Sociology


Faculty List
  • C. Childress, B.A. (Vassar College), M.A., Ph.D. (UC-Santa Barbara), Associate Professor
  • M. DeGagné, B.Sc. (University of Toronto), M.Ed. (Central Michigan University), L.L.M. (York University), M.Phil (Saint Paul University), Ph.D. (Michigan State University), Professor 
  • E.F. Elcioglu, M.A., Ph.D. (UC-Berkeley), Assistant Professor
  • E. Fosse, B.A. (Kansas), M.A., Ph.D. (Harvard), Assistant Professor
  • A. Grigoryeva. B.A. (National University-Higher School of Economics, Moscow), M.A., Ph.D. (Princeton), Assistant Professor
  • J. Hannigan, B.A., M.A. (Western), Ph.D. (Ohio State), Professor
  • J. Hermer, B.A. (Western), M.A. (Carleton), D.Phil. (Oxon), Associate Professor
  • P-C. Hsiung, B.A. (National Chun-sing), M.A. (Chinese Cultural), M.A., Ph.D. (UCLA), Professor
  • W.W. Isajiw, B.A. (LaSalle), M.A., Ph.D. (Catholic University of America), Professor Emeritus
  • D. Kwan-Lafond, B.S.W. (Ryerson) M.A. (Toronto), Ph.D. (York), Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream
  • P. Landolt, B.A., M.A. (York), M.A., Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins), Professor
  • K. Liddle, B.A. (Oberlin College), M.A. (Auburn), Ph.D. (Emory), Associate Professor
  • A. Mullen, B.A. (UC-Berkeley), M.A., Ph.D. (Yale), Associate Professor
  • R. O’Toole, B.A. (Leeds), PGCE (London), M.A. (McMaster), Ph.D. (Toronto), Professor Emeritus
  • M. Philips, B.Sc. (Michigan), Ph.D. (Minnesota), Assistant Professor
  • P. Romero-Lankao, B.Sc. ( Autónoma del Estado de México), Ph.D (Bonn), Professor 
  • R. Salem, B.A. (American University-Cairo), M.A. (Oxford), Ph.D. (Princeton), Associate Professor
  • M. Sarkar B.A. (Colby), M.A., Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins), Professor
  • A. Sev'er, B.A., M.A. (Windsor), Ph.D. (York), Professor Emerita
  • D. Silver, B.A. (UC-Berkeley), M.A., Ph.D. (Chicago), Professor
  • N. Spence, B.A., Ph.D. (Western), Assistant Professor
  • J. Tanner, B.Sc. (London), PGCE (Leicester), M.A., Ph.D. (Alberta), Professor Emeritus
  • S. Ungar, B.A. (McGill), M.A., Ph.D. (York), Emeritus Associate Professor  


Program Chair: J. Hermer
Program Advisor Email: sociologyadvisor.utsc@utoronto.ca

Departmental website: https://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/sociology/

Sociology challenges us to see the world in new ways to solve social problems, build resilient communities, and nurture democratic structures. Sociology seeks to explain how society is ordered and disordered, what accounts for social cohesion, cooperation, and conflict, and the causes of social inequality. Sociology is diverse. Sociologists study many social issues: the impact of race, religion, class and gender on life chances; institutions such as families, workplaces, and gangs; processes such as racialization, globalization and indigenization; and politics related to work, health, cultural pluralism, incarceration, and city building. What unifies sociology is the focus on how human action shapes and is shaped by surrounding structures. 

Sociology programs teach students how to design and carry out quantitative and qualitative research and analyze evidence to arrive at understanding and explanation. Students acquire a diverse set of transferable skills. You will learn to use theoretically informed and evidence-based arguments to assess concrete social problems. You will become adept at analyzing and interpreting statistics and qualitative data. You will develop excellent verbal and written communication skills and you will learn to translate research into effective social policy recommendations.

Students successfully completing a degree in Sociology at UTSC will acquire a strong foundation for both further studies at a graduate level and for professional careers in fields including law, education, science fields, social work and health care, marketing and communication, human resources, non-profit organizations and social policy among others.

Students are encouraged to contact the Program Advisor or Associate Chair to discuss program requirements and their individual course of study.

Combined Degree Programs, Honours Bachelor of Arts/ Master of Teaching

The Combined Degree Programs for UTSC Honours Bachelor of Science (HBSc) /Honours Bachelor of Arts (HBA) with the Master of Teaching (MT) offered by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education provide students with a direct pathway to the completion, in 6 years, of their Undergraduate degree, Ontario Teacher’s Certificate of Qualifications, and Master’s degree. These Combined Degree Programs allow students to complete 1.0 credit in courses that may be counted towards both degrees.

The Combined Degree Programs options are:

  •  Sociology (Specialist), Honours Bachelor of Arts/ Master of Teaching
  •  Sociology (Major), Honours Bachelor of Arts/ Master of Teaching

For more information, including Admission and Program requirements, see the Combined Degree Programs section of the Calendar.

Planning a Program in Sociology

Students are advised to take required courses in the Specialist and Major Programs as early in their careers as possible. For example, SOCA05H3 should be taken during the first year, SOCB05H3, SOCB35H3, SOCB42H3 and SOCB43H3 should be taken during the second year and SOCC40H3 should be taken during the third year. Failure to do so may lead to timetable conflicts and could prolong the completion of the program.

Prerequisites

Students are reminded that they are not permitted to register in courses for which they have not completed the prerequisites indicated in the Calendar. They may only enter a course for which they lack the prerequisites by obtaining permission from the Department of Sociology prior to registration. Ineligible students will be removed from courses.

Applied Writing Skills Courses

Courses designated as Applied Writing Skills Courses develop students' writing skills. Students receive formative feedback on drafts of written work and the opportunity to develop a piece of writing over the term. Specific in-depth feedback on writing is given by the course instructor or course TA. The Applied Writing Skills Courses are: SOCC03H3, SOCC11H3, SOCC23H3, SOCC24H3, SOCC30H3, SOCC31H3, SOCC34H3, SOCC40H3, SOCC47H3 and SOCC58H3.

Research-Intensive Courses

Students interested in careers involving research or in pursuing graduate school or professional programs are strongly advised to take courses that ensure the development of their research skills including the logic of argumentation, research design, and data collection and analysis. In their second year, students should take SOCB05H3 and SOCB35H3. In the third year, two C-level research practicums (SOCC23H3 and SOCC31H3) offer students the opportunity to carry out independent research projects. In their final year, students are encouraged to take research-based courses such as SOCD01H3, SOCD02H3, SOCD05H3, SOCD21H3, SOCD25H3, SOCD50H3 and SOCD51H3.

Special Topic Courses

Themes for special topic courses will vary year to year. For more information, please visit the Department of Sociology website.

Enrolment Priority

Program students will be given priority access to all Sociology courses.

Sociology Areas of Concentration:

Program Combination Restrictions in Sociology

The Specialist, Major and Minor programs in Sociology cannot be combined; however, students may combine the Specialist in Sociology OR the Major in Sociology with either the Minor in Culture, Creativity and Cities OR the Minor in Critical Migration Studies. Students who combine their Specialist or Major in Sociology with one of the two Minor programs may only count SOCA05H3 toward both programs. Other Sociology programs cannot be combined.

Experiential Learning and Outreach

For a community-based experiential learning opportunity in your academic field of interest, consider the course CTLB03H3, which can be found in the Teaching and Learning section of the Calendar.