dual master's and phd programs in sociology

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Department of Sociology and Criminology

M.a./ph.d. in sociology and demography.

The dual degrees of M.A. in Sociology and Demography and Ph.D. in Sociology and Demography combine standard sociology requirements with those of the interdisciplinary demography program, one of the top four population graduate programs. Dual-title degree students declare demography as their major area, which leaves them free to choose a minor area from the many offered by the department. In addition to a course that provides an introduction to the field and a methods class in demographic techniques, students choose from a wide array of classes offered in different departments.  Students in the dual-title degree program have the same average time-to-degree as other students. The primary difference is that dual-title degree students use demography classes in lieu of electives.

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

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Joint Degree Programs

Management and organizations and sociology.

The Department of Management and Organizations in the Kellogg Graduate School of Management and the Department of Sociology are strongly tied. Organizations play a key role in stratification, social change, and collective behavior, and are themselves shaped by larger sociological and historical processes. The joint program is designed for students who want to gain a disciplinary base in sociology while focusing their doctoral research on organizations and their environments. Specific areas of research include: building and testing theory about organizations, their members and their management; organizational processes; institutions; and the embeddedness of economic action in social structure.

The MORS-Sociology Joint Degree requirements can be found here .

Law and Sociology

The JD/PhD Joint Degree Program is open to a small number of students who intend to pursue an academic career and whose teaching and research will be enriched by both the JD and PhD degrees. Applicants who wish to participate in the program must complete the Graduate School application, submit supplemental application items to the Law School, and meet the admission requirements for both Northwestern's School of Law and the Graduate School.

The JD/PhD Joint Degree requirements can be found here .

The JD/PhD program is one element of training and resources in the sociology of law and the interdisciplinary study of law provided in the Department of Sociology and the Center for Legal Studies .  In addition to JD/PhD students, some graduate students come to the sociology program with a JD and many graduate students working in sociology of law do not pursue JD degrees.  Graduates of the sociology program doing research on law have enjoyed considerable success in obtaining academic positions in sociology, law schools, interdisciplinary law and society departments, criminology, and applied settings.  Graduates of the JD/PhD program often take positions as judicial clerks or in law practice as steps toward an academic career in law teaching. For more information on the JD/PhD program  please consult the Director of Graduate Studies in Sociology and the Director of the JD/PhD Program.  For more information on support and opportunities for graduate students doing research on law please see information on the Center for Legal Studies ( https://www.legalstudies.northwestern.edu ).

MS Program in Statistics

The Northwestern Department of Statistics offers a program to receive an MS in statistics for students concurrently receiving a Ph.D. in another department.  The requirements for the MS in statistics are discussed here .  Sociology course waivers for students combining the MS in statistics with the Ph.D. in sociology are discussed in The Whole Hooey .

Certificate Programs

Graduate program in comparative-historical social science.

Co-sponsored by the Departments of Political Science and Sociology, the Graduate Program in Comparative-Historical Social Science (CHSS) supports training for graduate students interested in comparative and historical research. Students in the program complete their Ph.D. in either political science or sociology, but also receive a certificate from the University for expertise in the interdisciplinary area of CHSS. The program provides students with a common coursework structure integrated with their departmental curricula; resources for student research, including travel abroad; interdisciplinary venues at which to present work in progress and receive feedback; and opportunities for collaborative research.

The Multidisciplinary Program in Educational Sciences

Northwestern University has initiated an innovative interdisciplinary doctoral training program to develop a cadre of scholars trained to conduct relevant and reliable research on pressing policy and practice issues in education. This Multidisciplinary Program in Education Sciences (MPES) is intended for students who want to pursue a research agenda that focuses on practical questions in U.S. education from a rigorous interdisciplinary perspective. Program hallmarks are interdisciplinary teaching and mentoring of fellows by core and affiliated Northwestern faculty engaged in education-focused research. Successful graduates of the program receive a Certificate in Education Sciences in addition to a doctorate in their discipline. Student fellows enter the program at the beginning of their second year. The program provides a stipend, as well as travel and research funds for three years.

Graduate Program in Gender Studies

The Graduate Certificate in Gender Studies is an interdisciplinary program that provides the perspectives of scholarship in gender studies and makes accessible the growing body of knowledge emerging from feminist thought. The program offers graduate students an opportunity to earn a Certificate in Gender Studies. Interested students would be a Masters or Ph.D. candidate in a home department at Northwestern, and would receive the certificate in Gender Studies once the requirements of the certificate had been completed.

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Graduate Program

Graduate Chair: Wendy D. Roth

Graduate Coordinator: Kailey Caldwell

Graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania is conducted through graduate groups formed according to different areas of study. These groups administer programs leading to the AM and PhD degrees. Those seeking a graduate degree in Sociology should apply to the Graduate Group in Sociology. Sociology students earn their MA on the way to the PhD. There is no terminal Master's degree program.

It is possible to earn a joint Ph.D. in Sociology and another discipline by being admitted to and satisfying the requirements of two Ph.D. programs and writing a single dissertation. Currently, students are enrolled in joint degrees with Demography, Education, Communications, and Africana Studies. Students seeking a joint Ph.D. combining Sociology with another program must be admitted in that program (as well as Sociology); admittance to the second program may occur after admission to the Sociology program.

