Degree Requirements

All students are required to complete overall degree requirements in addition to their major.  Please see Degree Completion Requirements for full details for students entering in the 2023-2024 catalog year. 

Those students who started at Hiram prior to the 2023-2024 academic year will follow the Degree Requirements outlined in your catalog of record.

Major Requirements

To satisfy the requirements for the social sciences major, a student must complete a minimum of 41-45 semester hours of coursework to include the required core coursework, a primary area of concentration, a secondary area of concentration, and elective coursework selected from the disciplines below. Transfer students must complete a minimum of half (50%) of their hours of major coursework at Hiram College.

Social Science Disciplines

  • Communication
  • Economics
  • Education
  • History
  • Management (excluding accounting & finance courses)
  • Political Science
  • Psychology
  • Sociology

Advising

Students who choose to major in Social Science will be assigned a major advisor from their primary or secondary area of concentration. Students wishing to major in social science should contact the Academic Advising Office (located in the Student Academic Support suite in the Library.).  

Major Declaration

Students who wish to declare a social science major should consult with a faculty advisor in one of the social science major areas of concentration. Generally, the major advisor will be a faculty member in the student’s primary area of concentration. Once reaching senior status, students should consult with their major advisor to plan for completion of SOSC 48000 SENIOR SEMINAR. 

Required Core Coursework (8-12 credit hours): 

  • Introductory level course in the primary area of concentration (3-4 credit hours)
  • SOSC 21000 RESEARCH METHODS IN SOC SCI:SM (4 credit hours)
  • SOSC 48000 SENIOR SEMINAR (1-4 credit hours)

Primary Area of Concentration (12 credit hours): 

Four courses (at least 12 semester hours) beyond the introductory level must be chosen from one discipline. At least one of these courses must be chosen from the 30000- or 40000-level*. Transfer students must complete at least two of these four courses at Hiram College.

Secondary Area of Concentration (9 credit hours): 

Three courses (at least 9 credit hours) must be chosen from a second discipline. At least one of these courses must be chosen from the 30000- or 40000-level*. Transfer students must complete at least one of these three courses at Hiram College.

Electives (12 credit hours): 

An additional 12 credit hours must be completed as elective coursework chosen from the disciplines listed above. These courses may be distributed across the related programs and disciplines as the student chooses. 

*Note that some disciplines (e.g., history) do not offer coursework at the 30000- or 40000-level. Coursework at the 20000-level will be accepted for those areas of concentration.

Pathway

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Fall 12 WeekHours
UCS 10101 FIRST-YEAR ENDURING QUESTIONS 4
Social Science Introductory Course 1 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
UCS 20201 ADDRESSING URGENT QUESTIONS 4
Primary Concentration Course 2 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 3-4
 Hours3-4
Second Year
Fall 12 Week
Secondary Concentration Course 3 4
Primary Concentration Course 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Elective 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
SOSC 21000 RESEARCH METHODS IN SOC SCI:SM 4
Primary Concentration Course 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
Third Year
Fall 12 Week
UCS 30301 URGENT CHALLENGE SEMINAR:TT 4
Secondary Concentration Course 4
Primary Concentration Course at the 30000/40000-level 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Hiram Core Requirement 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
Secondary Concentration Course at the 30000/40000-level 4
Hiram Core Requirement 4
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 4
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
Fourth Year
Fall 12 Week
SOSC 48000 SENIOR SEMINAR 4
Primary Concentration Course or Secondary Concentration Course - as needed 4
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 4
 Hours12
Fall 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
Spring 12 Week
Primary Concentration Course or Secondary Concentration Course - as needed 4
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 4
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 4
 Hours12
Spring 3 Week
Elective, Second Major, or Minor Course 3-4
 Hours3-4
 Total Hours120-128
1

Students should take the introductory course in their primary area of concentration. Areas of study include:

  • Communication (COMM 10100 FOUNDATIONS OF PUBLIC COMMUN)
  • Economics (ECON 20100 PRIN OF MICROECONOMICS:MM)
  • Educational Studies (EDUC 15000 EDUC CULTURE & SOCIETY:CA,UD)
  • History (10000-level HIST course)
  • Management (MGMT 15500 PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT)
  • Political Science (POLS 10900 AMERICAN GOVERNMENT:CA,ES or appropriate elective)
  • Psychology (PSYC 10100 GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY)
  • Sociology (SOCI 15500 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY:CA)
2

Four courses (at least 12 semester hours) beyond the introductory level must be chosen from one discipline. At least one of these courses must be chosen from the 30000- or 40000-level.

3

Three courses (at least 9 semester hours) must be chosen from a second discipline. At least one of these courses must be chosen from the 30000- or 40000-level.  *Note that some disciplines (e.g., history) do not offer coursework at the 30000- or 40000-level. Coursework at the 20000-level will be accepted for those areas of concentration.