History and Culture

UChicago Sociology is one of the top departments in the world. Founded in 1892, the department has historically established multiple social scientific paradigms such as the demography of Evelyn Kitagawa or urban sociology of Robert Park. Today, the Department continues this tradition but in new ways that are reflective of social life in the 21st century. We maintain our historical strengths in the areas of theory and method, and have evolved into one of the top departments for the study of gender, globalization, political sociology, race, sexuality, and urbanism. Our faculty carry on the Chicago tradition of producing paradigm shifting research driven by some of the most complex and compelling questions of our time.

The Department’s commitment to excellence extends to the training of our Ph.D. students, masters students, and undergraduates. Our graduate students, in the past and present, pursue ambitious ground-breaking dissertation projects that lead to careers such as tenure-track faculty in the academy, community organizers, public service, or the private sector. Our undergraduates similarly pursue a variety of careers in law, health care, nonprofits, or journalism to name a few. Many of our undergraduate majors also go on to pursue a Ph.D. sociology.

Thank you for visiting our website. We invite you to learn more about sociology at the University of Chicago.