PhD in Sociology - Social Networks in Ithaca United States | Cornell University

The Sociology Graduate Field accepts approximately 6-7 PhD candidates annually, maintaining a total enrollment of around 40 graduate students. These students receive guidance from over 30 distinguished Sociology Graduate Field Faculty members from various Cornell departments, with many holding primary appointments in the Sociology Department. Candidates may seek mentorship from any faculty member within this group. Prospective students should examine faculty research specialties and contact relevant professors, though admission is to the general program rather than specific faculty or labs.

First-year sociology PhD students begin with core theory and methods courses before selecting two specialization areas from the options below. These concentrations allow students to build expertise, choosing either two major focuses or one major and one minor focus.

Following first-year coursework, students complete two concentration exams and produce a Qualifying Paper - an original research article suitable for journal submission. Successful completion leads to Doctoral Candidacy, typically achieved by the third year's start. Subsequent milestones include developing a dissertation proposal, completing dissertation research, and defending the final work.

Social network analysis examines society through interconnected individuals or groups, studying tangible connections like economic exchanges and intangible bonds like social perceptions. This approach reveals how personal circumstances relate to broader social ties, explaining phenomena such as elite economic behavior, employment patterns, jury decision-making, international trade networks, small-world connections, and internet structure.