Urban Studies and Sociology (BA)
Program Description
Urban studies is an established and interdisciplinary area of inquiry—focusing on cities and their regions, urban social life, cultures, the built and natural environment, economics, politics, and policy—that is strengthened when students are strongly grounded in a traditional academic discipline. Sociology is organized around a series of problems and broad social, political, and economic forces that profoundly affect urbanization and shape the lives of urbanites, including racial and ethnic structures, labor and social class, power and inequality, demography and population mobility, neighborhoods and families, and organizations and institutions. Social theory and sociological methods—especially quantitative analysis and social statistics; demography; and ethnography—provide valuable tools for urban inquiry (many of which were forged by sociologists’ engagement with urban life and society). The joint major in Urban Studies and Sociology introduces students to different approaches to the study of cities and metropolitan areas and provides an overview of the diversity of social scientific and humanistic theories that inform much urban research.
The major takes full advantage of NYU’s location and builds on the University’s long-standing relationships with key urban institutions, both public and private, ranging from planning agencies to urban arts and culture institutions.
This program of study trains students in geographic information systems (GIS), a powerful mapping tool for quantitative analysis that many will find useful in their future careers. The major prepares students for careers in urban policy and planning; community organization and advocacy; civic affairs; immigration policy and social justice; housing and real estate; scholarly research in the social sciences; statistical and data analysis; and careers in teaching and academia.
Students should consult with advisers in both the Department of Sociology and the Program in Urban Studies.
Honors Program
Students with both a cumulative and major GPA of at least 3.65 (or who have permission of the director of undergraduate studies) may apply to the Department of Sociology’s honors program, which (like the non-honors track in Urban Studies and Sociology) requires twelve 4-credit courses (48 credits).
Students may apply for the honors program in the spring of their junior year. Applications are announced via email to all Sociology students and linked on the department’s website.
The honors program consists of two semesters (two 4-credit courses) over the span of one year (fall and spring). Each student develops an original research project and writes a thesis based on that research. The honors sequence of SOC-UA 950 Senior Honors Research Seminar (fall) and SOC-UA 951 Senior Honors Research Seminar (spring) counts as two of the three elective courses in sociology for the joint major with Urban Studies. Students must complete both semesters to be eligible to graduate with honors.
Admissions
New York University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions supports the application process for all undergraduate programs at NYU. For additional information about undergraduate admissions, including application requirements, see How to Apply.