Guidelines for Your Letter of Introduction

Among other things, sociologists study how our life circumstances (e.g., age, social class, race/ethnicity, gender, birth order, location in history and geographical space, etc.) shape our behavior. Your letter of introduction is therefore an important part of declaring your major in sociology. The letter is an opportunity for you to draw the connections between your choice of major and other parts of your life, including your interests, hobbies, aspirations, and experiences. (Think of it as practicing sociology!)

Please write a one- to two-page letter of introduction addressing these issues. It may help to think about your answers to the questions below as you're writing your letter. Your letter will become part of your file in the Department of Sociology, though it will only be viewed by department advising staff.

Briefly introduce yourself. What is your name? How long have you been at the University of Minnesota? Where are you from? Is there anything about your family or background you'd like to share?

What are you currently majoring in (or are you undecided)? Are you dropping a major or adding sociology as a second major? Are you in Honors or have you considered being in Honors?

What sociology courses have you taken or are you currently taking? (Please list them.)

Why do you want to major in sociology? What in your background is relevant to your choice of sociology as a major? How does sociology relate to your current interests, hobbies, and/or future goals? Include anything about yourself that might be relevant to your choice of major (such as other courses and training you've had, jobs you've held, internships you've participated in, volunteer work you've done, or other experiences you've had).

What kind of work would you like to do when you graduate? What options have you considered? How much do you know about careers/professions for sociology majors? Have you conducted any informational interviews to get more information about career/work options?

Please state any goals you'd like to accomplish during your advising sessions with the sociology undergraduate advisor. Is there anything in particular you'd like the advisor to help you with?

Please make your letter as thoughtful as possible. We hope you'll learn something about yourself as you write it. And we hope to learn something about you as we read it!

Remember to bring your letter of introduction to your advising appointment, along with the other documents mentioned in Step #3 on the previous page. We look forward to meeting with you!