Summary (40 credits)
At least half of the credits required for the major must be completed at Metropolitan State University. Students must earn a grade of C- or above in all major courses. Student should select lower division electives and upper division electives in consultation with an advisor. Transfer courses may be applicable to major requirements. The university's degree audit will specify transfer courses that are directly equivalent to major requirements. Other transfer courses must be approved by a faculty advisor in the department.
+ Lower Division Electives (up to 9 credits)
Students may select lower division courses in anthropology. Students may also select SSCI 100: Introduction to Social Science
+ Survey Course (4 credits)
Choose one:
This course introduces the study of humanity from a comparative and cross-cultural perspective. Students learn what anthropologists do, how they do it, and why. Exposure to the range of human possibilities, differences, and similarities will highlight the processes of enculturation in all societies. The course explores topics such as kinship, economics, religion, social control, globalization, culture change, and contemporary cultural issues affecting all humans.
Full course description for Approaches to Cultural Anthropology
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ANTH 302 Gender and Culture
4 credits
4 credits
What is gender? How can we understand differences in gender and sexuality? Through the perspective of cultural anthropology, students examine how gender is perceived and realized in a range of human societies. Discussions on the biological/cultural determinants of gender are considered. Ethnographic materials explore how gender varies cross culturally and historically and is related to social power. Students engage with contemporary debates surrounding such themes as marriage, family, human rights, and sexuality.
+ Core Courses (17 credits)
All social science majors must complete all four core courses (SSCI 300, SSCI 311, SSCI 411, and SSCI 451/452). Sequencing: SSCI 300, SSCI 311, SSCI 411, and SSCI 451 or SSCI 452. Social science majors may take one core course at a time. Alternatively, majors may take SSCI 300 and SSCI 311 concurrently, or they may take SSCI 311 and SSCI 411 concurrently. SSCI 300, 311, and 411 must be completed before beginning a capstone class (SSCI 451 or 452).
FIRST:
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SSCI 300 Seeing Like a Social Scientist
4 credits
4 credits
Most of us are only dimly aware of how politics, culture, and society influence, and often coerce, our daily lives. The calling of a social scientist is to help us make these invisible social structures visible. In this course, students develop the skills and tools to discover, analyze, and interpret these obscure social processes. Ideally, this knowledge will have a liberating effect on their individual lives. Students will also perceive how their civic and ethical participation can change politics, culture, and society, as well as themselves.
THEN:
This course provides an introduction to the basic concepts of social science research. Students learn and implement a variety of research methods, and critically reflect on the relationship of these methods to philosophical traditions within social science. The courses examines two approaches to social science research, quantitative and qualitative, and the unique contribution of each approach for understanding social life. Experiential activities enhance classroom learning.
Full course description for Research Methods in Social Science
THEN:
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SSCI 411 Theory and Social Problems
4 credits
4 credits
Social scientists study the world so that we may take informed action to solve social problems. In this class, students explore how theory contributes to solving social problems. Students will learn how theorists identify and analyze social problems, as well as offer potential solutions. Special emphasis will be placed on some of the most contested and controversial social problems of our time, such as neoliberalism and its role in deepening economic inequality, climate collapse, and the erosion of democracy globally. Students will also explore issues such as identity politics and oppression based on identity categories, which may include race, gender, sexuality, ability, and nationality. Students will consider how theory helps us to envision and pursue a more just, humane, and sustainable world.
THEN:
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SSCI 451 Empirical Research Capstone
5 credits
5 credits
Social scientists investigate the patterns of human interactions and then seek to interpret, explain and communicate human behavior. This seminar is designed to provide a final, integrating experience for students with a social science major. Seminar participants complete a senior project that demonstrates an ability to design a study, collect new or existing data, analyze those findings and communicate the results.
OR:
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SSCI 452 Conceptual Research Capstone
5 credits
5 credits
The social sciences have been shaping our understanding of the human condition for 175 years. Students will be comparing and evaluating ideas that continue to engage and perplex thoughtful public intellectuals. The capstone project involves researching an idea that remains disputable. The goal of a student's thesis is an independent interpretation of a specific concept.
+ Upper division electives (to reach 40 credits)
Students may select any 300-level courses in anthropology. Students may also take SSCI 401 (Social Science Seminar: Contending Perspectives), which is offered only in the summer.