The Pros and Cons of Pursuing a Sociology Degree

This article was written based on the information and opinions presented by Ronni Shaw in a CollegeVine livestream. You can watch the full livestream, Majoring in Sociology, on CollegeVine for more info.

 

What’s Covered:

• The Workload of Sociology Majors
• Career Paths with a Sociology Degree
• Getting an Internship as a Sociology Major

 

 

In this article, we will discuss the pros and cons of getting a sociology degree, from the type of workload to potential career paths. We also provide some guidance on how to get an internship as a sociology major. If you are looking for colleges that have sociology majors, check out our post here for more information.

 

The Workload of Sociology Majors

 

It is often thought by students that sociology is an easy major, but there is a lot of work that goes into it. There are many different topics and ideas covered within this field of study, which involves a lot of reading.The sheer volume of texts you are expected to read from a variety of sources can be challenging. Sociology majors are often the students spending very long nights in the library with piles of books stacked around them. 

 

With a sociology degree, there’s always something new to explore. As with any major, you will need  internship and work experience to help you get entry-level jobs or into graduate school. The plus side to sociology degrees is that there are a lot of interesting internships and study abroad programs for these majors. This allows you to widen the areas of study you are interested in and can help build your resume.

 

Career Paths with a Sociology Degree

 

A sociology degree looks great on your resume. It shows that you understand what it means to do research and that you can think critically about a variety of topics. It also provides you with diverse career path opportunities With roots in politics, social justice, economics, statistics, and more, sociologists are able to understand and influence social reforms in various fields. The skills you learn while getting  a sociology degree are very transferable to a variety of jobs and graduate schooling options. Having been exposed to all of these topics, you can tackle many different problems no matter the career path you choose. 

 

After graduating with a sociology degree, one of the cons that come with your career will most likely involve you researching social and justice inequalities in our world. This is not always an emotionally easy thing to do. Working in this field, you will naturally reflect on your own life and how these social forces, such as racism and sexism, have shaped your life. The advantage to this is you will gain a higher level of self-awareness and self-confidence. You can then use this to tackle the challenges our society faces today. 

 

Getting an Internship as a Sociology Major

 

When looking for a sociology internship, people are your friend. Ask your professors and counselors if they know of any opportunities available for sociology majors. Oftentimes your college will post open internships on the career board, so this will also be a great place to look for specific opportunities. 

 

Overall, your ability to network both inside your classes and with professors outside of your classes will be your best chance at getting an internship. A sociology degree is a people-focused major and developing your network early will help your career in the long run. Having a strong network will also allow you to be exposed to and learn from a diverse group of people.  This is a very important tool when it comes to making a career out of social reform.