In an effort to continually improve our sociology programs, faculty engage in routine assessment of the curriculum. Through these efforts, faculty and administrators are able to understand the impact and utility of the program for facilitating student success. By identifying areas in need of improvement, the faculty continually evolves the sociology major at Penn State Harrisburg, adjusting it for changing student needs as well as keeping up with current job trends relevant to the discipline. Through program assessment, sociology faculty also demonstrate commitment to providing students with the knowledge and skills that they will need to succeed in their chosen careers. Students can have confidence that the sociology program at Penn State Harrisburg remains up-to-date and relevant.

Program Goals and Objectives

  • Goal 1: Acquire a sociological imagination by learning to see connections between individual lives, social structure and historical change.
    • Objective 1.1: Students will acquire the knowledge base in sociology in order to understand and describe human social behavior in specific social-historical context.
    • Objective 1.2: Students will gain an understanding of how the sociological imagination applies to their own lives.
  • Goal 2: Understand the difference between micro and macro-sociological perspectives and be able to recognize and use both.
    • Objective 2.1: Students will be able to describe and distinguish micro and macro perspectives in sociology.
    • Objective 2.2: Students will be able to apply theories to interpret social phenomena.
  • Goal 3: Develop competence in conducting empirical investigations of social phenomena.
    • Objective 3.1: Students will gain a working understanding of the role of theory in sociological research.
    • Objective 3.2: Students will be able to identify and describe methods for gathering and analyzing sociological data.
    • Objective 3.2: Students will be able to design a basic study to investigate social phenomena.
  • Goal 4: Demonstrate competence in writing appropriate to disciplinary standards.
    • Objective 4.1: Students will be able to write a paper in an appropriate social sciences format.
    • Objective 4.2: Students will be able to employ appropriate citation practices.
  • Goal 5: Learn professional and ethical standards of social science.
    • Objective 5.1: Students will be able to identify ethical codes of conduct in doing sociological research and practice.
  • Goal 6: Understand the diversity of human experience.
    • Objective 6.1: Students will be able to recognize and describe the diversity of human experience.
    • Objective 6.2: Students will be able to compare different ways of organizing social life.
    • Objective 6.3: Students will be able to recognize and describe how diversity is studied as a social problem.