Undergraduate Minor FAQ
Contents:
What do sociologists study?
What minor options are available in sociology at the University of Minnesota?
Is a minor required?
How do I declare my minor?
Do I need to see the undergraduate advisor?
How can I make an appointment to see the advisor?
I'm a transfer student. How can I get credit forsociology courses I took at another school?
What do sociologists study?
Simply put, sociologists study human social behavior. More specifically, our discipline examines:
- How we group ourselves (families, social groups, formal organizations, societies),
- How we behave in groups (collective action, socialchange, crime and delinquency), and
- how characteristics like age, race, social class, and gender affect our relationships with each other, and with organizationsand institutions
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What minor options are available in sociology at the University of Minnesota?
There are two options for an undergraduate minor in Sociology:
- General Option
- Law, Criminology, and Deviance (LCD) Option
The General Option requires SOC 1001: Introduction to Sociology; SOC 3701: Social Theory; SOC 3811: Basic Social Statistics or SOC 3801: Sociological Research Methods; and two sociology electives.
The LCD Option requires SOC 1001; SOC 3701 OR SOC 3811 OR SOC 3801; SOC 3101 OR SOC 3102; two LCD SOC electives (SOC 41xx); and one non-LCD SOC elective (SOC 3xxx or 4xxx, but not 41xx).
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Is a minor required?
No, you are not required to declare a minor. However, some students find a minor to be a useful addition to their degree coursework. It provides you with an ability to specialize your studies in more than one area.
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How do I declare my minor?
To declare your minor, you can either come person to the Sociology Department main office in 909 Social Sciences to fill out an application (available at the front desk) or print a copy here, and attach a copy of your current APAS report or unofficial transcript. You must attach a copy of your APAS report if you took sociology courses anywhere outside the university.
Your application will be processed within one month. A copy of your minor program form will be sent to your college office, and we will send you a copy of the form by email.
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Do I need to see the undergraduate advisor?
You are not required to see the undergraduate advisor for a minor. However, you are welcome to make an appointment if you wish to do so. Once your college office has your minor program form on file, they'll be able to determine whether you've satisfied the requirements for the minor when you're cleared for graduation.
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How can I make an appointment to see the advisor?
The advisor generally has both walk-in hours and appointments every week. The advisor's schedule is available at least a week in advance, so it's best to call the Friday before the week you plan to come in or Monday of that week. Call the main department number at 612-624-4300 to schedule an appointment or find out about available walk-in hours.
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I'm a transfer student. How can I get credit for sociology courses I took at another school?
If you took courses at another school, they will not automatically be applied toward your minor. If the courses you took have previously been evaluated by our faculty for application toward minor requirements, the advisor will be able to tell you whether the courses will count toward your minor when you come to fill out your minor application. If the department has not previously approved a course, you will be asked to submit information about the course to our department for review by our faculty. In general, the more information you provide, the better informed our faculty can be in their review of the course. At a minimum, you must provide a syllabus from the course. You may also be asked to provide class notes, textbooks, exams, papers, and other class materials to assist our faculty in their decision. This evaluation process takes anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months, so be prepared to wait while courses are being evaluated.
Transfer students must complete at least two courses in our department.