THS

I would read the textbook and then look up some theory texts. Classical and contemporary is normally the distinction in Soc. While I did my MA in anthropology and am looking to do my PHD in Sociology I'll probably take this second step (although many of the theorists overlap). You can also buy and read a methodology text. Yes it is specific and it helps to have at least a general understanding before you start a program. Since you are starting an MA you don't need to have a specific project in mind, but it won't hurt to have an area that you are interested in outside of "sociology". As you'll soon learn if accepted to one of these programs, sociology is a broad field because it studies people and societies and so there are many types of sociology. Hope this helps!

If you need a long distraction the Outlander Series is great- I recommend the books on tape for long walks (perfect for a distracting story and stress management time). Pretty much my audible has no unlistened too books now. This is a cool thread- I'm excited to check out some of these titles.

spare wheel

meatball mind

Hi! I am just finishing an MA in Applied Anthropology and applying to PHD's in Sociology- so I can tell you about grad school and explain why I am making the switch and it might help answer your question. So I did a mixed methods project in my field and found it very hard to get support for my quant stuff...my advisor actually made me take every graph and chart out of my quant chapter rather than present the findings in the way I've seen many journal articles do. My survey had ~350 responses and I also did interviews ~53. All that said I have a great background in mixed methods and a great background in qualitative methods. I now want to get more support and education on my quant methods which is why I am making the jump to sociology. In theory anthropology and sociology are very similar (in methods too). There are some marked differences, but largely the two fields share a great deal. So that's my story. To answer your question if you ware looking at Soc then you are looking at a field that is a little more quant heavy. Anthropology is a good jump if you would like to do an MA, are interested in social science thoery, but want to focus on qualitative work. Hope this answer helps!

Born wild

Thunder Bird

Bad bird

I would get a few theory books (intro-y kinds). Amazon will have some options, but I always find that the more time I have with theory the better. I did this before I started my MA program in Anthropology in 2014 and I plan on doing the same this summer before starting a PHD in Sociology. You'll have to read the theorists actual work when you start the program, but this will give you the context that those who majored in the social sciences have when they start the program with you. As the person above said, however, a lot of people will have backgrounds outside the field.

Hi all! The waiting game is officially the worst. I applied to 13 programs and the worry of "what if you don't get in anywhere" is just really bad today. I think I have a decent shot- I am finishing up an MA in Applied Anthropology with a 3.9 GPA and a huge research project under my belt (plus an internship, 3 conference papers, and second research project)...but you never know, right? So here's to wishing everyone who applied luck and hopefully we'll all know soon!

Thanks for staritng this! I accidently posted in the wrong thread earlier (I don't really use chat rooms much) but waiting is the worst!

Thanks haha I somehow found the status part in the link and didn't read the whole thing!

Posted in wrong place!