1.5 Sociology and Careers

LO 1.5: Connect sociology to careers.

The last section of this chapter focuses on the skills that students studying sociology develop. These sociological skills can lead to a career that is sociology-focused (like in human services or research) (see Figure 1.6) or complement careers outside of sociology (like business, education, and healthcare). Employers value sociological skills and are useful in a variety of work settings. Sociological skills include: 

1. Apply a variety of perspectives to understand social behavior and trends
2. Identify and evaluate explanations of social behavior and trends
3. Use social scientific methods
4. Evaluate the quality of social scientific data
5. Collect and analyze social scientific data
6. Educate the public on social science research
7. Communicate social science research in plain language
8. Recommend policy based on social science research

A background in sociology prepares people to create and consume scientific research. However, many sociology graduates work in human service occupations. Human service occupations include caseworkers and counselors. If one’s career plans include working in human service occupations, then they could include the following on a resume: 

1. Understanding of how race, class, and gender inform people’s decision-making. 
2. Ability to identify and describe structural solutions to social problems.