Skills for Success in Sociology




Skills for Success Sections

Course focuses on generic skills needed for university and career success and democratic citizenship. Includes critical literacy, numeracy, research, analysis, and skills essential to everyday survival in academic environment. All skills developed through the process of active and collaborative learning. Participants work with others and apply insights to everyday life.
Course Dynamics
Course Dynamics


Introduction to principles underlying collaborative and active learning. Placement in learning groups. Explanation of roles and responsibilities of professors and students. Development of expertise in learning group management and conflict resolution.

Survival Skills
Survival Skills


How to find help with personal and academic problems before become critical. Everyday skills needed in university environment including how to take notes, how to read effectively, time management, and how to write tests. The relevance of survival skills to future jobs. All developed through dealing with real scenarios, case studies, and questions.

Thesis in Sociology
Thesis in Sociology


What is a thesis? What is the difference between a topic and a thesis. How to develop a thesis of relevance for academic papers. The centrality of a thesis to the writing process. Distinctions between explicit and implicit theses.

Research in Sociology
Research in Sociology


Focuses on how to identify information relevant to theses or arguments in papers etc. Online and other sources of relevant information. Differences between scholarly and non-scholarly information. Appropriate use of each. What constitutes evidence? How to distinguish between good and bad evidence. Use of research in job contexts.

Writing in Sociology
Writing in Sociology


Deals with grammar; paragraph construction; essay, report, and book review writing; plagiarism, referencing and footnote usage. Emphasis on writing, re-writing, and identifying errors in writing of others. Relevance of writing to future jobs. Given the centrality of this skill, utilization of the skills developed will be expected continually throughout the course.

Numeracy and Analysis in Sociology
Numeracy and Analysis in Sociology


Focuses on basic skill necessary to calculate elementary measures such as standard deviation. Examination of different types of arguments embodied in sociological texts and how to identify them (inductive, deductive, hypothetical-deductive, inverse-deductive); synthesizing different views; identifying bias; assessing credibility of argument. Occupational applications.

Careers in Sociology
Course Dynamics


What careers are open to sociology majors? What are employers looking for? Subject matter expertise? Generic skills? Personal characteristics? Identification, and discussion, of prominent individuals with background in sociology. What level of education required to get good job?