Best Sociology Programs in South Carolina for 2027

Clemson offers sociology as a BS or a BA, and the difference shows up in the electives: the BS adds math and science courses, while the BA requires a four-semester modern language sequence. Every major then picks one of three emphases. Community Studies and Social Services each include an internship, placing you in local communities or social service institutions, and General Sociology keeps the focus broad. Topics run from poverty and social class to criminal justice, religion and developing societies. A Bachelor’s-to-Graduate option lets qualified students begin a master’s in social science before finishing the bachelor’s. In 2023–24 Clemson awarded 87 degrees, one of the larger sociology bachelor’s programs on its state page.

Emphasis Areas

Community Studies, General Sociology or Social Services

Internships

Built into the Community Studies and Social Services emphases

Degree Options

BS with added math and science, or BA with a four-semester modern language sequence

Program Sources: Clemson University | Sociology Degree

Every sociology major at South Carolina builds a personal research project in the capstone course, and those who meet the GPA requirements can go further with a Distinction in Sociology, which means a more extensive independent project. The BA track leans on the social sciences and humanities, while the BS adds mathematical skills and analytical reasoning that suit graduate study. Coursework applies data analysis techniques to disparities in health, social mobility and family formation. The department also hosts the Family Inequality Research Lab and the South Carolina Networks Consortium. South Carolina awarded 16 degrees in 2023–24.

Capstone

Each major develops an individual research project

Distinction

Distinction in Sociology through a larger independent research project

Degree Tracks

BA with a social science and humanities emphasis, or BS with added mathematical skills

Program Sources: Undergraduate - Department of Sociology | University of South Carolina

At the College of Charleston, three courses have to land in your first 18 credit hours of the major: Big Ideas and Big Thinkers in Sociology, Introduction to Social Research and Making Sense of Sociological Data. You can swap in communication research methods or psychological statistics for some of them while still completing 33 sociology credits. The capstone gives you a choice of a senior seminar on social organization or on crime and justice policy, an internship or research apprenticeship, or a two-semester bachelor’s essay. Faculty expertise includes environmental sociology, gerontology, health, crime and deviance. Forty degrees were awarded in 2023–24.

Early Core

Social theory, research methods and sociological data courses in the first 18 major credit hours

Capstone Options

Senior seminar, internship or research apprenticeship, or bachelor’s essay

Credit Requirement

At least 33 credit hours of sociology

Program Sources: Program: Sociology, B.S. - College of CharlestonCollege of Charleston | Sociology

Winthrop’s core is unusually practical: Career Development for Sociology Majors sits next to Principles of Sociology, a statistics course, Social Theory, a quantitative or qualitative methods course and a Senior Seminar. That core is 16 credit hours, and you fill the remaining 18 with electives. If you want focus, three tracks are available: Criminology, Anthropology, or Social Inequalities. The general major is the flexible choice for students transferring credits in or counting study abroad courses. The department describes its approach as career-readiness courses and high-touch mentoring. Twenty-nine degrees were awarded in 2023–24.

Core Courses

Principles, Career Development, Statistics, Theory, Methods and Senior Seminar, 16 hours

Concentrations

Criminology, Anthropology or Social Inequalities

Transfer Flexibility

General major accepts transfer and study abroad credits and leaves 18 hours of electives

Program Sources: Department of Sociology, Criminology, and Anthropology - The Major | Winthrop UniversityDepartment of Sociology, Criminology, and Anthropology | Winthrop University

Coastal Carolina’s B.A. takes in social problems, sociological theory, social structures, the individual in society and research methods, then adds at least 33 hours of specialized sociology courses on top of roughly 53 hours of core curriculum. Classes are usually 15 to 40 students, and faculty advisors work with each student on academic and career choices. The topics you can study run from poverty, crime and aging to demography, medical and mental health and environmental sociology. Minors in criminology, criminal justice and social justice pair with the major, and the social justice minor includes community-based internships. Coastal awarded 43 degrees in 2023–24.

