The Sociology Graduate Program at Rutgers helps students to develop a distinct sociological voice while becoming creative and competent working sociologists.  We are a broad and diverse department organized around a number of overlapping research clusters, and we encourage students to find their own distinct location in the rich intersections of the department. 

Historically, the department has had four core areas of specialization, with flexible boundaries between them (many faculty bridge two or more of these areas).  The culture and cognition area focuses on the complex ways in which thought, culturally received symbols and values, and social interaction affect one another. The political and economic sociology area focuses on large scale patterns of social organization, power, and conflict, with a growing emphasis on globalization.  The gender, difference, inequality area focuses on issues of difference and inequality attached to gender, race, ethnic, and class positions. The health, population, and life course area focuses on social factors that affect health and illness, the system of medical care, and the effects of aging (through all phases of the life course) on health.

In addition, a number of other research clusters have recently emerged, due to the overlapping nature of faculty work and interest.  We have an emerging cluster working on criminal justice, focusing on the relationship of crime to family, community, and education.   Another research cluster centers on environment and technology, especially related to development, disaster, and risk.  A third research cluster is emerging on social networks, with a unique focus on the cultural, historical and institutional dynamics of social relations. 

We place a heavy emphasis on writing, encouraging students from early on in the program to develop papers and articles based on original scholarly work.  All of our students write two or three article-length papers before they begin to work on their doctoral dissertation (some of the papers often become the seeds of dissertations).  These papers are often presented at national and regional conferences, as well as in formal and informal workshops in the department (including the required Writing Seminar, which helps students prepare papers for publication).  Most students complete our program with one or more peer-reviewed publications, some in leading journals in the field.  In the past twelve years, our students have won nine "best paper" awards and two “best dissertation awards” from sections of the American Sociological Association, as well as nine additional paper awards from other regional and national associations.