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New Student Conference Presentation Department of Sociology

WELCOME TO THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY

← You are here

Undergraduate Advisor Contact Information

Jennifer Runnels Zuleika Carrasco Academic 306 C Academic 306A 979.845.4241 979.862.2523 jrunnels@tamu.edu zuleika@tamu.edu

sociadvising@tamu.edu

Undergraduate Advising Office

• Appointment scheduling:
• swan.tamu.edu/SOCI
• Location: Academic Building 306
• Website: www.sociology.tamu.edu
• Hours of Operation:
• Walk-ins: 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• Appointments: 2:00 p.m. – 4:30

p.m.

The structure of all undergraduate degrees

All Bachelor’s degrees are approximately 120 credits Major requirements (1/4 to 1/3)

• SOCI is 33 credits (15 credits from major requirements, 18 credits from major

electives)

Core curriculum (1/2)

• Communication is 12 credits (ENGL104 (3), Communication (3), Literature (6))
• Math is 6 credits (3 of these may be philosophical logic)
• Science is at least 9 credits
• Arts & Humanities is 9 credits (3 creative arts, 3 language, philosophy & culture,

and a third of either)

• US History is 6 credits; Political Science is 6 credits
• Social/Behavioral Sciences is 6 credits
• Bachelor of Arts requires 14 additional credits of a foreign language
• Bachelor of Science requires 12 additional credits of science and math

General electives (remainder)

• SOCI majors have 19 or 21, depending on degree type

Packet Content- Green Sheet

Basics of Sociology Major Course Requirements

• 5 major courses:
• SOCI 205: Introduction to Sociology
• SOCI 220: Methods of Social Research
• SOCI 230: Classical Sociological Theory (Writing Intensive)
• SOCI 420: Advanced Methods of Social Research (Writing Intensive; SOCI

220 prerequisite)

• SOCI 430: Contemporary Sociological Theory (SOCI 230 prerequisite)
• 18 sociology elective hours (approx. 6 courses)

Additional Requirements

• Residency requirement: Students must take 36

hours of upper level classes;

• 12 of those hours must be in sociology
• The other 24 may come from anywhere on the

degree

• Writing intensive requirement: 2 sociology

courses must be Writing Intensive

• These will be SOCI 230 and SOCI 420
• Major courses cannot be used for core or

general electives

Packet Content- Blue Sheets

Sociology Tracks and Certificates

• Specialize your education, make yourself more

marketable for employers

• Track and Certificate courses fit in your degree plan as

sociology elective requirements (and general electives and core courses, in the case of some tracks).

• At this time, the tracks and certificates will not be
• fficial parts of your degree; they are just

recommendations for those wanting to specialize their degrees

Packet Content – Blue Sheet

Sociology Tracks

• Health Care
• Organizational Management

and Marketing

• Non-profit Social Services
• Legal Studies
• Community Studies
• Criminology and Criminal

Justice

• Detailed lists of the classes for tracks

and certificates can be found on the department website.

Certificate Options

• Global Sociology
• Requires a study abroad

experience and foreign language proficiency

• Sociology of Gender
• Sociology of Race and

Ethnicity

• Teaching: Sociology majors can be

certified to teach in public schools. For more information, visit the Department of Teaching Learning and Culture on the 8th floor of Harrington Tower.

Packet Content- Lavender Sheet

Careers in Sociology (This list can be found on our department website.)

• Sociology opens up a wide range of opportunities. The careers listed are

where you should start researching – there are many more opportunities related to sociology.

• If you are interested in public service, our Department in coordination

with the Bush School of Public Service offers a 5 year joint Sociology and Master of Public Service and Administration degree. For more information visit http://bush.tamu.edu/degree/joint/mpsasoci/.

• The 4 Year timeline for Career development
• Freshman: Exploration
• Sophomore: Become informed
• Junior: Focus on career field
• Senior: Focus on specific career

Packet Contents – Peach Sheet

Sociology Internships

• Discover what interests you (or doesn’t)
• Obtain real work experience (and maybe some letters of

recommendation!)

• Internship course counts toward sociology elective upper level

credit requirements

• 100 hours of internship experience
• Formal research paper and presentation
• Can count as writing intensive
• If you are interested, contact Dr. Dietrich at socintern@tamu.edu
• More information can be found on our website

Packet Content- Pink Sheet

Sociology Professional Development Courses

• Courses will count towards fulfillment of both sociology major

elective requirements and residency requirements

• SOCI 478
• Designed for freshman, sophomore, and junior sociology majors
• 1 hour course
• Meet with career professionals in a variety of fields
• SOCI 479
• Designed for senior sociology majors
• 2 hour course
• Prepare for life after graduation, including job fields and graduate

studies.

Packet Contents- Navigating the Sociology Major

• This is an informational packet published by the American Sociological

Association (ASA), which is the largest professional association of sociologists in the world.

• Go to http://asanet.org for more information about the ASA and how you

can become involved as an undergraduate student.

• The packet answers numerous questions you might have, such as:
• What should I expect as a sociology major?
• What courses should I take?
• How should I select professors?
• What should I do beyond the classroom in order to obtain my career goals?
• How should I present my sociology experience to employers?
• What do I need to do in order to apply for graduate school?
• In the back of the packet there is a worksheet, which can help you think critically

and plan your major and career goals.

