A Cornerstone Course in Sociology: Providing Students with Theory, Methods, and Career Preparation Early in the Major

Abstract

Cornerstone courses bridge introductory content from lower-level survey courses with the more advanced theoretical and methodological content of upper-level, major-only courses. Cornerstones are implemented with the goal of better preparing students for advanced coursework and/or assisting them with understanding their major and its associated career options. Although cornerstones are common in psychology, biology, and business, they are seemingly less popular in sociology curriculums. This article uses evaluation data from a newly instituted cornerstone course in sociology to illustrate the potential benefits these courses can have for students as well as the discipline more generally.

Implementing a Careers and Professional Development Course for Sociology Students

“…Third, sociology faculty might argue that the activities discussed earlier could be integrated into other existing sociology courses—perhaps a cornerstone course, such as the one described by Holtzman (2018), or a capstone course (Crone 2010; Green 2015; Keating, 2010; McKinney 2010). These are certainly possibilities, but I would strike two cautionary notes: first, career exploration should ideally begin prior to a student’s senior year, when capstone courses are typically taken, and second, career readiness discussions can easily get lost in other courses, given the press of meeting the multiple leaning objectives in such courses (e.g., in-depth research papers).…”

“…In fact, although a search in TRAILS found some capstone courses that focus primarily on the transition from college to postgraduate life (Hope 2010; Wieting and Navarre-Jackson 2010), few other courses were explicitly careers courses (Byng 2010; Katz 2013). A search for “careers” in the titles of Teaching Sociology articles since 2000 found only one careers course, and this one included other topics to assist students in moving successfully from introductory sociology into more advanced courses in the major (Holtzman 2018). 1…”

“You Make Your Own Luck”: Building Cultural and Social Capital in a Major-Based Career Course

“…Traver (2016) asked students in an introductory sociology class to apply sociological concepts like “culture” and “networks” in answering “How can sociology help me to think critically about my intended career?” Students in Senter’s (2017) research methods course developed data collection skills while investigating alumni experiences with transferable skills. In a “cornerstone” class that bridged introductory and advanced theory and methods coursework, Holtzman (2018) integrated career exploration readings to solidify student commitment to the major. Others raised student awareness of transferable sociology skills like writing, critical thinking, teamwork, and working with data (Ciabattari et al 2018).…”

Use of the R Commander in the Introductory Social Statistics Course: A Case Study

“…In other words, learning statistics should be a part of lifelong learning process, and statistics training in the sociology programs should build the foundation for further learning. As such, reducing statistics anxiety in addition to enhancing student motivations/interests in quantitative literacy are also important aspects of the statistics education for sociology undergraduate students [14]. At the least, the required statistics course should not deteriorate students' attitudes toward statistics.…”