About Us

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See, analyze, and critique the often-hidden elements of society and culture.

Our interdisciplinary program gives critical attention to cultural processes, power relationships, patterns of social interaction, historical factors, and social structure.

We offer majors in Anthropology/Sociology (ANSO), and Sociology (SOC).  We also have minors in Anthropology, and Sociology.

Ten full time faculty members offer interdisciplinary perspectives on critical issues in culture and society.

Our course offerings draw from classic and emergent areas of sociocultural study. Our students bring a diverse variety of interests and experiences, with many also majoring in other Arts and Sciences subjects and in the professional schools at Drake. Many students find that a second major in our department complements their first field.

Department faculty have received honors including national awards for their scholarship, outstanding teaching awards within the college, Fulbright scholarships to work internationally, and editorships of key journals in their disciplines.

After Graduation

Graduates in our programs pursue a variety of careers and graduate programs. Some careers include advocacy, public policy, social work, journalism, business, human resources, government agencies, law, criminal justice, higher education, FBI, marketing, politics, medicine, and public health.

Student Opportunities

Travel Seminars: Recent travel seminars led by our faculty include South Africa, Zimbabwe, Jordan, Turkey, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Internships: Students can pursue internship experiences in many places such as nonprofit organizations, politics, advocacy, social services, and corporate settings. Some students have transformed these internships into paid employment.

Speaking Center: The RMSC program coordinates a speaking center to assist in preparing speeches and presentations. Majors can apply to work in the Speaking Center for paid tutoring jobs.

Community Engagement: A few examples of how our students engage with the community:

• Observing juvenile and adult court.
• Meeting with urban planners to explore environmentally sustainable city projects.
• Volunteering at homeless shelters.
• Interviewing and writing life histories to create an online archive of cancer survivors’ stories.
• Learning about religion in diverse communities.

Research: Students have opportunities to work with faculty on research projects and/or design their own research.

Outstanding Student Accomplishments

Recently we have had majors:

• Win national competition for the American Sociological Association’s Honors Program.
• Publish in the Drake University Social Science Journal.
• Participate in the Palestinian American Youth Civic Engagement program in Amman, Jordan.
• Receive the Edward C. Truman Humanities Award for outstanding student in humanities.
• Win a 2018 Newman Civic Fellowship.
• Complete a 10-week AmeriCorps VISTA placement with the Northern Illinois Food Bank.
• Speak at Drake’s graduation as the winner of the exemplary senior Oreon E. Scott Award.