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WVU Morgantown

Sociology, Ph.D.

  • Overview
  • Learning Outcomes

Degree Requirements

  • Credit Hours: Students must complete a minimum of 40 credit hours in the doctoral program.
  • Grade Point Average: Students must earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 in all courses applied to degree requirements.
  • Graduation Requirements: In addition to completing required coursework, students must complete several written and oral benchmarks as described in their handbook. For details, go to the Sociology Degree Progress tab. 

Curriculum Requirements

Course List
Code Title Hours
CORE COURSES:16
SOC 600
Professional Development Seminar
SOC 615
Sociological Data Analysis and Interpretation 1
SOC 616
Sociological Data Analysis and Interpretation 2
SOC 620
Sociological Research Methods
SOC 730
Sociological Explanation
SOC 721
Qualitative Methods
ELECTIVES: *15
Any SOC course at the 600 level or above.
RESEARCH REQUIREMENT: **9
SOC 697
Research
SOC 797
Research
Total Hours40
*

Excludes the following: 695, 697, 795, 797. SOC 710 is required for all students with funded graduate teaching assistantships.

**

Students are expected to complete at least three of the nine credits in SOC 697, and complete the other six credits in SOC 797.

Major Learning Outcomes

Sociology

Students graduating with a Ph.D. in Sociology will be able to:

  1. Conduct independent and original research of publishable quality
  2. Effectively communicate and critically analyze the foundational literature in general sociology and in their chosen areas of specialization
  3. Develop a research program to evaluate social issues using sociological theories and methodological skills
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