Sociology Major

Studying sociology is a journey of understanding how societies work and how people, institutions and groups behave and interact within them.

Using the rigor of sociology theory and methods, sociology majors or minors study how societies function and the ways people influence each other through institutions, organizations and groups.

On this academic journey, you will explore topics such as urban life, family relations, race and ethnicity, social class, social and religious movements, aging and gender roles.

You’ll observe and analyze these topics from two vantage points: the social sciences and the humanities, with both views grounded in social theory and research.

Sociology can be combined with majors in Public Policy Analysis and Gender & Women’s Studies.

Professor Lynn Rapaport explains what makes Pomona’s sociology major special.
In class with Professor Gilda Ochoa
In class with Professor Gilda Ochoa
In class with Professor Gilda Ochoa
In class with Professor Gilda Ochoa
In class with Professor Hung Cam Thai
In class with Hung Cam Thai

What You’ll Study

    • One introductory sociology course
    • Qualitative research methods
    • History and development of sociological theories
    • Four sociology electives
    • Senior thesis
1922
In 1922, Pomona College hired its first professor trained in sociology, William Kirk.

Learning at Pomona

Sunny Monaco

Understanding Social Phenomena

With such courses as Sociology of Violence, Immigration and Second Generation, and Sociology of Space and Time, Sunny Monaco ’25 has an explanatory framework for past, present, and future social phenomena.

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Bryan Thomas ’24
Bryan Thomas ’24

Studying sociology has given me a channel through which to understand and learn from the lives of other people and the factors influencing their lives so that I can better understand my own life and place in the world.

Faculty & Teaching

Among our professors are experts in political and global-transnational sociology, the effects of work and aging on marriage, Latino/a immigration, the sociology of popular culture, and contemporary Asian American issues. Their perspectives will expand yours, both in the classroom and as they mentor you in your own research.

Professor Lynn Rapaport

We think that we're the broadest of the disciplines, and also, we take the most critical stance and most critical point of view. When you finish a sociology class, what the students often tell me is that it changes the way that you think, and it changes the way that you see the world.