undergradly.
Major · Social Sciences

Study human behavior, social structures, and how societies change

Sociology examines how human beings organize themselves — in families, institutions, hierarchies, and social movements. Students study social theory, research methods, stratification, deviance, and change. About 26,500 degrees are awarded annually across more than 1,150 colleges, spanning associate and bachelor's programs.

Schools offering
1,156
Annual completions
26,513
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$52k

About this major

Sociology is the systematic study of human social institutions and relationships — how people organize into families, communities, workplaces, and societies, and how those structures shape behavior, opportunity, and change over time. The CIP definition frames it as covering social theory, research methods, social organization and stratification, dynamics of social change, and deviance and control. In practice, students spend significant time reading foundational theorists (Weber, Durkheim, Du Bois) alongside contemporary empirical research, analyzing survey and administrative data, and writing papers that connect theory to evidence. Upper-division work often moves into applied subfields: medical sociology, urban sociology, criminology, or social movements.

The major suits students who are drawn to understanding patterns beneath surface-level social phenomena — who want frameworks for analyzing inequality, institutional behavior, and collective action, not just descriptions of them. Comfort with both qualitative interpretation and basic quantitative reasoning helps; most programs require at least one statistics course, and research methods are typically required, not elective.

On the career side, the immediate entry-level role for most bachelor's completers is social science research assistant, with a $58,040 median wage. The occupation of sociologist — at $101,690 — typically requires a master's degree, and postsecondary teaching requires doctoral credentials. The major is broadly offered: about 26,500 degrees are awarded annually across more than 1,150 colleges, making it one of the more widely available social science programs in the country. That breadth also means the program quality and curricular emphasis vary considerably from one institution to the next.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Managers, all other $137k +4.5% Bachelor's degree
Social science research assistants $58k +4.4% Bachelor's degree
Sociology teachers, postsecondary $83k +2.1% Doctoral or professional degree
Sociologists $102k +3.6% Master's degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$52k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$46k

Bachelor's

$53k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you find yourself drawn to questions about why societies are structured the way they are — why some groups accumulate wealth or power while others don't, how institutions like schools or prisons reproduce social patterns, or what drives collective behavior in social movements. You may also fit well here if you have a tolerance for ambiguity in research — sociology rarely produces the clean causal answers that experimental sciences do, and working with that uncertainty productively is part of the discipline. If your goal includes a direct path to the sociologist occupation or postsecondary teaching, you're already thinking in terms of graduate school, which is the realistic route: both roles require master's or doctoral credentials.

Think twice if you expect the degree alone to produce a straightforward career path at a competitive salary — five-year median earnings for bachelor's completers sit around $52,925, below the overall bachelor's median, and the most clearly sociology-specific roles either require graduate credentials or pay modestly. Think twice also if quantitative analysis is your primary interest: Economics (18,920 completions) or Political Science (36,654 completions) give you sharper tools for policy and data-heavy work. And if individual psychology rather than social structures is what you find most interesting, Psychology (133,179 completions annually) is a better fit — the subject matter overlaps in places but the frameworks and career paths diverge.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Sociology, General

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA 0 621 621
University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 0 605 605
California State University-Northridge Northridge, CA 0 380 380
California State University-Fullerton Fullerton, CA 0 322 322
California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA 0 318 318
California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA 0 312 312
California State University-Sacramento Sacramento, CA 0 283 283
California State University-San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA 0 280 280
University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA 0 252 252
University of California-Riverside Riverside, CA 0 247 247
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Psychology, General

133,179 completions/yr

Political Science and Government, General

36,654 completions/yr

Economics, General

18,920 completions/yr

Econometrics and Quantitative Economics

15,101 completions/yr

Social Sciences, General

14,846 completions/yr

Criminology

8,556 completions/yr

Urban Studies/Affairs

806 completions/yr

Sociology and Anthropology

425 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Sociology, General field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Sociology, General worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Sociology majors actually study day-to-day?
Coursework covers social theory (from Marx and Durkheim to contemporary frameworks), quantitative and qualitative research methods, and applied study of specific social institutions — family, education, work, criminal justice. Students read primary research, analyze datasets, write research papers, and in many programs conduct fieldwork or original surveys. Upper-division courses get more specialized: social stratification, race and ethnicity, urban sociology, or medical sociology are common tracks. The work is more reading- and writing-intensive than many students expect.
Do I need a bachelor's, or is an associate's enough for Sociology?
Degree level matters here, though not as dramatically as in some fields. Five-year median earnings for bachelor's completers in this major run about $52,925, versus roughly $45,527 for associate's completers — a gap of about $7,400. More importantly, the careers most directly linked to sociology credentials — social science research assistant ($58,040 typical wage) and sociologist ($101,690) — both list bachelor's or higher as the typical entry credential. An associate's can transfer into a bachelor's program but doesn't open most sociology-specific roles on its own.
What kinds of jobs do Sociology graduates end up in?
The most direct entry-level role is social science research assistant, with a median wage of $58,040 and a bachelor's as the typical credential. Sociologists — the occupation proper — earn $101,690 at the median but typically require a master's degree to enter. Sociology teachers at the postsecondary level earn $82,540 but require doctoral credentials. Many sociology graduates land in management or administrative roles not specific to the field — the catch-all 'managers, all other' category posts a $136,550 median wage, reflecting the broad applicability of analytical and communication skills the major builds.
How competitive is the job market for Sociology graduates?
Job growth projections for the careers most associated with this major are modest: sociologists at 3.6%, social science research assistants at 4.4%, and sociology teachers at 2.1% — near or below the 4-5% average for all occupations. Sociology is also one of the more common undergraduate majors, with about 26,500 completions per year across more than 1,150 colleges. That combination — moderate growth and a large graduate pool — means the job market rewards students who develop specific research skills, graduate credentials, or professional experience through internships and research assistant work.
Is Sociology the right fit, or should I consider a related major?
If you're drawn to individual behavior rather than social structures, Psychology (133,179 completions annually) likely fits better and has a somewhat wider range of applied entry-level roles. If quantitative skills and policy analysis interest you, Economics (18,920 completions) or Political Science (36,654 completions) give you more analytical depth in those areas. Criminology (8,556 completions) is a focused option if your interest is specifically the criminal justice system. Sociology is the strongest fit when you're interested in research on social patterns broadly — inequality, institutions, culture, change — rather than a single domain.
What's a realistic earnings picture after a Sociology degree?
Five-year median earnings for this major sit around $52,490 across degree levels, with bachelor's completers specifically at about $52,925. That puts sociology below the overall bachelor's degree median and well below STEM fields. The highest-earning path linked directly to the major — sociologist — requires a master's degree and pays $101,690. Many graduates who earn above the five-year median have either pursued graduate education, developed applied research skills, or moved into management and administrative roles that aren't sociology-specific. The earnings picture improves substantially with graduate credentials or a second, more applied skill set.