Undergraduate Bulletin - Loyola Marymount University

228 / SOCIOLOGY
Sociology
Faculty
Chairperson: James Faught
Professor: James Faught
Associate Professors: Stacy Lee Burns, Peter Hoffman
Assistant Professors: Margaret L. Hunter, Eric Magnuson,
David Marple, Anna Muraco
Objectives
As a department, our objectives are to foster the intellectual
development of students and to promote lifetime learning
experiences. We do this through teaching and applying the
insights of sociological perspectives to achieve a critical
understanding of social reality and the human condition.
Our curriculum is designed to explore relationships within
society, the social and cultural influences on human
behavior, dynamics of interaction, and social institutions
and social change in a global context.
Sociology Student Learning Outcomes
Students majoring in Sociology should know:
• The processes and structures that establish the
underlying regularities of social life
• How social life is continually reconstructed
through opposition and deviance
• The significance of cultural differences in
traditional and modern societies
• The origin and development of principal theoretical
ideas that inform contemporary sociological
inquiries
• The basic methodological and statistical strategies
used in contemporary sociology;
Students majoring in Sociology should be able to:
• Recognize how social life is structured in ways
that influence choices, opportunities, and action
• Demonstrate an ability to write and speak
effectively about contemporary social issues
• Read, assess, and interpret the results of
sociological research
• Successfully complete an independent research
project that competently draws from current
theoretical, methodological, and empirical
research;
Students majoring in Sociology should value:
• A knowledge of the range of interests and goals
expressed by groups and organizations in society
• The ways in which sociological research may
be effectively employed by organizations and
institutions
• The application of sociological knowledge in order
to enhance the quality of life
• A reasoned participation in community life that is
informed by grounded sociological knowledge.
Major Requirements
Lower Division Requirements (15 semester hours):
SOCL 100, 105, 109, 210, 211. A grade of at least C
(2.0) will be required in all lower division courses.
Upper Division Requirements:
27 semester hours in upper division courses in
sociology which must include SOCL 301, 401, and
495. An average grade of C (2.0) must be obtained in
courses included in the major.
SOCL 495 should be taken in the senior year. The
remaining 18 semester hours are to be chosen from
the six theme areas into which upper division sociology
courses are grouped: I. Deviance and Control; II. Social
Inequality; III. Urban, Population, and Demographic
Processes; IV. Social Structure, Culture, and Process;
V. Family and Life Cycle; and VI. Globalization.
Students must take at least one course from four of
the theme areas. The remaining courses may be taken
from any of the upper division offerings.
At least two 300- or 400-level sociology courses must
be taken in the senior year.
Minor Requirements
18 semester hours, including SOCL 100 or 105, 109, 301
or 401, and 9 semester hours in upper division courses.
An average grade of C (2.0) must be obtained in courses
included in the minor. At least one 300- or 400-level
sociology course must be taken in the senior year.
Sociology Model Four-Year Plan
The normal course load is 15 semester hours (5 classes). By
following the model below, a student will complete all lower
division core requirements by the end of the sophomore
year as well as most major prerequisites. Note that core
areas are suggested to provide a distribution of various
disciplines every semester. Please be flexible implementing
these suggestions, given your own interests and course
availability. In four years, this plan meets all common
graduation requirements.