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Dec 06, 2025
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University General Course Catalog 2025-2026
Sociology, M.A.
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 Return to: Programs in the College of Liberal Arts
The Sociology Department offers courses leading to the Master of Arts degree in Sociology. Students may earn the general MA degree in Sociology, or an MA degree in Sociology with a specialization in Social Psychology. Students who plan to apply to the Interdisciplinary Social Psychology PhD program should opt for specialization in Social Psychology.
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Program Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to: - present sociological theory and research to a variety of audiences.
- analyze social-scientific data to test hypotheses and investigate research questions.
- translate a topic of interest into an informed and executable research proposal.
Students in the social psychology plan will also be able to: - present social-psychological theory and research to a variety of audiences.
Contact Information
Clayton Peoples, Ph.D., Graduate Program Director
peoplesc@unr.edu
(775) 784-1855 Department of Sociology
1664 N. Virginia Street, Mail Stop 300
Reno, NV 89557 Department Website:
www.unr.edu/cla/soc Admissions Requirement
Students wishing to apply to the Master of Arts degree program in Sociology must satisfy all Graduate School requirements and specific departmental requirements as specified on the sociology department web site. Students are admitted to the program in both Fall and Spring semesters. The department deadline for application to the graduate program in Sociology is March 1 for Fall and October 1 for Spring semesters I. Program Requirements
Students pursuing a Master of Arts degree in Sociology may opt for the Sociology Thesis Plan, the Social Psychology Thesis Plan, or the Non-thesis Plan. General requirements for Master’s programs: Thesis Plan - Minimum of 30 graduate credits
- Minimum of 18 of these credits earned at the University of Nevada, Reno
- Minimum of 9 credits (not including thesis credits) taken at 700-level
- Masters Students must enroll in 6 to 10 thesis credits for degree completion. With program director approval, internship/externship experiences can count for thesis credits.
- Maximum of 6 credits may be taken with S/U grading
- Maximum of 12 credits completed prior to admission (including transfer credits) 18 credits are allowed if earned from a UNR graduate certificate.
- All requirements (credits) for degree (including transfer credits) must be completed within the period of six years (6) immediately preceding the granting of the degree.
- Continuous enrollment
- Minimum enrollment of 3 graduate credits each fall and spring semester
Non-thesis plan - Minimum of 30 graduate credits
- Minimum of 18 of these 30 graduate credits earned at the University of Nevada, Reno
- Minimum of 12 credits taken at 700-level
- Maximum of 6 credits may be taken with S/U grading
- Maximum of 12 credits completed prior to admission (including transfer credits) 18 credits are allowed if earned from a UNR graduate certificate.
- All requirements for degree must be completed within the period of 6 years immediately preceding the granting of the degree.
- Continuous enrollment
- Minimum enrollment of 3 graduate credits each fall and spring semester
A. Core Courses (10 units)
Students in all three plans must take the one-credit proseminar and three core graduate courses in theory, research methods and statistics. 1. Sociology Thesis Plan
Students in the sociology thesis plan must also complete six thesis credits and 14-15 units of coursework. Courses (14-15 units)
Sociology thesis plan students must also take five additional courses.
Four of the five courses must be 3-unit courses, but the fifth course may be 2 units. See Additional Courses for course options. 2. Social Psychology Thesis Plan
Students in the social psychology thesis plan must complete six thesis credits, six credits of social psychology courses including SOC 709 and one elective, and eight additional graduate credits. Core social psychology course (3 units)
Students in the social psychology thesis plan must take SOC 709. Social psychology elective course (3 units)
Students must take at least one elective course in social psychology from the Department of Sociology. Courses (8 units)
Social psychology thesis plan students must also take three additional courses.
Two of the three courses must be 3-unit courses, but the third course may be 2 units. See Additional Courses for course options. 3. Non-Thesis Plan
Students in the non-thesis plan must take an additional 20 units of coursework and a comprehensive exam. Courses (20 units)
Students must take an additional 20 units of APST/SOC/SRJS course work. See Additional Courses for course options. Comprehensive Exam (1 unit)
Students must pass a written comprehensive examination in theory, a substantive area, and research/statistics. C. Additional Courses (8-20 units)
14-15 units are required for the sociology thesis plan, 8 units are required for the social psychology thesis plan and 20 units are required for the non-thesis plan.
