Graduate Program
Graduate Sociology Program Officers
Chairperson of the Department: Dr. Fred Kniss
Graduate Program Director: Dr. Anne Figert
Applied Sociology Program Director: Dr. Anne Figert
- About the Sociology Graduate Program: A Tradition of Excellence and Distinction
- Contact the Graduate Program
- Graduate Student Support
- Financial Support
- Counseling and Job Placement
- Facilities and Resources
- Visit our Department
- Applying to the Program
- Application Requirements for the Ph.D. Program for Students with BA or MA Degrees
- Application Requirements for M.A. Programs
- Graduate Student Research Information
- Institutional Review Board
- Navigating the IRB
- Preparation for Conference Presentations
- Graduate Student Activities
- Graduate Association of Sociologists (GAS)
- Graduate Sociology Student Teachers Association (GSSTA)
- Current Graduate Students
- Graduate Student Alumni
- Graduate Student Handbook
- Preface and Intro (MS Word)
- MA program (MS Word)
- Qualification Exams and Special Fields (MS Word)
- PhD Program (MS Word)
- Miscellaneous (MS Word)
- Student Bill of Rights (MS Word)
- Criteria for Awarding Assistantships (MS Word)
- Forms
- General Graduate School Forms
- Graduate Student Course Approval (PDF)
- Departmental Forms
- Special Fields Exam Form #1 (MS Word)
- Special Fields Bibliography Form #1 (MS Word)
- Special Fields Exam Form #2 (MS Word)
- Special Fields Bibliography Form #2 (MS Word)
About the sociology graduate program: A Tradition of Excellence and Distinction
The teaching and research interests of the majority of the department's faculty fit into three broad areas: 1.) Urban Society and Social Policy, 2.) Religion, Knowledge, and Culture, and 3.) Family, Work, and Gender. These are areas where the department has developed exceptional strengths and where we can offer students a program of uncommon depth. But these certainly do not delimit the range of research and teaching interests of the faculty. Other areas include, for example, the study of work-life and organization, health and welfare services, family, work, and gender, women's studies, media, globalization, consumption, aging and the life course, and patterns of criminal behavior.
The Sociology department offers graduate courses in the above areas and others leading to the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), the Master of Arts (M.A.), and to the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree in Applied Sociology. The aim of our graduate program is to advance sociological knowledge through research and theoretical reflection, to develop skillful social scientists and teachers, and to prepare people for research careers in a wide range of organizations (governmental, ecclesiastical, voluntary, health care, business, and social service).
Loyola's program is distinctive in two ways. The first is in its extensive commitment to value-oriented research. This has been most fully institutionalized in the Department's leadership role in the McArthur Foundation funded Policy Research and Action Group (PRAG) and the Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL) through which community organization leaders and academics collaborate as equal partners in research projects. However, students in the whole department are exposed to faculty who are committed to making their research accessible to the wider community. All students are actively invited to participate in collaborative research with local communities, faculty members, and non-profit groups, and all students, including those intending to pursue careers in academe, are encouraged to see the sociologist's role in terms of its possible contributions to the wider community. Variously called "value-oriented," "action" or "participatory," this style of research plays an important role in the Sociology program.
A second way in which the Loyola program distinguishes itself from many others is its genuine commitment to methodological pluralism and classroom skills. All students receive an extensive training in qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Field studies, in-depth interviewing, participant observation, archival research, as well as surveys and sophisticated quantitative data analysis are equally stressed and represented in the department's research and teaching agenda. In addition to prominence in research and professional activities, the faculty work closely with graduate students, from conducting independent research projects, ranging from collecting data to writing articles and reports. The department places strong emphasis on helping students to plan courses and research experiences that fit their own goals and interests, and at the same time take fullest advantage of the distinctive strengths of its faculty.
Our graduate program includes both full- and part-time students, recent undergraduates, persons who have completed an M.A. at a different institution, and returning older adults. To accomodate this diverse student body we work to maintain small class sizes (fewer than 20 students per class) and follow, especially in the basic courses of theory, methods and substantive areas, a lecture-discussion format. Seminar-level courses have even fewer students and focus on particular areas of ongoing research and faculty-student interest. Classes meet once a week for 2 1/2 hours and are usually scheduled in the evening or late afternoon to facilitate those students who must work. All required courses are offered in the evening.
Contact the Graduate Program
For additional details about graduate studies in sociology, contact:
Dr. Anne Figert
Director of Graduate Programs, Department of Sociology
Loyola University Chicago
6525 North Sheridan Road
Chicago, IL 60626
Phone: 773.508.3431
E-mail: afigert@luc.edu
For admissions and financial aid information and for applications materials, contact:
Graduate Enrollment Management
Loyola University Chicago
820 N. Michigan Ave. Suite 800
Chicago, IL 60611
Phone: 312.915.8950