Sociology and Anthropology

Sociology: Major 
Anthropology: Major, Minor

The sociology and anthropology department will challenge you to critically examine continuing and urgent issues of inequality and social marginalization, focusing on complex human interactions in diverse cultures within a globalized world. 

You will learn to analyze structures of power and hierarchy, draw connections between your personal experiences and larger social and historical processes, as well as question preconceived ideas about the nature of society and representation of cultures around the world. Our graduates enter a wide variety of occupations well prepared with sharp analytical skills and as knowledgeable and engaged citizens.

The department combines a humanistic concern for the quality and diversity of human life with a commitment to the empirical analysis of culture and society. The sociology curriculum will give you qualitative and quantitative research skills to tackle pressing 21st century issues. Courses draw attention to history, culture, and social structure and their effects on people’s lives. The anthropology curriculum focuses on human cultural experiences around the world, with an emphasis on the contemporary challenges wrought by globalization. Courses often highlight the geographical areas in which faculty work (Latin America, Asia, and Africa) and focus on a diverse range of topics.

Sociology and Anthropology Department Statement on Black Lives Matter: Racial Justice and Action

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Program Highlights

Classes in sociology and anthropology give students the analytical tools to apply to complex issues that face us in the 21st century, including:

  • Global structures of inequality
  • Race and ethnicity
  • Gender and sexuality
  • Power and class
  • Religion
  • Environment
  • Media and popular culture
  • Health, medicine, and the body
  • Social movements
  • Family and kinship
  • Work and employment
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Opportunities

From internships to study abroad to independent research, opportunities abound for sociology and anthropology students.

Students in a garden
In the Community

Many department courses engage students in community-based learning, where academic learning and civic engagement meet.

Alumni in Rehm Library
Careers

Graduates apply their skills in many careers, including business, health, education, marketing, and non-profits.

Sociology and Anthropology News

Photo courtesy of Valerie Curtis-Newton
Artistic Director Valerie Curtis-Newton ’81 Named One of Seattle’s Most Influential People of the Decade
Valerie Curtis-Newton, Holy Cross graduate of 1981 and an award-winning artistic director, has been named one of Seattle’s most influential people in the past decade by the Seattle Times. Other notable figures making the list include: Amazon founder and CEO …
An elephant walks across a field in front of a large mountain covered in snow
Holy Cross Long-Term Study Abroad Program Ranked No. 1 in the Country
For the 2019-2020 academic year, 261 College of the Holy Cross students are living and studying abroad — in other terms, roughly 8% of the student body is spread out, learning around the globe. Seventy-six of these students are spending …
Mable Millner sits in her office
Mable Millner Looks Back Over a Career Spent Looking Ahead
“The message was so special,” says Mable L. Millner, smiling as she reads a card resting next to a bouquet of flowers on her desk: “‘Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth.'” The …