Bulletin--Social Science Program

Social Science (Interdisciplinary Studies)

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences
Dean: Joseph Julian

Social Science Program
HSS 382
415-338-2055
Director: Stanley Bailis

Graduate Coordinator: S. Bailis

Faculty
Professors—Bailis, Curtin, Flynne, Miller, R.

Associate Professors—Busacca, Keith

Programs
B.A. in Social Science: Concentration in Interdisciplinary Studies

B.A. in Social Science: Concentration in Criminal Justice

Minor in Social Science

M.A. in Social Science: Concentration in Interdisciplinary Studies

Program Scope and Career Outlook
This major provides an opportunity for students to construct an individually designed program which crosses disciplinary boundaries in the social and behavioral sciences and related fields. Programs can be designed to emphasize special theoretical and practical interests, including preparation for community-action oriented careers, secondary teaching credentials, and specialized graduate training.

The concentration in criminal justice is designed for students who wish to explore the field of criminal justice as liberal arts education, and/or as preparation for graduate education (e.g., law school, graduate school in one or more substantive behavioral and social sciences), and/or as a potential career.

The minor gives students an opportunity to complement their disciplinary major with an experience with several other disciplines as well as the interdisciplinary approach to knowledge.

The Master of Arts in Social Science with a Concentration in Interdisciplinary Studies is intended for students who want an inter-departmental program. Each student's program is planned around a topic or problem chosen in consultation with an adviser and committee. The degree program provides for students who are interested in: studying human phenomena through the integrated perspectives of several social and behavioral science disciplines; preparing for careers in public agencies or private concerns which require a broad and coherent preparation in the social and behavioral sciences; expanding their backgrounds for more advanced graduate study; and seeking secondary, single subject, or community college teaching credentials.

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN SOCIAL SCIENCE (INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES)

Each student's program is developed in consultation with the department advisers, in accordance with the patterns below. Courses for this discipline are listed in alphabetical sequence [see Social Science (Interdisciplinary Studies) discipline in the Announcement of Courses section].

Required Courses				Units
SS 300	Social Sciences Core I			    3
SS 301	Social Sciences Core II			    3
SS 600	Seminar in Method and Interdisciplinary 
	Analysis				    3
SS 697	Senior Project Seminar			    1
SS 698	Senior Project in the Social Sciences	    2
		Total required units		   12
Individually Chosen Courses
Nine upper division courses in the social and 
behavioral sciences and related fields must be 
selected around a focus, theme, concentration, 
or integrating principle to form a coherent 
program based upon the individual student's 
interest. Approval of department adviser is 
mandatory. At least two of the nine upper 
division courses must bear the Social Science 
prefix, and not more than four of the nine 
courses can be from any one department or 
program. The total number of units will vary 
according to whether courses carry three or 
four units of credit.				27-36
		Total				39-48

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN SOCIAL SCIENCE (INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES): CONCENTRATION IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE

 
Core Courses					Units
SS 300	Social Sciences Core I			    3
SS 301	Social Sciences Core II			    3
SS 600	Seminar in Method and Interdisciplinary 
	Analysis				    3
SS 697	Senior Project Seminar			    1
SS 698	Senior Project in the Social Sciences	    2
		Total for core			   12
Concentration
One course from each of the following nine 
areas:
Area 1. Introduction to the Field of Criminal 
	Justice					    4
	CJ 300		The Criminal Justice 
			System (4)
Area 2. The Nature of Crime and Deviant 
	Behavior				    4
	SOC 362		Deviance & Conformity (4)
	SOC 451		Criminological Theory (4)
Area 3. Law and Justice in History and Society	    4
	CJ 500		Criminal Law (4)
	SOC 459		Criminal Law and Social 
			Process (4)
	PLSI 552	Individual Rights & the 
			Constitution (4)
Area 4. The Administration of the Law		  3-4
	CJ 450		Jails and Prisons (4)
	SOC 455		Punishment and Social 
			Control (4)
	An upper division course on advisement
Area 5. The Law as Philosophy			    3
	PHIL 335	Law and Society
	PHIL 380	Philosophy of Law
Area 6. Law Enforcement and Public Policy	  3-4
	CJ 400		Police and Public 
			Policy (4)
	An upper division elective course on 
	advisment
Area 7. The Law as Reflection of Culture and 
	Change					    3
	SS 360		The Individual in Modern 
			Society
	SS 410		Perspectives on American 
			Culture
	SS 510		Sociocultural Change and 
			Interdisciplinary Analysis
Area 8. The Law as History or Economics		    3
	An upper division elective on advisement 
	in History or Economics
Area 9. Field Study in Criminal Justice		    4
	CJ 680		Field Course in Criminal 
			Justice (4)
		Total for concentration		31-33
		Total for major			43-45

MINOR IN SOCIAL SCIENCE (INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES)

