<p>Hi, I am interested in Sociology, specifically cities and metropolitan areas, their populations, etc. I was wondering what kind of job(s) you got with a sociology major? My dream college is the University of Chicago, and I know they have a great Sociology program. I was thinking maybe statistics as well... I don't know. I'd just like to see the jobs recent grads have gotten.</p>
<p>I am a sociology major, but sociology is more about the interaction of individuals in society. I don’t know what the courses at the University of Chicago entail, but my program seems to be completely different. I highly recommend statistics, it is interesting how social researchers conduct projects and evaluate studies. Majoring in sociology can help you get a job as a probation officer, social worker, teacher, or something similar. It all depends on what kind of social work you are interested in.</p>
<p>I have two kids who are sociology majors … one is headed to Med school … the second is going to be a teacher.</p>
<p>PS - I live Chicago … and talk it up to everyone I can!</p>
<p>Hi There.</p>
<p>I wrote a similar post earlier so this is just copy and paste. </p>
<p>Here is what I recommend that you do as well as anyone else who wants to work in their chosen fields and in sociology. </p>
<p>I graduated as a crim/soc major and I am currently employed as a Criminal Intelligence Analyst. </p>
<ol>
<li>First and foremost, explore where exactly do you want to go with a sociology degree. I can think of four roads that Sociology will take you on;</li>
</ol>
<ul>
<li><p>Academic (Doing Research for Think Tanks and Universities related to social issues, or becoming a Professor)</p></li>
<li><p>Social Research/Analysis (Doing research and/or analysis for Governments and the Private sector. Typically these careers will require you to employ social research methods to collect and analyze data and/or information for stakeholders in order for them to make informed decisions). </p></li>
<li><p>Reporting (Report on important social issues for blogs, articles, etc. Although, I’m guessing a journalism degree is where you wanna be if you want to do this line of work.) </p></li>
<li><p>Counselling (Working with socially disadvantaged individuals to make a difference in their lives. Although I would recommended a Social Work degree to do this. Recommended but not required.) </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Select one or more of these paths. If you cannot then you are probably in the wrong major. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Once you have chosen the path that you want to go on find out about all the jobs that are in this field and list them.</p></li>
<li><p>Next, read what the job(s) requires in terms of work experience and SKILLS!!!</p></li>
<li><p>See what skills are needed to do these job(s) than select the courses at University that will teach you those skills. (Eg. “Knowledge of SPSS” . Find a Stats course that can teach you this program and or a similar program.)</p></li>
<li><p>Your course work should primarily be revolved around learning and honing technical and critical skills. Don’t take too many theoretical courses unless you want to teach those theories as a Sociology professor. If you think about it, if you can get an A in a course without having to go to class and just reading a book you are probably wasting your time. </p></li>
<li><p>Once you have found your path and determined what technical skills you need to do the job, do a research project or undergraduate thesis for the company/agency/field that you are interested in. A good university will have a course entitled “Individual Study” for last year students so you may be able to have that internship as your Individual Study and for college credit. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>This is the formula I used and was able to beat over a hundred applicants, some with Master’s degrees, to get the job I am currently in.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I know you said you 're interested in UChicago sociology. But I think it’s also important to mention that different sociology departments offer different “sociologies,” so to speak. To study city life, for example, some schools would stress the paradigms of quantitative, Durkheimian-like sociology, while others (including the small program I’m in at Williams College) teach almost exclusively humanistic ethnography. The latter is inherently theory-focused–my major might as well be in epistemology–while the former is practically oriented and would be more likely to get you a job like Crimeguy’s right out of college.</p>