Claiming AP courses

• Speak with an advisor before accepting your AP credits –

there may be reasons to refrain

• If your are transferring AP courses, you must choose to

accept the transfer.

• Log in to your Howdy account by visiting

http://newhowdy.tamu.edu.

• Click on the My Record tab.
• In the Grades and Transcripts box, click on the Credit By

Examination link.

• Check the AP scores that you would like to accept to be

transferred.

Important Course Information

• In all instances, if you plan on taking a foreign language, contact the
• ffering department, as you will probably need to take a placement exam
• You can obtain course credit for passing the FLPE or a CLEP exam.
• Most beginning foreign language courses are restricted to Freshman and

Sophomores only, so get started on your foreign language requirement as soon as possible.

• The English Department restricts their 200 level literature classes to

Freshman and Sophomores, but there are plenty of great upper-level

• ptions.
• ALWAYS CHECK COURSE REQUIREMENTS

AND RESTRICTIONS BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO REGISTER!!!

Your Online Course Catalog

• As long as you are in the College of Liberal Arts, your course catalog

number will be 139/Fall 2016.

• To access the online course catalog, visit http://catalog.tamu.edu and

click on your catalog number (right now it is shown first, but will move to “archives” next year).

• For University Core Curriculum Requirements, see “University Core

Curriculum” under “General Information”, and visit core.tamu.edu for course lists.

• For course descriptions, look under each department’s page or course

description list.

• For a list of Texas Common Course Numbers (TCCN), see Appendix B

under “Appendices”.

• TCCNs are useful to see if credits from other academic institutions will

easily transfer to Texas A&M.

Advanced Schedule Search-Gold Sheet

• Look over the course schedule to determine the classes for

which you would like to register.

• Log on to your Howdy account at http://howdy.tamu.edu.
• Click on the My Record tab.
• In the Registration box, click on the Search Class Schedule Link.
• Select the term and campus for which you would like to register and

submit.

• Click on the blue “Advanced Search” link.
• Select the subject in which you are interested.
• You can make the search more specific by specifying the instructional

method, attribute type (core category), etc.

• Be sure to click on the Restrictions link for each section, since some

courses are restricted to certain populations such as honors students, and FOCUS groups.

• The best way to find all of the courses that fulfill a certain requirement:

select the top subject, scroll down and then hold the shift button and select the last subject. Then select a certain attribute and press class search.

Schedule Search

• Course numbers consist of 4 parts:
• subject, course, section, and CRN
• For example: SOCI- 206- 500; CRN 17405
• Sections designate the specifics of the course:
• If it is a 200 section course, it is an honors course restricted to

honors students.

• If it is a 900 section course, it is a writing intensive course.
• If it is a 599 or 700 section course, it is a web-based class
• If the instructor is marked TBA, the instructor will either be a

graduate student or a new faculty member.

• If the time and the location are marked TBA, the class is a web

course, or the class may have been cancelled.

Packet Content- Registration To Do List

• When making your schedule check to see if:
• The class has enough openings
• The class fulfills degree requirements
• The class doesn’t have restrictions; if so, you pass those restrictions
• You have fulfilled any prerequisites
• No class times conflict
• If a course is almost full, be sure to have a backup.
• Keep a list of the Course Registration Numbers (CRNs) of the courses for

which you would like to be registered.

• If you have any questions regarding your schedule, be sure to ask before

registration.

• This afternoon at 1:45, meet in Academic Building Room 307.

You will need to log on to a computer in order to register at 2:00.

• Make sure you bring your signed advising syllabus.

Packet Content- Advising Syllabus

• You must sign the advising syllabus and turn it in before

registration.

• The advising syllabus describes what you should expect from we as your

academic advisors, and what we expect from you as a student.

• Key student requirements:
• Register to take at least one sociology class each semester.
• Bring your degree evaluation to any advising meetings.
• Come to advising meetings with questions prepared.
• Print and fill out forms that you need your advisor to sign.
• Check your email!
• Contact your advisor if you ever have any questions or face any

problems.

“Things I wish I knew before I started taking classes at Texas A&M…” (Quotes from your fellow SOCI students)

• Studying at Texas A&M isn’t the same as studying in high school or at a community college!
• For every one hour you spend in class you should spend 2 hours studying outside of class!
• Even if you don’t have homework assigned, you have homework!
• Try multiple studying techniques!
• Figure out how to balance your time!
• Obtain a daily planner!
• Set up a reward system for following your plan!
• Don’t skip class!
• Come to class prepared!
• Read the assigned material before the class starts!
• Don’t procrastinate!
• Get to know your professors by visiting them during their open office hours!
• Take advantage of your resources!

Stay Connected with Sociology

Like Us on Facebook!

• Visit the TAMU Sociology Undergraduate Program Facebook

Page at http://on.fb.me/tamusoci Become a Member of the Sociology Student Association!

• Meets every Tuesday at 7 p.m.
• Learn about the field of sociology
• Build your professional network
• Go on field trips
• Participate in fun activities!!!
• Visit their Facebook page at

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TAMUSociClub/

• Email: socistudentassociation@gmail.com