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Dec 08, 2025
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2025-2026 Graduate Catalog
Sociology (PHD)
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The Ph.D. program offers specialized training in four core areas: (1) Community, Agriculture, Food, and Environment (CAFE); (2) Politics and Development; (3) Criminology; and (4) Social Inequalities. All students take core courses in sociological theory and research methods. Graduates will be prepared for academic careers in teaching and research as well as careers in applied social research. Full details about the Ph.D. Program and its requirements are available in the Sociology Graduate Handbook and the Graduate School Student Handbook.
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Admission Requirements
Ph.D. applicants must have completed a master’s degree by the time of entry into the Ph.D. program and must have earned a grade point average equivalent to B or above. A student’s preparation should include courses in Sociological Theory, Methods of Research, and Statistical Methods. A master’s degree is a requirement for admission and represents 30 credits toward the 90 credits required for the doctorate. Dissertation Requirements
After successfully completing comprehensive exams in two concentration areas, students must enroll in 6 credit hours of dissertation research per semester, excluding summer semester, until the dissertation is complete or 18 credit hours are completed. After 18 credit hours of dissertation are completed, a student must enroll in 1 hour per semester, excluding summer semester, until the dissertation is completed. See the Sociology Graduate Handbook and the Graduate Student Handbook for additional details about program and dissertation requirements. Course Requirements
Students must complete a minimum of 60 credit hours of Ph.D. work beyond the master’s degree: 30 hours of coursework and 30 hours of dissertation research. - Students who completed their M.A. in Sociology at K-State are not required to re-take theory and methods courses that were part of the M.A. program, though they are still required to complete 30 hours of coursework. Any courses that were counted on the M.A. program of study cannot also be counted on the Ph.D. program of study. Please see the Graduate School Handbook for more information.
- All Ph.D. students must take preliminary examinations in two areas of concentration. Each area of concentration requires 9 credit hours of concentration courses. Courses counted toward one concentration area must be different than those counted toward the second area. Up to 6 hours of M.A. work may count toward each of the Ph.D. areas of concentration, but they cannot be counted in the Program of Study for the Ph.D.
One additional methods courses from among the following:
Master’s degree Transfer Credits: 30
*Students who hold a master’s degree may request transfer of up to 30 credit hours of that degree toward a Doctoral Degree
Total Hours Required for Doctorate: 90
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