Mar 29, 2024  
2013-2014 UMass Dartmouth Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2013-2014 UMass Dartmouth Undergraduate Catalog [Archived Catalog]

Department of Sociology and Anthropology


Return to {$returnto_text} Return to: Colleges, Departments, and Programs

Faculty and Fields of Interest

Colleen Avedikian (Full Time Lecturer) sociology, labor history, working-class struggles, education, social stratification

Sadhana Bery critical race studies and whiteness; global white diaspora; colonialism, postcolonialism, imperialism; memory and amnesia (forgetting); intersectionality; social theory; critical race theory; black feminist theory; Post-colonial Africa; political sociology

Jane Hilowitz (Emeritus)

Donna Huse (Emeritus)

Andrea C Klimt (Chairperson) sociocultural anthropology, ethnicity and nationalism; Europe, contemporary US, & Portuguese diaspora; medical anthropology, transnational migration, history and memory

Lisa Maya Knauer racial, economic, and cultural dynamics; immigration and diaspora; ethnography

Rachel Kulick visual culture; media democracy; social movements; gender and race, participatory action research methods

Yale R Magrass social theory, historical and political sociology, methodology, social impact of science and technology

Larry M Miller  historical sociology, Meso-America, social theory, sociology of art and literature

Thomas K Ranuga (Emeritus) third world studies, social movements, comparative ethnic relations (emeritus)

R Penn Reeve  (Emeritus) cultural anthropology, social inequality, race and ethnicity, gay and lesbian studies

Robin A Robinson female deviance, delinquency, and criminality; social policy; restorative justice, psychology of crime and justice, female religiosity

Isabel Fêo Rodrigues ethnicity, race, gender, creolization, nationalism, colonialism; Sub-Saharan Africa, Afro-Atlantic, Luso-African Atlantic, and Brazil

Maria da Glória de Sá Portuguese-speaking diaspora in the United Sates, immigration and ethnicity, ethnic and race relations, the family and stratification

Jack Stauder anthropology, marriage and family, social change, morality and human nature, environmental issues, ranching and the American West


About the Department

As an interdisciplinary department, Sociology and Anthropology offers students a unique opportunity to explore the social world through distinct but related branches of knowledge in the social sciences.

The programs in Sociology and Anthropology, and Crime and Justice Studies all share the broader goal of understanding society and culture through a comparative and historical perspective. Specifically, the curriculum is designed to foster students’ understanding of the social construction of difference, entrenched systems of inequality and oppression and the dynamics of local and global distributions of power.

Our wide range of courses explore the complex interconnections between race, class, ethnicity, culture, gender and sexuality and focus on understanding contemporary social issues both in the U.S. and around the world. Majors learn how to apply theoretical debates in sociology, anthropology and crime and justice studies (as appropriate to a student’s selected concentration) to the investigation of social life, and develop critical insights into possibilities for social change.

The department’s curricula feature multiple opportunities for connecting classroom learning, community engagement, and individual exploration. Students are encouraged to pursue issues of interest to them through community-based research, internships and seminars, as well as in independent study and thesis. A central aim of the department’s curricula is to help students develop the essential skills of critical thinking and clear and persuasive self-expression. 

Students may pursue a degree in any of the following areas:

Students may major and minor within the department (e.g., major in Sociology, minor in Anthropology; or minor in Sociology).  It is not possible to double major within the Department.  Students majoring in a college other than Arts & Sciences who choose to minor in Sociology or Anthropology do not need to fulfill college distribution requirements.

There are many other fields that complement study in sociology and anthropology.  The department encourages students to consider choosing a double major or adding a minor in fields such as history, psychology, political science, women’s studies, education, foreign language or policy studies. Students should discuss possible options with their advisors.

For more information on courses offered by the Department, see Sociology and Anthropology course listings.

Student Learning Goals

Discipline-specific:

  • Understanding concepts of culture and society;
  • Understanding systems of inequality and the dynamics of local and global distributions of power;
  • Understanding the constructed nature of gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexual orientation and culture;
  • Understanding basic theoretical arguments in sociology/anthropology as appropriate to their major concentration;
  • Critical understanding of social scientific approaches to research, sound research designs and basic social scientific research methods; and
  • Ability to apply knowledge from discipline-specific research and theory to issues in their lives and communities.

