The University of Memphis

Sociology is the study of social relations in groups, institutions and organizations, communities, and entire societies. Why do people in groups interact with each other as they do? How do changes in health care services, and the health care industry, affect people's quality of life? How do communities organize to fight poverty and crime? What are the most important social changes in the U.S. and abroad over the last fifty years? How do changes in immigration patterns affect understandings about race and ethnicity? What is the significance of race in the twenty-first century? Why are there more wars in some world regions than in others? All of these questions, and many more, interest sociologists, who use various theories and research techniques to study the social problems that affect all of us.

If you are interested in the study of society, then sociology may well be the major for you. After graduation, sociology majors find employment as teachers, social-service workers, business people, health-care professionals, and in many other fields. Sociology is also an excellent major if you are planning to enter law school or another professional field, including medicine. Of course, some sociology majors enter MA or PhD programs in sociology because they want to become professors, professional researchers, or even market analysts. In short, sociology prepares people for a broad range of careers.