 
Program Requirements				Units
SS 300	Social Sciences Core I			    3
SS 301	Social Sciences Core II			    3
SS 600	Seminar in Method and Interdisciplinary 
	Analysis or
	An equivalent methods course from 
	another discipline in the behavioral 
	and social sciences			  3-4
Three upper division courses from three 
different disciplines in the behavioral and 
social sciences and related fields. These 
courses must be chosen in consultation with 
an adviser, and students majoring in a 
behavioral or social science may not double 
count courses taken in their major discipline 
to meet this requirement			 9-12
		Minimum total			18-22

MASTER OF ARTS IN SOCIAL SCIENCE: CONCENTRATION IN INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES
Admission to Program
Students must (1) complete the aptitude sections of the Graduate Record Examination; (2) complete a minimum of 24 upper division units of undergraduate study in the social and behavioral sciences with a 3.0 grade point average; (3) identify a core objective in pursuing a program of interdisciplinary study at the graduate level so that the graduate adviser may help to plan a coherent degree program. In exceptional cases, students who do not meet these criteria may be conditionally admitted subject to the approval of the departmental graduate advisers. These faculty members have final authority to determine the admissibility of students to this program in terms of all factors relevant to success in graduate study. With this in mind, applicants should send the following items to the graduate coordinator by March 1 for Fall semester admission or October 1 for Spring semester admission: (1) Statement of purposes describing core topic or theme, and a sample curriculum pursuant thereto, academic and/or career goals and relation between past employment and proposed graduate program; (2) Report of G.R.E. aptitude scores; (3) Complete transcripts; (4) Summary of all past course work and grades categorized by academic level and area; and, (5) Two letters of academic and/or professional recommendation. It should be noted that the student must file an application for admission to the university and that none of the above items are substitutes for the materials directly required by the university Admissions Office.

After the student has completed between nine (9) and fifteen (15) units of work toward the degree, the graduate adviser will assist in choosing a three-member faculty committee. This committee will normally include at least one member of the Social Science Program (Interdisciplinary Studies) and at least one member from the faculty of a specialized discipline who has an interest in the core topic around which the student plans the degree program. The full committee is responsible for guiding and supervising the student's graduate study.

Written English Proficiency Requirement
Level One: completed by written work in S S 710. Level Two: completed by written work in S S 800.

Advancement to Candidacy
Before filing the Graduate Approved Program (GAP) students must have successfully completed at least nine units of course work including S S 710. Students must file their GAP before enrollment in S S 800.

Courses for this discipline are listed in alphabetical sequence [see Social Science (Interdisciplinary Studies) discipline in the Announcement of Courses section]. Except for S S 600, 650, and 698, all upper division and graduate courses offered by all departments within the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, as well as certain courses offered elsewhere in the university, may be considered as potentially applicable to the student's program. At least one half of all units included on the GAP must be earned in graduate level courses. 

Program						Units
S S 710	Interdisciplinarity in the Social 
	Sciences				 3
S S 800	Seminar in Interdisciplinary 
	Applications				 3
Graduate seminars in each of two social science 
	disciplines relevant to focus of 
	student's program			 6
An advanced course in research methods and 
	techniques				 3
Additional upper division or graduate courses 
	in two or more disciplines selected in 
	consultation with adviser which are 
	relevant to the topic or problem of 
	student's program focus			15
S S 898	Master's Thesis				 3
		Minimum total			33
and Master's Comprehensive Written Examination
Thesis
The student is expected to select his/her thesis topic with the help of his/her faculty committee and file the thesis topic form as soon as possible but prior to enrollment in S S 800. Though filing a thesis topic form is required prior to enrollment in the thesis course (S S 898), the filing is a totally separate act from enrollment or registration in the course. The thesis proposal should be detailed enough to present a clear idea of the nature of the research effort. The thesis should be a serious effort to analyze an aspect of the problem or topic around which the student is focusing his/her program. Its primary objective is to serve as a training experience in gathering, evaluating and manipulating data within an interdisciplinary frame of reference. The completed thesis must be read and approved by at least a two-member committee, the chair of which must be a member of the social science faculty.

Examinations
The candidate will take a six-hour written examination after completing 24 units of course work and before enrolling for the thesis. Each member of the candidate's three-person committee will prepare questions designed to take the candidate approximately two hours to complete. The chair of the committee, who must be a member of the social science faculty, is responsible for coordinating the administration of the examination. The examination will cover knowledge of theory and method in the social sciences, both disciplinary and interdisciplinary, and substantive knowledge relevant to the individualized program of courses taken by the student. The candidate must pass all three segments of the examination as evaluated by the committee members. In the event of failure, the committee may at its discretion invite the student to take part or all of the examination a second time, but this may only be done once.

Bulletin 1994-96 Table of Contents, SFSU Home Page

last modified July 26, 1995