General skills:

  • Present organized and coherent arguments both orally and through written essays
  • Understand and critically evaluate social-scientific work
  • Ability to assemble relevant published background research, critically evaluate the research, and integrate it into an argument.

Admission into the Departmental Majors

UMass Dartmouth students seeking admission into the Sociology major must have earned a minimum of 30 credits with a minimum overall GPA of 2.50.  Transfer students seeking admission into the Sociology major must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.75.  Students interested in majoring in Sociology or in Sociology with the Anthropology Option must see the Department Chairperson for permission to enter the program, to discuss the program requirements and to arrange for a permanent advisor.

For general information, contact the department at 508-999-8401.

 

BA/MPP Accelerated Program

Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Department of Public Policy

Program Description

The BA/MPP accelerated program offers exceptional undergraduate students in Sociology the opportunity to complete both a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and a Master of Public Policy (MPP) in an accelerated 5-year program. 

Normally, students who meet eligibility criteria apply to the program after achieving 45 credits.  Successful applicants are provisionally accepted into the program, allowing them to take POL 500 in the first semester of their junior year.  Students who successfully achieve a 3.0 (B) or higher in PO L500 and maintain a minimum overall gpa of 3.2 are fully matriculated into the BA/MPP accelerated program.  Students who fail to achieve a 3.0 or higher in POL 500 and do not maintain an overall 3.2 gpa are generally not matriculated into the accelerated program.

In addition to courses prescribed for their specific undergraduate program, matriculated students complete a sequence of MPP courses in their junior and senior years.  Students receive credit for the POL courses in both the undergraduate (BA) and graduate (MPP) programs.  Upon successful completion of undergraduate requirements, students receive an undergraduate degree.  If they have followed the prescribed schedule of courses, they will have only one additional year of full-time study in the MPP program to complete the additional requirements and receive a Master in Public Policy.  This program allows students to complete their undergraduate and MPP degrees in 5 years of full-time study, rather than the normal 6.

Admissions Criteria

Applicants must meet the following admission criteria to apply to the program:

  • Have completed a minimum of 45 credits of towards their undergraduate degree prior to the semester in which they plan to apply to the accelerated program.  Students should normally be in their second semester of their sophomore year of full-time study when applying to the program.
  • Have a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.2 in the credits being used to meet the 45-credit minimum described above.
  • Have a letter of support from a sponsoring faculty member in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology detailing the student’s aptitude for the program and recommending them.
  • Have a personal statement outlining the reason(s) why the student is applying to the program, stating their career goals, and explaining how the Master of Public Policy degree with specified concentration (education, environment, public management) can help to achieve their objectives.

Application Process/Timeline

  • Students who meet the above admissions criteria apply to the program directly through the Graduate Admissions Office (GAO).  The deadline for submitting complete applications is March 1st of each calendar year.
  • The GAO will assembles all admissions information and forwards complete applications to the Department of Public Policy for review.  Applicants will be notified of their status no later than April 1st of each calendar year.
  • Successful applicants will be invited to take POL 500 the following fall semester.  Applicants receiving a minimum of a 3.0 or higher in POL 500 and maintaining a minimum of a 3.2 overall gpa will receive full admission to the BA/MPP Accelerated Program and will begin taking courses in the MPP program in spring of the following semester.  Students admitted into the program are guaranteed a space in MPP designated courses in subsequent semesters.

Note on Minimum Grade Requirements for MPP Courses

Students who take POL designated MPP courses must achieve a minimum grade of 3.0 or higher in each course in order for for it to be counted toward the MPP degree.  POL courses with a 1.7 (C-) or higher will be acceptable if those courses are counted towards the undergraduate degree requirements.  Students should speak with advisors to understand the impact of grades in individual courses in the accelerated program.

Return to {$returnto_text} Return to: Colleges, Departments, and Programs