Requirements Explained

With the exception of Social Studies 99, which is graded SAT/UNSAT, all of the courses below must be taken for a letter grade. No Social Studies courses may be taken pass/fail. 

 

Social Studies 10a & 10b

Social Studies 10A and 10B, the yearlong course required for all sophomores concentrating in Social Studies, introduces students to the themes and thinkers of modern social thought. Studying texts from 1651 to 2005, we trace the development of modern western frameworks of democracy, freedom, equality, individualism, society, power, and the state.  Weekly lectures are given by the Course Head and guest lecturers, and small tutorials also meet weekly, designed and taught by Social Studies faculty, for in-depth collaborative analysis of the texts and ideas as well as assessments designed by tutorial-leaders.  Faculty from across the social sciences create an interdisciplinary environment that introduces students to the history of ideas, conceptual analysis, and enduring analytical frameworks. Authors examined can change year to year but have included, for example, Thomas Hobbes, Adam Smith, Frederick Douglass, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Emile Durkheim, W.E.B. Du Bois, Simone de Beauvoir, and Michel Foucault.

Social Studies 98 (2)

The purpose of junior tutorials in Social Studies is to help prepare students for their thesis research. Junior tutorials immerse students in a detailed and focused study of social and theoretical questions centered around a particular topical focus. They also have a methodological focus and provide students with instruction on research techniques in order for students to practice working with primary source data and learn the steps involved with completing a major research project. 

Each student must take two Social Studies junior tutorials (Social Studies 98s). However, joint concentrators in Social Studies have the option of taking two Social Studies 98s or one Social Studies 98 and a 98 in their allied concentration. 

Social Studies students are required to take two junior tutorials (Social Studies 98). If you are studying abroad, you may write a research paper alongside your study abroad coursework to exempt you from taking one of your 98 courses. For detailed guidelines, visit our Junior Tutorials page.

Junior tutorials are selected through a lottery process during the course registration period. 

Social Studies 99

Seniors take two terms of Social Studies 99, the senior thesis course, and work one-on-one with a thesis supervisor as they research and write their thesis. 

Focus Field Courses (4-6)

The focus field must include a minimum of four, and a maximum of six courses, drawn from at least two social science departments and including at least one History course. Students may petition the Board of Instruction to include social science courses given in non-social science departments. At least two courses must be taken in FAS.

Economics Requirement:

  • Economics 10a, 10b, or both
  • Economics 50 (can fulfill the economics or the statistics requirement, but not both)
  • Any Economics course for which Economics 10a or 10b is recommended preparation

Statistics Requirement

  • 5 on the AP Statistics Exam
  • Economics 50 (see above), 1123, or 1126
  • Government 50, 51, or 2001
  • Psychology 1900
  • Sociology 1156
  • Statistics 100, 104, or 110

Methodology Requirement

All students in the concentration must complete a methods course aimed at providing substantial knowledge about how to develop and execute an original research project. We strongly encourage students to take either Social Studies 50, “Foundations of Social Science Research,” or Social Studies 60, “Making Sense of Methods for Theoretical and Historical Research,” depending on their academic interests. For help deciding which course is the best fit for you, see our page on methods courses. 

Social Studies 50 and 60 have been designed to provide Social Studies concentrators with the knowledge and skills they will need to write their senior theses. In exceptional cases, students who want to develop specialized knowledge in particular disciplinary methodologies beyond the scope of Social Studies 50 and 60 may request Board of Instruction approval for another course to fulfill the methods requirement. 

Note that starting in Fall 2025, students cannot satisfy the methods requirement through a course taken while studying abroad.