INTELLECTUAL

On the intellectual side, and most importantly, sociology is about understanding "the big picture." Sociologists try to understand both broad and narrow social phenomena, issues and problems, and in doing so, they integrate the findings of other social science disciplines. Sociology integrates the findings of economics, political science, psychology and history. Rather than viewing our world only through one lens, sociologists view the world though lenses that combine these diverse perspectives. In addition, in sociology one can study many of the substantive topics that the others social sciences examine. Thus, the fields of ethnic studies, gender and cultural studies build on important sociological traditions and findings.

In sociology, you can:

• Learn how business works 
  the study of organizations, economic processes, human relations and institutions

• Learn how politics and law work
  sociology of law, politics, social movements and revolutions

• Learn how science and medicine create truths and change the world
  sociology of science, sociology of knowledge, and technological change

• Learn how societies create opportunities and perpetuate inequalities
  poverty, education, gender, ethnicity and race relations

• Learn how communites of belief and kin are created sociology of culture, religion and family

Sociology, then, provides a rich picture of how the social world works. Courses cover a fascinating range of material, and teach analytical skills and flexibility of mind to allow you to see your world in new ways. By itself, it is broad major for the intellectually curious, and works well as a double major with other more narrow degree programs.

PRACTICAL:

What can you do with a BA in Sociology from UCSD?Sociology provides a broad liberal arts base from which to explore a world of job opportunities. Depending on what kinds of courses you concentrate on, you can use sociology to develop some expertise, or a taste for, some kinds of occupations or the social world where they are located.

• SOCIOLOGY provides knowledge and analytical skills needed to pursue a pressional degree in law, business, education, health & medicine, social work, or counseling

• It offers preparation for fields that involve investigative skills and working with diverse people, such as journalism, politics, public relations/marketing, business, human resources or public administration

• It provides the strong liberal arts preparation needed for entry-level positions in the criminal justice system, business, social service and government

• It is a first step for future graduate work in sociology in order to become a professor or researcher

Many recently graduated UCSD sociology majors have gone on to law school, medical school, or to pursue a graduate degree in business.

Sociology also offers many options for immediate entry into the job market. Actual entry-level job titles of UCSD sociology graduates show this diversity: marketing manager, operations planner for a defense firm, program assistant for a social service agency, teacher, programmer, production coordinator for a publishing firm, social worker for a large health agency, communications technicians for a telecommunications company, sales representative, financial analyst,human resources/benefits administrator.