Honors Program

The Honors Program in Sociology gives majors the experience of doing original research culminated in a senior honors thesis. Students take a three-course sequence of courses across their junior and senior years, working closely with faculty and students in the program to design their own project, gather and analyze data, and write and present the work.聽

How to Apply

  • Write an essay of not more than 500 words that states:
    • Why you want to write a senior thesis
    • What benefits you think you will get from participating in the honors program
  • Ask one instructor in the sociology department to write a letter of referance on your behalf.
  • Email these materials to Professor Alyssa Goldman by October 1 of your junior year.

Course Requirements for the Honors Program

Once admitted to the program, students take:

  1. SOCY4931: Important Readings in Sociology. This course is usually taken in spring of the junior year. If students accepted to the Honors Program decide to study abroad during spring of their junior year, they will take Important Readings during the spring of their senior year. The course covers some of the most engaging classics of sociological research. Additionally, juniors will complete a thesis proposal.

  2. SOCY4961: Senior Honors Thesis Seminar. This course is taken in fall of the senior year. In this class, students choose a faculty advisor, design their research project, obtain approval from the Boston College Institutional Review Board (IRB), and expand their literature review.

  3. SOCY4963: Senior Honors Thesis. This course is taken in the spring term of the senior year. The course is an independent study between the student and faculty advisor. Students complete data collection and analysis, and writing of the thesis. Students deposit their thesis at the University Libraries, and create a scientific poster to disseminate their results to the Sociology department.

The Honors program can be linked with other university opportunities.

Projects undertaken as聽Advanced Study Grants聽can evolve into honors projects. Beginning in the summer after junior year, honors students with a cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher may participate in the聽Scholar of the College聽program. Honors projects can also result in prestigious awards, such as the聽McCarthy Prize. Some honors students even聽publish聽their聽thesis聽work.

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