Specialized Credits

At least 33 hours of specialized sociology courses

Class Size

Classes usually range from 15 to 40 students

Related Minors

Criminology, criminal justice, social justice, human services and sociology

Program Sources: Sociology, B.A. | Coastal Carolina

USC Aiken splits its sociology degree into three concentrations: Criminology and Criminal Justice, Human Social Services, and General Sociology. Every course is taught by a faculty member with a PhD, and professors advise one-on-one. Internships and service learning are built into the curriculum, with new internship placements created around student interest. Courses include Sociology of the Family and Crime: Myths and Misconceptions. Faculty specialties cover criminal justice, inequities, and global, medical and family issues. The 2023–24 count was 18 degrees.

Concentrations

Criminology and Criminal Justice, Human Social Services, or General Sociology

Experiential Learning

Internships and service learning built into the curriculum

Sample Courses

Sociology of the Family and Crime: Myths and Misconceptions

Program Sources: Sociology | USCA

Furman’s major totals 36 credits, and 22 of them are a fixed core: introductory sociology, theory, social research methods, separate quantitative and qualitative research seminars, and a capstone seminar. Twelve more credits come from 200-level courses, including one on social class, gender and sexuality, or race and ethnic relations. You also complete a two-credit engaged learning experience, which can be a MayX or study-away trip, intergroup dialogue, independent study or an individualized internship. Students headed toward health careers can add the MacDonald Medicine Program, a ten-credit sequence that pairs medical sociology and ethics with fieldwork in the local hospital system. Four degrees were awarded in 2023–24.

Core Sequence

Theory, research methods, quantitative and qualitative seminars, and a capstone seminar

Engaged Learning

Two-credit experience through MayX, study away, internship or independent study

Health Option

MacDonald Medicine Program with hospital fieldwork, offered every other year

Program Sources: Program Overview | Sociology | Furman University

Five required courses give every major the same footing at Upstate: introduction to sociology, statistics for the social sciences, sociological theory, research methods and a senior seminar. Then you pick one of two ways to fill 21 upper-level credits. Option A is any six upper-level sociology courses. Option B is a Community Development Studies concentration built on community development, urban sociology and social problems, plus choices in institutions, inequality and civic engagement. Either way, you complete an applied community experience, such as an internship, independent study or a service-learning course. Eleven degrees were awarded in 2023–24, and local agencies such as the Red Cross and the Department of Social Services host interns.

Core Courses

Introduction, statistics, theory, research methods and senior seminar

Upper-Level Paths

Any six upper-level courses, or a Community Development Studies concentration

Applied Requirement

Internship, independent study or a service-learning course

Program Sources: Sociology, Bachelor of Arts | USC UpstateSociology - USC Upstate

All majors share one core: introduction to sociology, a three-course sequence in research methods and data analysis, and a capstone. After that, you choose a specialization in Human and Social Services, Criminology and Deviance, or Health Institutions and Disparities, so the degree can lean toward a career path early. The department asks for 34 hours in sociology within a 120-hour bachelor’s degree, and every major also finishes either an 18-hour minor or two 12-hour collaterals. Internships with local community service agencies are provided and encouraged. Seventeen sociology bachelor’s degrees were awarded in 2023–24.

Specializations

Human and Social Services, Criminology and Deviance, or Health Institutions and Disparities

Methods Sequence

Three courses in research methods and data analysis

Minor Requirement

One 18-hour minor or two 12-hour collaterals

Program Sources: Sociology - Francis Marion UniversitySociology - Francis Marion University

The doctorate here is organized around three disciplinary areas: Inequalities and Institutions, Social Psychology, and Networks. You complete a nine-credit pathway in one area, then a second, different pathway later, alongside theory, survey of research methods, statistics and qualitative methods. If you arrive without a master’s, you earn the M.A. en route by defending a thesis. The bulletin suggests taking the qualifying exam in the fall of year four, which leads to a dissertation committee of at least four members, one from outside the department, and an oral defense of your proposal. The department puts the average Ph.D. at about six and a half years for students with a bachelor’s degree.

Disciplinary Areas

Inequalities and Institutions, Social Psychology, or Networks, with two different 9-credit pathways

Milestones

Master’s thesis en route, qualifying exam, proposal defense and dissertation defense

Credit Load

66 hours from a bachelor’s degree, or 36 to 48 hours after a master’s

Program Sources: Sociology, Ph.D. < University of South CarolinaGraduate - Department of Sociology | University of South Carolina