Students who wish to apply other UNR courses towards their degree require written approval from the Director of Graduate Studies.
Acceptable courses include: - APST 663 - Design and Analysis of Experiments (3 units)
- APST 665 - Survey Design and Analysis (3 units)
- APST 667 - Applied Data Analysis and Visualization (3 units)
- APST 670 - Linear Regression and Time Series (3 units)
- APST 705 - Linear and Nonlinear Regression Models (3 units)
- APST 755 - Multivariate Statistical Methods (3 units)
- SOC 605 - Third-World Societies (3 units)
- SOC 609 - Gendered Violence (3 units)
- SOC 620 - Program Evaluation Research (3 units)
- SOC 623 - Sociology of the Body (3 units)
- SOC 624 - Race, Family, and Motherhood (3 units)
- SOC 626 - Community-Engaged Participatory Research Methods (3 units)
- SOC 653 - Gender and Society (3 units)
- SOC 611 - Films and Society (3 units)
- SOC 632 - Advanced Ethnography (3 units)
- SOC 635 - Sociology of (Im)migration (3 units)
- SOC 656 - Life, Death, and Sex: Social Demography (3 units)
- SOC 657 - Society and Health (3 units)
- SOC 658 - Sociology of Mental Health (3 units)
- SOC 660 - Critical Sociology (3 units)
- SOC 663 - Social Psychology of Education (3 units)
- SOC 680 - Sociology of Families (3 units)
- SOC 683 - Family Violence (3 units)
- SOC 684 - Sociology of Death and Dying (3 units)
- SOC 690 - Class, Race and Gender (3 units)
- SOC 693 - History, Culture, Politics, and Society in Turkey (3 units)
- SOC 695 - Work and Occupations (3 units)
- SOC 701 - Individual Reading (1 to 5 units) OR
- SOC 702 - Graduate Research (1 to 5 units)
- SOC 704 - Seminar in Social Organization (3 units)
- SOC 707 - Intermediate Statistics II (3 units)
- SOC 708 - Qualitative Research Methods (3 units)
- SOC 709 - Social Psychology Theory (3 units)
- SOC 717 - Comparative Historical Methods (3 units)
- SOC 718 - Research Methods in Social Psychology (3 units)
- SOC 720 - Seminar in Class Structure (3 units)
- SOC 721 - Political Sociology (3 units)
- SOC 722 - Attitudes: Structures, Function and Change (3 units)
- SOC 723 - Sociology of Religion (3 units)
- SOC 725 - Socialization (3 units)
- SOC 726 - Interpersonal Transactions (3 units)
- SOC 727 - Group Behavior (3 units)
- SOC 728 - Collective Behavior and Mass Society (3 units)
- SOC 729 - Ethnic and Race Relations (3 units)
- SOC 730 - Political Economy of Development (3 units)
- SOC 731 - Advanced Design and Data Analysis (3 units)
- SOC 732 - Social Psychology and Culture (3 units)
- SOC 733 - Social Cognition (3 units)
- SOC 734 - Social Psychology of Gender (3 units)
- SOC 735 - Social Norms and Deviance (3 units)
- SOC 736 - Social Change (3 units)
- SOC 737 - Survey Research Methods (3 units)
- SRJS 720 - Social Justice Colloquium (3 units)
- SRJS 792 - Internship in Social, Research, and Justice Fields (3 units)
II. Program Total Hours
Sociology thesis plan: 30-31 units Social psychology thesis plan: 30-31 units Non-thesis plan: 31 Units Notes
- The sociology and social psychology thesis plans require at least 9 units exclusive of thesis at 700 level. The non-thesis option requires at least 12 units at the 700-level.
- With advisor approval, a maximum of twelve (12) graduate semester units completed prior to admission to graduate standing may be applied to a master’s degree program of study. These units are subject to the approval of the advisory comittee, the director of graduate studies, and the Graduate Dean. Units completed during the semester in which the student is approved for admission are exempt from the twelve (12) unit graduate special limitations. A maximum of 18 (eighteen) graduate units completed from a relevant University of Nevada, Reno graduate certificate may be applied to a master’s degree program of study.
- On a competitive basis, a limited number of teaching and research assistantships are offered to selected students for a period of two years.
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Return to: Programs in the College of Liberal Arts
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