Program
Coordinator:
Dr. Alemseghed Kebede
Dorothy Donahoe Hall, Rm. AA206
661 654-2306, FAX 661 654-6909
akebede@csub.edu
For official CSUB catalog description click here.
Forms
(must
have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view.)
Application
for Admission Part A: Department Application
Application for Admission Part
B: Student Recommendation
Declaration of Committee
Plan of Study - Thesis Option
Plan of Study - Teaching Option
Plan of Study - Special Projects
Option
Certificate of Completion - Thesis
Option
Certificate of Completion - Teaching
Option
Certificate of Completion - Special
Projects Option
Program
Description
The Master of Arts
in Sociology program is an advanced study of human social relations.
It requires in depth study of institutional, structural, and historical
patterns that govern human social behavior. The scope of study at the
graduate level includes micro, macro, and global perspectives. The program
is primarily designed for working students seeking a Ph.D., career advancement,
or wishing to pursue a career in community college teaching. For that
reason, the program offers three options or “tracks”: a
Thesis Option, a Teaching Option, and a Special Project Option. The
program of study is enhanced by opportunities for qualified students
to work on campus as a Research Assistant in the Institute for Social
and Community Research, as Teaching Assistants in the Department or
in area community colleges, or work in the community via the Internship
programs available.
Requirements
for Master of Arts in Sociology
The MA in Sociology
program has common admission and continuation requirements for all graduate
students in the program, but different requirements for course work,
advancing to candidacy, and graduation, depending on the graduating
option chosen by each student.
Requirements
for Admission
Admission
to the Master of Arts in Sociology program requires that the following
basic criteria be met:
1. Baccalaureate
degree.
2.
GPA of 2.5 overall and 3.0 in the major and 1400 combined score in
the three areas on the GRE test, with no less than 450 in any one
test area.
3. A
satisfactory TOEFL score (a minimum of 500) for International students.
4.
In lieu of the requirements listed in item 2 above, a student may
petition the Graduate Program Coordinator for an exception.
Persons
seeking admission to the Master of Arts in Sociology program must:
1.
Apply to the Office of Admissions and Records for admission to the
University; this application for general admission at the post-baccalaureate
level will be processed by the university. Applications are available
in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology office, as well as the
Office of Graduate Studies and Research.
a.
Admission to graduate study by the University does not constitute
acceptance into the Sociology MA Program. It does, however, permit
students to take courses as Unclassified post-baccalaureate students
and to begin the process.
b.
Upon admission to the University, students must immediately notify
the Sociology Graduate Coordinator of their intention to pursue
the Sociology MA degree. The Graduate Coordinator will familiarize
the student with the requirements and timetable of the Sociology
MA program.
2.
Apply to the department for admission to the Master of Arts inAnthropology
program. Applications are available on-line (www.csub.edu/Sociology/).
The following materials must accompany the departmental application:
a. Formal letter of intent.
b. Three Student Recommendations (Part B of department application)
c. Example of writing ability (published paper, conference paper,
term paper, etc.).
d. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores. (A student may
petition the Graduate Program Coordinator for an exception.)
Partial
applications will not be accepted. Once an application file is complete,
the Graduate Program Coordinator, with the advice of the faculty, will
consider the application and notify the candidate of his/her admission
status.
Student
Classifications
There are
four classifications for students in the Sociology MA Program:
1. Post-Baccalaureate/Unclassified
Standing
Students accepted
by the university for post-baccalaureate study may take Sociology courses
with approval from the instructor. These courses may be taken for personal
pleasure or as a means of establishing a record in the Department of
Sociology and Anthropology that will lead to Classified standing. Up
to ten 400-level or 500-level units taken by the student while in this
classification may be credited by the Sociology Graduate Coordinator
to the student upon being admitted to the MA in Sociology Program.
2. Conditionally
Classified Standing
Students may seek
to be Conditionally Classified (a requirement for financial aid) by
consulting with the Sociology Graduate Coordinator and demonstrating
a commitment to work toward an MA in Sociology. Generally, students
found in this classification will have applied for the Sociology MA
Program and will have been admitted to the Program with conditions,
such as taking certain courses or examinations. Upon completion of such
conditions, students must petition the Graduate Coordinator to advance
to Classified status.
3. Classified
Standing
Students
who meet the admissions requirements (above) will be admitted as Classified
Graduate Students.
4. Advancement
to Candidacy
Advancement
to Candidacy requires the following:
1. Classified
status.
2. Completion
of 25-quarter units of graduate work applied toward the MA in Sociology,
all of which are at least at the 500-level or above, with a GPA of
3.0 or better in graduate course work at CSUB.
3. A
Thesis Proposal approved by the Thesis Committee and filed with the
Department; or a Project Proposal approved by the student’s committee
and filed with the Department; or an approved proposal for the Teaching
Track Option.
Graduate
Advisor
It is the
student’s responsibility, in consultation with the appropriate faculty
members, to choose a graduate advisor, choose an MA track or fields
of study, and organize a thesis or examination committee leading to
Advancement to Candidacy.
Academic
Advising
Until an
advisor is selected, the Graduate Program Coordinator will serve as
interim advisor. Upon admission, however, the student should select
an advisor as soon as possible. Failure to do this may result in the
Graduate Program Coordinator assigning the student an advisor.
Transfer
of Credit
A student
may transfer up to 13-quarter units of credit from another school. A
student may apply, with the approval of his/her committee, up to 10-quarter
units of credit taken at CSUB while an Unclassified Graduate Student.
Continuation
Continuation
in the program is dependent upon the following:
1.
