Suggest Universities - PhD studies in Social Theory

[stjh87]

Hello everyone!

I am a third year student at the Australian National University, majoring in Sociology and Linguistics, and doing a minor in Anthropology (Social).

I will be working on my honours thesis next year and it will probably be on something related to the broad field of social/sociological theory - for example, I am interested in tracing the history and current debates in social theory on issues of objectivism and subjectivism, the ideas around different social ontologies, and their relation to knowledge claims in the social sciences (more specifically in Sociology and Linguistics).

I was wondering if anyone could suggest good sociology departments in the U.S. specializing/focusing on social theory, where I can apply to and pursue a Ph.D? Most ranking lists and other threads in this forum have discussed the different "topical" areas in sociology, but I can't find one that deals with recommending good places to study/pursue a PhD in social theory. Can someone advise me on this? Thanks in advance!!

Also, since everyone has been asking, I was wondering what my chances are for a Ph.D in the U.S?

Just some information about myself:

(1) I am expected to graduate with Second upper/first class honours and a overall mark (for all my courses) of 85/100 percent - which I think converts to a 3.8 out of 4.0 GPA (I'm not sure about this, it might differ from university to university).

(2) Also, I am not in a conventional B.A. program - I am in a Ph.B. program (Bachelor of Philosophy) which places a strong emphasis on independent undergraduate research with different professors - generally, students in our program plan and design specialized topics of interests which we pursue on a one-to-one basis with faculty members. And all of us are on a university scholarship.

(3) I have co-published one paper with a professor (I was the main author) in a peer-reviewed journal in the field of Sociolinguistics. I'm not sure if this will count in applying to a Sociology Ph.D.

(4) I will be doing Sociology courses at UC Berkerly, as well as at the University of Cambridge this coming summer 2011, for exposure and networking sake.

Thanks everyone for your comments in advance!

Sherman

[smokeypup]

Hello everyone!

I am a third year student at the Australian National University, majoring in Sociology and Linguistics, and doing a minor in Anthropology (Social).

I will be working on my honours thesis next year and it will probably be on something related to the broad field of social/sociological theory - for example, I am interested in tracing the history and current debates in social theory on issues of objectivism and subjectivism, the ideas around different social ontologies, and their relation to knowledge claims in the social sciences (more specifically in Sociology and Linguistics).

I was wondering if anyone could suggest good sociology departments in the U.S. specializing/focusing on social theory, where I can apply to and pursue a Ph.D? Most ranking lists and other threads in this forum have discussed the different "topical" areas in sociology, but I can't find one that deals with recommending good places to study/pursue a PhD in social theory. Can someone advise me on this? Thanks in advance!!

Also, since everyone has been asking, I was wondering what my chances are for a Ph.D in the U.S?

Just some information about myself:

(1) I am expected to graduate with Second upper/first class honours and a overall mark (for all my courses) of 85/100 percent - which I think converts to a 3.8 out of 4.0 GPA (I'm not sure about this, it might differ from university to university).

(2) Also, I am not in a conventional B.A. program - I am in a Ph.B. program (Bachelor of Philosophy) which places a strong emphasis on independent undergraduate research with different professors - generally, students in our program plan and design specialized topics of interests which we pursue on a one-to-one basis with faculty members. And all of us are on a university scholarship.

(3) I have co-published one paper with a professor (I was the main author) in a peer-reviewed journal in the field of Sociolinguistics. I'm not sure if this will count in applying to a Sociology Ph.D.

(4) I will be doing Sociology courses at UC Berkerly, as well as at the University of Cambridge this coming summer 2011, for exposure and networking sake.

Thanks everyone for your comments in advance!

Sherman

Most top soc departments in the US do not really have "theory" students. Perhaps looking in europe would be wise. Additionally, you could check political science programs who have a strong theory department--they will likely have faculty who do lots of social theory.

[JohnBom]

There is the committee on social thought at the university of chicago.

[Roll Right]

There is the committee on social thought at the university of chicago.

Qualitative departments will often have a strong emphasis in theory, with at least one professor specializing in the writings of a particular social theorist.

[hoobers]

This isn't my subfield, but I am going to give this answer a shot. I am guessing that by "social theory" you might mean one of three things. If you mean exegeses on the writings of one or more social theorists (e.g., your interpretations of Durkheim or Foucault), then this kind of research is pretty much a ghetto in US sociology: the major journals do not publish this work, and it gets rarely read outside of a very small circle of people. Many departments will have someone studying it, but it's definitely a moribund subfield. Berkeley (Burawoy, Fourcade) and NYU would be the places to do it, though I am not sure I would recommend it career-wise. I suspect it might be better in Britain.