Dual or joint degrees must be sought with the consultation of the Chair of the Graduate Group in Sociology and the Dean of the Graduate Division, School of Arts and Sciences. For admission information for the Department's PhD program or to direct questions to the Graduate Chair, interested parties should contact the Graduate Coordinator.

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 For further information contact Kailey Caldwell : [email protected]

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Dual-Title Degrees

Dual-title degrees are available in Rural Sociology and four options: Demography, Human Dimensions of Natural Resources and the Environment, International Agriculture and Development, or Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.

Rural Sociology and Demography

The Rural Sociology graduate program participates in the multidisciplinary dual-title graduate programs in demography. Interested students are able to earn a dual-title master's and/or doctoral degree in Rural Sociology and Demography.

Dual-title students take additional required courses in demographic theory and methods that fall into four categories:

• Disciplinary survey courses
• Demographic methods
• Seminars in demographic processes
• Elective courses in population studies

The full description of the dual-title program , including all course offerings in the seven affiliated departments is available on-line.

Faculty in Rural Sociology offer demography courses intended to provide students with an understanding of theories and substantive demographic issues in the following areas:

• Health and mortality
• Poverty and inequality
• Population and development

These courses are appropriate for all rural sociology students with substantive interest in these areas, not just dual-title demography students. These courses are also intended to prepare students for comprehensive exams in the demography concentration area.

Rural Sociology and Human Dimensions of Natural Resources and the Environment (HDNRE)

The Rural Sociology graduate program participates in the transdisciplinary intercollege dual-title graduate programs in Human Dimensions of Natural Resources and the Environment (HDNRE). Interested students are able to earn a dual-title master's and/or doctoral degree in Rural Sociology and HDNRE.

Dual-title students take additional required courses including:

• Integrated Perspectives in HDNRE
• Ethical Issues in HDNRE
• HDNRE Colloquium

and select among other required courses which provide a foundation for engaging in HDNRE-related applied and basic research, teaching, and outreach.

The full description of the HDNRE program is available online.

Rural Sociology and International Agriculture and Development (INTAD)

The dual-title M.S. and Ph.D. degree programs allow students to earn a degree in both International Agriculture and Development and their primary program. The dual-degree can increase students' career opportunities by appealing to a wider range of prospective employers. INTAD enables students to develop expertise and skills, as well as acquire practical experience in international agriculture and development, all while maintaining professional identification with their primary discipline.

At the core of the program is the course INTAD 820: International Agricultural Development Seminar. Each seminar session is led by professors from different departments with multiple international experiences and expertise in subject matter and process skills. The focus of this course will change annually to reflect issues in the global arena and faculty interests and expertise. In particular, this course will emphasize analytical thinking and application of knowledge. Students will be challenged to integrate knowledge gained in other classes and to develop an ability to translate and transfer this information into an international context.

Rural Sociology and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS)

The dual-title degrees grounded both in Rural Sociology and WGSS fosters scholarly work across disciplines and increase the intellectual rigor and breadth of graduate work through immersion of candidates in WGSS and Rural Sociology. The dual-title degree will also provide a context in which students can learn to synthesize knowledge within and across disciplinary boundaries. In addition, a dual-title degree program provides students with an opportunity for increased work within a pedagogical framework that encourages an interdisciplinary approach to teaching.

The Department of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies has more information on the dual-title degree .

Prospective students seeking admission to the dual-title degree program should apply directly to Rural Sociology. Each applicant should state that she/he wishes to apply to the dual-title degree in WGSS, and should include in the application a statement of purpose that addresses the ways in which her/his research and professional goals reflect an interest in interdisciplinary and feminist research. Both the WGSS program and the cooperating department will evaluate applications and decide on admission.

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Sociology & Social Policy  

The Ph.D. Program in Sociology & Social Policy constitutes a joint venture linking the Department of Sociology with the Social Policy faculty in the Harvard Kennedy School. This joint Ph.D. program is designed for students whose research interests embrace questions of economic inequality, neighborhoods and spatial segregation, poverty, changing family structures, race and ethnicity, immigration, educational access and quality, political inequalities and participation, and comparative and institutional studies of social policy, particularly in the U.S. and Western Europe. More information on the program can be found on the Harvard Kennedy School website .

Organizational Behavior  

The PhD in Organizational Behavior program is a joint degree offered by the Department of Sociology and Harvard Business School. The doctoral program in Organizational Behavior trains scholars who are able to draw on the concepts and methods of psychology and sociology in conducting research on behavior and management within complex organizations. Students have the choice of focusing their research at either the micro (i.e., psychological, interpersonal) or macro (i.e., sociological, organizational) level. More information about the program is available on the Harvard Business School website .

Graduate Office

660 William James Hall

Office Hours (Fall 2023) Monday, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (remote) Tuesday, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (on campus) Wednesday, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (on campus) Thursday, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (remote) Friday, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. (remote)

Email [email protected]

Phone 617.495.3813

Director  David Pedulla

Program Coordinator Jessica Matteson