Sociology and Anthropology

Sociology: Major 
Anthropology: Major, Minor

The sociology and anthropology department will challenge you to critically examine continuing and urgent issues of inequality and social marginalization, focusing on complex human interactions in diverse cultures within a globalized world. 

You will learn to analyze structures of power and hierarchy, draw connections between your personal experiences and larger social and historical processes, as well as question preconceived ideas about the nature of society and representation of cultures around the world. Our graduates enter a wide variety of occupations well prepared with sharp analytical skills and as knowledgeable and engaged citizens.

The department combines a humanistic concern for the quality and diversity of human life with a commitment to the empirical analysis of culture and society. The sociology curriculum will give you qualitative and quantitative research skills to tackle pressing 21st century issues. Courses draw attention to history, culture, and social structure and their effects on people’s lives. The anthropology curriculum focuses on human cultural experiences around the world, with an emphasis on the contemporary challenges wrought by globalization. Courses often highlight the geographical areas in which faculty work (Latin America, Asia, and Africa) and focus on a diverse range of topics.

Sociology and Anthropology Department Statement on Black Lives Matter: Racial Justice and Action

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Program Highlights

Classes in sociology and anthropology give students the analytical tools to apply to complex issues that face us in the 21st century, including:

  • Global structures of inequality
  • Race and ethnicity
  • Gender and sexuality
  • Power and class
  • Religion
  • Environment
  • Media and popular culture
  • Health, medicine, and the body
  • Social movements
  • Family and kinship
  • Work and employment
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Opportunities

From internships to study abroad to independent research, opportunities abound for sociology and anthropology students.

Students in a garden
In the Community

Many department courses engage students in community-based learning, where academic learning and civic engagement meet.

Alumni in Rehm Library
Careers

Graduates apply their skills in many careers, including business, health, education, marketing, and non-profits.

Sociology and Anthropology News

screenshot of virtual class
Syllabus: Family Life in Turbulent Times
The class, which studies how families adjust to patterns of immbolity in turbulent times, takes on new meaning in the pandemic
screenshot of virtual class
Syllabus: Family Life in Turbulent Times
It’s nearing the end of April and students in the Sociology 399 course, Family Life in Turbulent Times, have been in lockdown various times over the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That experience, as it turns out, provides …
Selina Gallo-Cruz, associate professor of sociology. Photo by Tom Rettig
Holy Cross Sociology Professor Awarded Fulbright Scholarship to Study City Climate Planning
Holy Cross’ Selina Gallo-Cruz, associate professor of sociology, has received a Fulbright Scholar award for 2021-2022 to study city climate planning, according to the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Jointly funded by Fulbright …