To a lesser extent, the same holds for another meaning of "social theory"--the production of largely non-empirical comprehensive accounts of the social world operate (e.g., Marxist theory, feminist theory). It's easier to find people who do this kind of work, even in major departments--however, your prospects for being published in a good American soc journal are still pretty low, as are your aspects of getting a top-tier job afterwards. If you do not care about these kinds of things, then you can find lots of people to work with (I am guessing especially at NYU); however, this kind of work is much more at home in US anthropology or in comparative literature. It is a major part of the discipline in Britain, however.

Finally, by "social theory" you might mean the analytical philosophy of the social world (e.g., questions about social ontology, micro-macro links, meaning of causation). Unlike the previous two meanings, this kind of work is simply rare in US sociology: it is much more common in philosophy departments. I've not seen much of it make it to major Soc journals either, though my guess is that this is in part because there is just very little such work submitted. I don't think your odds would be as bad as with the first two types of theory, though it is again a very tiny subfield. Some people to consider studying this with are Swedberg (at Cornell) or JL Martin (at Chicago). In the UK, Oxford would be the place to go (Hedstrom).

Anyway, good luck with your search. This isn't an easy subfield to get situated in, though this doesn't mean you can't do it. But once again, if it's one of the first two kinds you are after, I would recommend looking outside of the US.

P.S., I am borrowing my typology from Gabriel Abend (2008). Look it up if you are interested in just how confused the concept of "theory" is in sociology.

Edited January 17, 2011 by hoobers

[stjh87]

Thanks everyone for their replies... I really appreciate it!

@ hoobers: Thanks in particular for the long explanation. Yes, I have considered all the three meanings of "theory" you explained, and I would say that they are certainly interrelated in one way or another. For myself, I am tending towards the second and third meanings of "theory" in my studies - I would consider that the study of "paradigms" or "schools of thoughts" in sociology and the study of the philosophy of social science, respectively. I really appreciate you explaining how the prospects are for each "type" of theory - I think I will eventually keep grad studies in the U.K. and Europe open too! I might also consider NYU and Chicago, the latter especially for their connection with the committee on social thought. Again, thanks for your help!

Edited January 17, 2011 by stjh87

[zsoc]

hoobers' explanation was very good, I think. That paper by Abend is really interesting as well.

I am also interested in Social Theory (1, 2, AND 3 in fact) so I had to do some serious scouring for applicable programs. I would also add Yale's program to the list, as Jeffrey Alexander's work has been hugely important, if controversial, over the past few decades.

The good part is that if you like to use theory as a sort of intellectual anchor for your own work, there seems to be a definite place for that in certain journals (regressions and network analysis are still the kinds of things that dominate 'top' journals like ASR and AJS). More than anything, I think that solidly original, well-thought-out, and carefully executed research is what will get you noticed in the more theory-friendly corners of sociology.

Good luck stjh87! Your ideas sound really interesting.

[stjh87]

hoobers' explanation was very good, I think. That paper by Abend is really interesting as well.

I am also interested in Social Theory (1, 2, AND 3 in fact) so I had to do some serious scouring for applicable programs. I would also add Yale's program to the list, as Jeffrey Alexander's work has been hugely important, if controversial, over the past few decades.

The good part is that if you like to use theory as a sort of intellectual anchor for your own work, there seems to be a definite place for that in certain journals (regressions and network analysis are still the kinds of things that dominate 'top' journals like ASR and AJS). More than anything, I think that solidly original, well-thought-out, and carefully executed research is what will get you noticed in the more theory-friendly corners of sociology.

Good luck stjh87! Your ideas sound really interesting.

Thanks zsoc! It's great to find someone who shares the same interests. I'd love to find out more about your research areas/topics - do contact/add me on academia.edu - http://anu.academia.edu/ShermanTan/About is my profile there. Yeah, I still have a year of undergrad studies to go, so I will probably discover new areas of interests along the way. So i suppose I'll just see how things go.

[ZoeWeber]

Sherman, when I first talked to my professors about my plans of going to grad school, they immediately suggested Brandeis at Boston; or The New School for Social Research in New York. This because they thought, due to my inclinations, that I was going to focus on social theory only. At the end I didn't applied to any of those schools. This decision had nothing to do with their programs; in my limited opinion they are both terrific. Trouble is they offer limited funding and the cost of living in Boston... not to talk New York City; is high.

Although I do plan to work a lot on social theory, I want to work on other topics as well. Anyway, best of luck with your grad school journey. About the "Am I a good applicant or not" part I can't really tell you because I'm applying for this fall, still haven't got any news from schools and I'm still very unsure of how the system works. For sure, your co-published paper should be part of your application, at least as a CV reference.

Best!

Edited January 19, 2011 by ZoeWeber