time faculty members and 31 part-time instructors are involved in a wide range of research including Native Americans, computer-assisted learning, cyberspace, education, emotions, immigration, marriage and the family, mass media, migration, music, multiracial identity, reality shows, road rage, student evaluations, and terrorism. The department also offers a minor in sociology or human sexuality. In addition to advanced studies in sociological theory and research methods, the intensive two-year M.A program offers specialized studies in a number of areas including: culture, criminology, gender, sexuality, political sociology, race/ethnicity, social movements, sociology of education, immigration, labor, social psychology, globalization, and the sociology of work. There is no PhD program at CSUN.

The UCLA Department of Sociology was founded in 1948, and boasts a faculty of internationally renowned scholars and award-winning instructors who are addressing a wide range of topics from the dynamics of social interaction to the impact of globalization. The Student Research Program (SRP) gives students the opportunity to do research and work individually with participating faculty members. Juniors and seniors are able to participate in the Social Enterprise Academy (SEA) a two-quarter course offered by the Division of Social Sciences that mentors non-profit organizations in developing new social ventures to create earned income opportunities.

In addition to non-profit experience the SEA provides students with market research, consulting, teamwork, networking, and public speaking skills. Not sure what you want to do after graduation? The upper division Careers in Sociology course helps students learn about the many career opportunities available to sociology majors and teaches students to use their interests, needs and skills to make effective career choices. The department accepts applications for the PhD program only, however students may be awarded an M.A. on the way to being awarded a PhD.

UCSB has one of the largest sociology programs in the country, and is a leader in the areas of gender, sexualities, and feminist theory, the sociology of culture, race and ethnicity, Latina and Latino studies, globalization and its effects, social movements, conversation analysis and social networks. While the faculty is well known for its research, there are also ample opportunities for undergraduates to hone their research skills, either individually with professor supervision, or by participating with a faculty member on their research. There is also an honors program available which gives students the opportunity of graduating with “Distinction in the Major.” Applicants to the graduate program are not able to only pursue an M.A. degree, but are admitted with the intention that their ultimate goal is to be awarded a PhD degree. However, this is dependent upon successful completion of the M.A. requirements and defense of an M.A. thesis.

The undergraduate curriculum at UC Riverside teaches students about a wide range of sociological topics including ethnicity, race and class inequality, gender, social stratification, sociology of education, the city and urban problems, the environment, sociology of religion, crime and deviance and global social change. Not only can you choose between a B.A. and B.S. in sociology, you can also choose between majors in sociology/administrative studies, and sociology/law and society. The graduate program does not offer a free-standing master’s degree, but offers a M.A. degree as part of the required progress towards a PhD. Candidates must choose two areas of specialization from the following: criminology and socio-legal studies, gender studies, organizations and institutions, political economy and global social change, race and class inequality, social psychology, and sociological theory.

Founded in 1959, the Department of Sociology at California State University, Fullerton boasts an impressive student to teacher ratio of 18-to-1. Sociology majors examine individual, community-based, institutional, and ideological causes, consequences and intersections of various social inequalities and social stratification systems. While sociology undergraduate majors are not required to select a concentration, there are three available: social inequalities, sociology of deviance and crime, and health and social welfare.

The faculty of nationally and internationally recognized scholars conduct academic research on a wide variety of subjects including race and ethnic relations, education, demography, gender and sexualities, crime and deviance, health and illness, economic sociology, political sociology, religion, and migration and globalization. CSUF also accepts graduate applications for a Master of Arts in sociology that offers an opportunity to broaden one's knowledge of society, strengthen skills of sociological analysis and conduct research in depth in an area of particular interest. Degrees are awarded through either a project, thesis or comprehensive exam track, and while the university does not offer a PhD program, it is recommended that those who want to pursue a doctoral degree choose the thesis option.

Students looking to get their Bachelor of Arts in sociology from California State University, Long Beach have four different concentrations available to them: deviance and social control, interaction and group relations, sociology of health and medicine, and social change and global issues. “Through coursework, internships and faculty mentoring of student research the Department encourages a commitment to social change and social justice based on an appreciation of social and intellectual diversity and an awareness of social inequality,” explains the Department of Sociology Chairperson, Dr. Kristine Zentgraf, on the CSULB website. While there is no PhD program available at CSULB, there is a Master of Arts program in applied sociology that is structured around two concentrations, the sociology of health and medicine or community development and social change, along with a community-based scholar internship which gives students the opportunity to use their classroom knowledge and skills in the real-world setting of a local or regional community organization.

The Department of Sociology at Berkeley was established in 1946 and in the decades that followed was responsible for creating and developing sub disciplines of sociology including symbolic interaction and deviance, sociology of law, political sociology, industrial sociology, historical and comparative, social theory and collective behavior, religion, culture. Undergraduate courses range from large lectures to intimate seminars, with plenty of opportunities for research that incorporate other social sciences and professional schools on campus. Not only can you get a PhD in sociology at Cal, there is also a PhD program in sociology and demography. There is no M.A. program available, but those accepted into the PhD program can receive their M.A. on the way to being awarded a PhD. Outside of required courses the sociology department also sponsors six undergraduate student organizations. In addition there is the Berkeley Sociology Forum, an intellectual center that addresses issues of a comparative, global, historical, theoretical and methodological nature.

Stanford University offers 4 Sociology Degree programs. It's a large private university in a large suburb. In 2015, 36 students graduated in the study area of Sociology with students earning 14 Master's degrees, 12 Bachelor's degrees, and 10 Doctoral degrees.