Career Options: Sociology

Studying sociology helps you understand the social character of human life and the ways in which social organizations influence us. Sociology's subject matter is very wide dealing with issues at both the micro as well as the macro level of analysis. Its focus ranges from the interactional level to the structural one. Its range varies from the way family members interact with each other to the analysis of social revolutions; from problems of racial conflict to the study of the ageing process; from the way people are socialized to finding patterns of crime in society. Because it studies the behavior of both people and groups, it is ideal for students who hope to pursue careers in law, business, health professions or social science. 

Skills of Successful Sociologists

When choosing to major in sociology, you will develop many skills that will help you in many careers such as: 

• Ability to recognize trends and patterns by having a keen eye for detail and a gift for spotting relationships between pieces of information that seem abstract to others.
• Ability to create concise reports and essays and adjusting your writing to cater for different audiences.
• Strong critical thinking skills built up through a number of challenging assignments that will teach you how to solve problems and identify opportunities in your own research.
• Oral presentation skills that will allow you to develop the ability to speak comfortably and clearly in front of crowds. This will prove very beneficial whether pursuing a career in academia, presenting information to government agencies, funding panels, or audiences at professional conferences.
• Interpersonal communications skills that will help you conduct effective interviews and work as part of a team, be sensitive to people and problems, acquire knowledge of human relationships and social processes, as well as assess people's needs.
• Develop skills in modern data and analysis technology that will enable you to spot trends sooner and generate results faster. You will be able to gather and analyze information, develop strong problem solving skills, compare and clarify things, review and evaluate projects and ideas, acquire knowledge of survey research methods, develop computer and statistical skills, learn about sampling techniques, manipulate numerical data and solve quantitative problems.
• Management skills because you will need the help of personnel and other team members to conduct research. Hence, you will learn how to motivate people to do their work efficiently as well as manage making people with different specialties work together.
• Planning and organizational skills. You will learn how to plan and design projects, accomplish tasks in a certain time frame and as efficiently as possible, set and meet deadlines. 
  

"What can I do with a major in sociology?”
A degree in Sociology provides many career opportunities. Students with a bachelor's degree can often secure employment as research assistants, data analysts or as case workers. Advanced degrees are generally required for consulting work, administrative positions, college teaching, or certain research jobs.

Examples of the employment areas entered by Sociology graduates are: 

Business and Research Public Administration Health & Social Work Education Community and Social Service Communication

• You would be well prepared to work in administrative positions, particularly in government and public agencies that administer human services. You could become a community affairs officer, an environmental planner and researcher, a human resource manager, a human rights officer, a personnel coordinator, a planning officer, a project manager, a public health service worker, a researcher, an urban/regional planner, a hospital administrator, or a cultural and environmental resource manager.
• Some Sociologists research consumer trends and work with market researchers to discover new opportunities to meet the public's needs tying sociology to business. Some corporations employ sociologists to study the social effects of major projects like plant relocations or store openings on the community. Sociologists also help product designers understand the overall trends shaping consumer culture and give advice on the type of products that could sell. Hence, you could work as an advertising officer, data entry manager, labor relations officer, market analyst, merchandiser/purchaser, production manager, project manager, public relations officer or quality control manager.

• Many governments hire sociologists to understand the impact of tougher laws on neighborhoods. You can work with detectives to help anticipate crime by identifying criminal patterns in certain areas thereby allowing officials to enforce law more effectively. This helps improve the quality of life in areas considered as dangerous. Sociologists can also help officials determine the effects of new programs and regulations on prisoners. You could become a forensic analyst specialist or a rehabilitation program worker.

• A person with a sociology degree may choose to pursue a career in education. A bachelor's degree and teaching certificate are adequate for teaching classes such as political science, history, and social science at the high school level. PhD level graduates may pursue careers at the college and university level. Your skills can qualify you to be an academic evaluator, academic administrator, college placement worker, public health educator, public school teacher, school admissions officer, undergraduate and graduate educator and researcher or a career counselor.

• Newspapers and local broadcast news outlets employ sociologists to help understand the kinds of stories that appeal to readers, viewers, and listeners in a particular region. You can become a journalist or a publishing officer.

• Sociology degree holders can play numerous roles in the political community. Campaign managers hire sociologists to help them during a political campaign. By understanding voting patterns and the concerns of the voters, sociologists can provide valuable advice during election time.
• In governmental organizations, sociologists analyze patterns that can affect the political and economic balance of the country. By examining the trends in housing construction, measuring the number of migrants to the city, managing census programs, they can help assess whether certain decisions are beneficial or not. They can shed a clear picture on the challenges faced by urban centers and advise lawmakers on what to do. They can help in community affairs by working as a homeless/housing worker, housing coordinator, community development officer, community organizer, cultural and environmental resource management officer, resident planning aide, rural health outreach worker, or a welfare worker.

• Some sociology professionals decide to have a career as independent research consultants who examine trends in human behavior for a variety of clients.  Census officer/analyst, consumer researcher, data analyst, demographer/population analyst, market researcher, social research specialist, survey researcher, systems analyst

• As life expectancy increases, many organizations and government agencies are hiring sociologists to study the effects of an ageing population on society. Sociologists also examine the challenges that young people face when interacting with people of other generations. Your skills can help you become a public health outreach worker, a social assistance advocate, a youth outreach worker or a social gerontologist.