PhD Minor

Students examining old books in a library

Students pursuing a PhD in a program other than sociology may apply for the PhD minor in sociology. PhD students cannot pursue a minor in their own program.

For more information about the PhD minor, please contact Natasha Newson, the department's student services manager.

Requirements

Full University requirements for the PhD minor are described in the Stanford Bulletin and include:

  • A minimum of 30 graduate-level units. All 30 units for the minor must be in courses taught by faculty appointed in the Department of Sociology.
  • A grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) or better. All units must be taken for a letter grade.
    • Students must enroll in the SOC course offerings (not cross-listed sections).  
  • Workshops and colloquia do not count towards the PhD minor.

Exceptions:

  • Five (5) of these units may be taken as an independent study or directed reading with a member of Department of Sociology faculty.
  • Another five (5) units may be taken in a statistics or methods course taught in another department. 

Request a PhD minor

Program proposal

A PhD minor program proposal must be submitted via email to the Director of Graduate Studies and the Student Services Office. 

Your PhD minor proposal must have all sociology or other courses to be applied to the minor listed, including course number, units, and final grades.

Statement of purpose

A short statement of purpose (2 pages) must also be submitted via email to the Director of Graduate Studies and the Student Services Office.

Submit in Axess

After approval from the Director of Graduate Studies, submit the Application for PhD Minor form via Axess. The Application for PhD Minor form must have all approved sociology or other courses to be applied to the minor listed, including course number, units, and final grades.

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