The Department of Sociology and Anthropology also offers a specialization in health and the environment.
General Education Specifications:
All TCNJ students must take one course in Mathematics as part of their liberal learning requirement. We specify that sociology majors choose one of the following options:
- STA 115 Statistics I
- STA 215 Statistics 215
We also recommend that students in the health and environment specialization choose biology to fulfill the scientific reasoning requirement.
Department Core Requirements: (4 courses)
Department Core Requirements (4 units)
SOC101 – Introduction to Sociology (or HON216 – The Sociological Perspective)
Sociology explores the intersection of biography and history. Students learn the basic foundations of sociology, including its development as a field of inquiry, early sociological theory, an methodology. The course also analyzes social organization, addressing culture, class, race, sex, family, medicine, business, religion, education, and government affect our lives. Special attention is paid to the impact of society on self and understanding social structure.
Grade Minimum: B-
SOC301 – Development of Socio-Cultural Theory
Prerequisites: SOC101 or HON216
The response of social theorists to the consequences of the industrial revolution and the issues of capitalism, secularism, industrialism, modern consciousness, and the socio-critical enterprise, seen through the work of such theorists as Marx, Durkheim, and Weber. Contemporary development of these theories will also be discussed.
Grade Minimum: C
SOC302 – Quantitative Research Methods
Prerequisites: SOC 101 or HON 216 and STA 115 or STA 215
The course is designed to familiarize students with quantitative research methodology, methods of quantitative data collection, and analysis of quantitative data used in sociology. Students will learn one of the most widely used statistical software packages in the social sciences (SPSS) and conduct independent research using on of the most widely used sources of quantitative social data, the General Social Survey (GSS).
Grade Minimum: C
SOC499 – Senior Seminar in Sociology
Prerequisites: SOC301, SOC302, and the Tutorial
Culminating experience for sociology majors. Course draws on skills and knowledge of sociology course as well as knowledge gained from the liberal arts broadly construed. An internship is a major required element of the seminar. With departmental approval only, exceptional students may substitute two semesters of SOC 495: Senior Thesis in Sociology for SOC 499.
Grade Minimum: C-
HES Specialization Requirements: (6 courses)
The health & environment specialization examines human health and it’s relationship with the non-human environment, two inextricably linked areas of study. Related professions require students to have strong skills in understanding diverse populations, quantitative and qualitative research methods, critical thinking, and communication. At least four courses must be at the 300 or 400 level (from specialization core and the options).
Select two courses from the specialization core:
Human Evolution (ANT250)*
Physical anthropology and archaeology. Human biological and cultural evolution and adaptation. Evidence, principles, and processes of change. Human variation. Influences of culture on human evolution.
Epidemiology (ANT 240)*
Covers the basic principles of epidemiology e.g., study design, measures of association, biases and confounding variables, disease detection, and risk analysis. It emphasizes critical thinking, the limitations of current conceptual and methodological approaches in epidemiology, ethical and social justice considerations and socio-cultural aspects of public health, using examples from epidemiological studies carried out in the Unit States and internationally.
Dynamics of of Cultural Ecology (ANT 341)
Interrelationship between environment and culture. Environmental factors in adaptation, selection, and evolution of human populations. Cultural ecological approach illustrated by hunting and gathering, pastoral, horticultural, and peasant societies.
Inequality, Pollution, and Environment (SOC 345)
Environmental sociology applies the sociological imagination to human interaction with the non-human environment. Topics addressed include: social/environmental theory, the social origins of environmental problems (such as ozone depletion, deforestation, and water pollution), environmental inequality, environmental racism/environmental justice, and the social history of land use, both in New Jersey and around the world.
Culture, Health, and Illness (ANT/SOC 372)
Provides a critical perspective in understanding how values, beliefs, conflict, economic and social condition influence how illness is defined, how healthcare is viewed and delivered. Social Epidemiology, the sick role, bio-ethics, unequal access to healthcare, women’s health issues, and cross-cultural approaches to medicine are discussed.
Global Public Health (ANT/SOC 372)
The impact of culture, social structure, economics, and politics on the health and illness and public health policies in both the developing and developed world. War, genocide, terrorism, guerrilla insurgencies, the global economy, and international travel are viewed as public health issues. Obesity, emerging disease (such as SARS), the idea of being a “stakeholder” in society and genetics are also discussed.
US Public Health and Social Policy (ANT/SOC 373)
This course focuses on the structure and practice of US public health. Students will assess public health policy within a historical and institutional framework, and deal with major areas of contemporary debate, including health inequalities, the organization of medical insurance, and the social organization of healthcare.
*If ANT 205 and/or ANT 240 are taken to fulfill the core specialization requirement, three/four specialization electives selected from following list must be at the 300 or 400 level.
**Exceptions- the following courses offered in FALL 2012 will count towards the Health & Environment Specialization Core Requirements and the Health & Environment Specialization Electives:
POL 370-03 Environmental Political Theory with Dr. Michael Nordquist. Meets M/R 2:00-3:20
Specialization Electives (4 Courses)
| At least two specialization electives must be from the SOC or ANT offerings and at least two must be 300 level or above. Additional specialization core classes may count towards specialization electives. If ANT 205 or ANT 240 is taken to fulfill the core specialization requirement, additional specialization electives from following list must be at the 300 or 400 level. Courses not listed below may be approved by the department chair on a case by case basis. |
- Racism, Power, and Privilege (SOC 315)
- Community, City, and Suburbs (SOC 320)
- Urban Population Dynamics (SOC 330)
- Social and Cultural Change (SOC 336)
- Introduction to Urban Planning (SOC 355)
- Poverty and Welfare in the U.S. (SOC 365)
- Inequality, Pollution, and the Environment (SOC 345)
- Topics in Anthropology: Hunters & Gatherers (ANT 370)
- Politics of Community Change (POL 318)
