Anthropology and Sociology Department
The primary purpose of the Department is to provide a comprehensive introduction to Sociology and the major branches of Anthropology for UT and Program students, as well as to prepare potential majors with a sound foundation for further studies in these two related disciplines.
The common element in all of our courses is to explain human behaviour as it is conditioned by membership in social groups. We consider that all humans, past and present, live in a dual environment: the physical and the intangible. In the physical environment we must obey the laws of physics, chemistry and biology. The intangible environment, which is equally real, combines the world of language and meaning and the world of conformity or non-conformity to cultural traditions, social values and social organizations. Since these are patterned activities, they too are open to some degree of scientific assessment.
We regard these subjects as the most general and comprehensive of all the Social Sciences. Individual courses cover such diverse topics as the gradual physical evolution of modern humans from our distant primate ancestors, the techniques of investigating cultures which flourished in the distant past, and the great diversity of extant tribal and peasant cultures around the world, as well as the transformation of such societies in response to forces such as globalization. Students can also study the nature of our own society, its dominant values and ideas, and the major social problems which affect us today, as well as the potential for social change. We also examine the position of ethnic minorities, whether indigenous peoples or recent immigrants, in their relationship with Canadian government and society.
Anthropology Department Website
For an overview of this program, including faculty listings and frequently asked questions plus other resources, visit the departmental website.
Sociology Department Website
For an overview of this program, including faculty listings and frequently asked questions plus other resources, visit the departmental website.
Career/Further Educational Opportunities
Teaching and/or research have traditionally been the most obvious options for those with graduate degrees in either subject. Increasingly there are opportunities in public service in large ministries, such as: Statistics, the Environment, City Planning, Economic Development, International Development, Aboriginal Affairs, Museums, Epidemiology (Health), Education and Justice. This is occasionally the case with large private companies when they too feel the need to make some assessment of likely social changes and social impacts or require in-house expertise in cross cultural matters.
All of our courses are UT courses, and have been closely articulated with upper-level ones especially at Simon Fraser. Various Majors or Minors are available at the three established universities and Sociology Majors at least will come on stream at all of the university colleges. See the current BC Transfer Guide for further details.
Location
All courses are normally offered in any one year at the New Westminster Campus (except ANTH 2192). As a minimum the basic courses - ANTH 1100, 1111, 1112 and SOCI 1125, 1145 and 2235 are offered at least once a year at the David Lam Campus (Coquitlam).
Intake Dates/Application Deadlines
**Application deadlines may be extended.
All first-year courses in Sociology and many in Anthropology are offered both Fall and Winter, and at
least one in ANTH and in SOCI are offered in the Summer. All second-year courses are offered at least once a
year. Refer to the specific course description section of this calendar for more detailed information.
Prerequisite Compliance
Students who are requesting transfer credit from other institutions or submitting high school transcripts from outside of BC to satisfy prerequisite compliance are required to apply and submit those documents no later than three months in advance of the intake.
Other Information - Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity, or of what it means to be human, which collects cross-cultural and relative evidence.
This immensely broad subject is usually divided into three more manageable sub-fields. Physical Anthropology studies human biological evolution, contrasting our present physical form and thinking skills with those of early humans and great apes. Archaeology focuses on the reconstruction of societies and cultures of the past, from the earliest use of stone tools to the evolution of civilizations. Cultural Anthropology provides in-depth studies of, and comparisons between, living cultures and traditions.
Aside from its value as part of a rounded education, a knowledge of human diversity is an important element in preparing for a career in any of the social sciences or in public service.
UBC teaches all three sub-fields, along with Sociology, in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology. Students intending to transfer to UBC should take ANTH 1100 or 1130, together with either ANTH 1111 or 1112. Intended Majors should take ANTH 1100, 1111 and/or 1112, and at least one of ANTH 1120, 1170, 2200, 2210 or 2220.
At SFU, ANTH 1111, 1112, 2192, 2210 and 2212, transfer to the Department of Archaeology, while ANTH 1100, 1120, 1130, 1160, 1170, 2200, 2220 and 2240 transfer to the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Taking courses which transfer to different departments can be helpful in meeting SFU's Breadth Requirements. Those who intend to transfer to the Department of Archaeology should take ANTH 1111, 1112, 2210 and 2212; those planning to go to the Department of Sociology and Anthropology should take ANTH 1100, one of ANTH 1170 or 2200, and take SOCI 1125 and SOCI 2235.
Other Information - Sociology
Sociology is the study of social organization in modern society. It studies the profound changes in social life brought on by industrialization: urbanization, the market system, public health and education, technology and popular democracy. Sociology also studies the change of our social institutions and values as a result of industrialization and how this change affects the role of women, family life, ethnic relations, the media, sports and entertainment.
Sociology aims to observe and explain change and continuity in our main social institutions and in their relations to one another. At the personal level, it recognizes that we realize our goals and aspirations only through being in social groups with others. Sociology also accepts that this membership in social groups both benefits and hinders our individual actions.
SOCI 1125 is recommended as the introduction to the general content of, and approach taken in, Sociology. SOCI 2235 is also an essential course, observing the major theories and explanations offered in the subject and their present-day usefulness. Students who plan to take just one course should consider SOCI 1145 Canadian Society or SOCI 1155 Social Issues. Potential Majors are recommended to take SOCI 2260, a practical research methods course; they, and related Majors, can take other second-year courses that treat one main social institution in greater depth.
NOTE: Those planning to transfer to UBC should take either SOCI 1125 or SOCI 1155, along with SOCI 2235 to get credit as UBC Sociology 100 (6). Those intending to transfer to SFU should concentrate on some combination of SOCI 1145, 1125, 2235, 2260 and ANTH 1100 (See Anthropology).
Credentials
There are no College credentials which have a core content of either Sociology or Anthropology. You must take some of these courses to complete an Associate in Arts (Environmental Studies) and the Criminology Diploma or the Criminal Justice Certificate. Most students who take an Associate of Arts take some of these courses, although this can be avoided. Students in a range of other programs, from Nursing to Business Administration to Music, find it useful to take an elective from this area.
Recommended Course Sequence
See Other Information above.