The maintenance of a GPA of 3.0 or higher in all graduate work at CSUB.
2.
Achieving no grade less than a "C" (2.0) in any course applied
to the MA in Sociology, and no more than one course with a grade of
"C" (2.0) will be accepted toward the MA in Sociology.
3.
Continuous enrollment (being registered for credit-bearing study for
three out of four consecutive academic quarters). Students who have
not completed all requirements for the thesis must register every quarter.
4.
Students failing to meet these stipulations may be dropped from the
program. To re-enter, a student would have to reapply to the program.
5.
Prior to completion of 20 units, a student must complete the following:
a.
Select an advisor, form a committee (of at least three faculty members),
and file the completed and approved "Declaration of Committee"
form with the Department.
b.
File an approved "Requirements and Plan of Study" with
the Department.
Graduation
Only
classified students who have met the following requirements are eligible
for graduation.
1. Completion
of the Plan of Study.
2.
GPA of 3.0 or better in graduate work at CSUB applied toward the MA
in Sociology, at least a "C" (2.0) in all courses. No more
than one course with a grade of "C" (2.0) will be accepted
toward the MA in Sociology.
3. Completion
of all culminating experience requirements as stipulated under the
Thesis or Non-Thesis options, below.
4.
All requirements for the MA in Sociology must be completed before
the student may participate in graduation ceremonies.
MA
Programs in Sociology
The Department of
Sociology and Anthropology offers three tracks for the MA in Sociology:
the Thesis Option, the Teaching Option, and the Special Project Option.
Three courses are required of all Masters students (BEHS 500 Quantitative
Methods in the Behavioral Sciences; BEHS 501 Advanced Research Design
and Analysis; and SOC 502 Advanced Sociological Theory) with the remaining
units being comprised of course work established in the Plan of Study
developed by the student and his/her committee. Only five independent
study units can be applied to the student’s Plan of Study.
Requirements
for the MA in Sociology–Thesis Option (45 Total Units)
Required
Course Work (15 Units)
BEHS
500 Quantitative Methods in the Behavioral
Sciences
BEHS
501 Advanced Research Design and Analysis
SOC 502 Advanced Sociological Theory
Elective
Course Work (21 Units) These
units, 10 of which must be at the 500 level and the remaining at the
400 level or above, will be selected based on the advice and recommendation
of the student’s advisor and faculty committee.
Thesis
Experience (SOC 695) (9 Units)
May
be taken over several quarters and must be devoted to the following
sequential activities:
1. Write
and submit a thesis prospectus for Thesis Committee approval. This
prospectus must include thesis objectives, proposed literature review,
proposed methodology, and predicted findings.
2.
Once the prospectus is approved, thesis work up to and including the
successful defense of the thesis.
Requirements
for the MA in Sociology-Teaching Option (50 Total Units)
Required
Course Work (25 Units)
BEHS
500 Quantitative Methods in the Behavioral Sciences
BEHS
501 Advanced Research Design and Analysis
SOC
502 Advanced Sociological Theory
SOC
597 Special Issues in Teaching Sociology
SOC
598 Directed Study in Teaching Sociology
SOC
693 Culminating Experience in Teaching Socioloy
In addition,
all students will be required to serve as a teaching assistant for a
lower division sociology class at CSUB for which they will not earn
any academic credits.
Elective
Coursework (25 Units)
These
units, 10 of which must be at the 500-level or above, will be selected
based on the advice and recommendation of the student’s advisor and
faculty committee.
Culminating
Experience in Teaching Sociology (SOC 693) (4 Units)
Students
must prepare the following:
1. Detailed
syllabi for two sociology classes, one of which must be an introductory
sociology class and the other a course agreed upon with the student’s
advisor.
2. A
detailed list of books and reading materials that could be used in
the two classes above.
3. A
detailed outline of tests, paper topics and guidelines, homework exercises
and other items by which students who are enrolled in the above mentioned
classes might be evaluated.
4. A
research paper on a topic of relevance to the elective class.
5. A
sample class lecture on the same topic open to faculty and students-at-large.
Requirements for the MA in Sociology- Special
Project Option (50 Total Units)
Required
Course Work (20 units)
BEHS
500 Quantitative Methods in the Behavioral Sciences
BEHS
501 Advanced Research Design and Analysis
SOC
502 Advanced Sociological Theory
SOC
694 Culminating Experience in Special Projects
Elective
Course Work (30 units)
These units,
15 of which must be at the 500-level or above, must be approved by the
student’s advisor and faculty committee.
Culminating
Experience
There are
two ways of culminating the MA in Sociology – Special Project Option,
both of which occur by taking for credit, no-credit SOC 694 Culminating
Experience in Special Projects, under the supervision of the student’s
advisor and faculty committee:
1. Agency-Based
Project
a.
Submit for approval to the student’s faculty committee a prospectus
for the Proposed Project which shall include a description of the
intended project, its objectives, methods that will be used, the
scholarly literature that will be consulted, and the timetable proposed
for all stages of the project.
b.
Present and defend a Final Report on the project to the student’s
faculty committee in a meeting open to faculty and students-at-large.
2. Mastery
of Two Areas of Sociology
a.
Submit for approval to the student’s faculty committee a prospectus
for two area papers, which shall include the identification of the
two areas of sociology the student intends to demonstrate mastery
over, two lists of proposed readings, and a timetable for the preparation,
writing, and submission of each area paper.
b.
Examination of student on each area by his/her faculty committee
in a meeting open to the faculty and students-at-large.
**
Please note: course descriptions can be viewed on the 2005-2007 CSUB
course catalog or by
clicking here.
