Department of Sociology

What is Sociology?

According to the American Sociological Association, Sociology is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the structure of groups, organizations, and societies and how people interact within these contexts. The Cal Poly Pomona program in Sociology offers courses in race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, immigration and migration, urban sociology, Latinx sociology, Asian American sociology, Black sociology, contemporary and classical sociological theory, and quantitative and qualitative methodology.

 The Sociology major includes two options: General Sociology and Social Work.

What is Criminology?

Criminology examines the social and institutional mechanisms that amplify societal understandings of crime and the criminal justice system. The Cal Poly Pomona program in Criminology offers courses in juvenile delinquency, criminological theory and methods, crime analysis, drug policy, sociology of terrorism, and crime and media.