The Department of Sociology at Western Michigan University offers both the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees.  Each program focuses on building solid foundations in the core areas of theory and method.  In addition, we offer areas of concentration in comparative sociology, race and ethnic relations, gender and feminism, social psychology, criminology, social theory, and research methods/applied sociology.  We have a distinguished faculty who are recognized both nationally and internationally for outstanding contributions in their respective fields of study.  We hope you will take a few minutes to explore the faculty's individual web pages, vitae, and descriptions of their work.

We pride ourselves on establishing strong mentoring relationships with our graduate students.  With small courses and a faculty of 21, we provide ample opportunity for one-on-one intellectual discussion and we strongly encourage active involvement in faculty-student research projects.  Opportunities for development of professional research skills are also available in our research center, the Kercher Center for Social Research.

The Department of Sociology offers generous financial aid packages that include both assistantships and fellowships.  In addition, funding through several university programs is available to qualified students.  The department's endowment fund supports and facilitates outstanding graduate student scholarship through its dissertation research grants and conference travel grants.

With an enrollment of some 23,000 students, Western Michigan University has been designated a research university with high research activity by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.  The Department of Sociology offers one of the university’s oldest and strongest graduate programs.  We are committed to building a diverse community of scholars, each dedicated to quality teaching and innovative research.