Graduate Advising
The Department of Sociology graduate program emphasizes the importance of the faculty mentor-graduate student relationship and the spirit of community that is fostered during the pursuit of a graduate degree. These qualities take time to emerge and the program is designed to facilitate the development of these aspects of the graduate experience. Toward these goals, and prior to registration, all incoming students will be assigned a faculty advisor and will meet with an advisory committee composed of two faculty members and two graduate students. Meeting with this committee during the week before the beginning of the academic year is intended to introduce the student to various formal and informal aspects of the department, including the general program
The committee will discuss the student's previous work and how to take advantage of the resources of the department. This meeting also provides the student with an opportunity to discuss immediate plans and to work out a first-year program. One of the faculty members of the advisory committee serves as the first-year advisor to work with the student on curriculum planning and adjustment to graduate study. Students are expected to discuss their academic progress with their advisor so that the faculty will be informed and will be able to evaluate work to date and to prepare the student for the second semester. At the beginning of the second semester students should meet with their faculty advisor to evaluate the completed first semester and plan for the research necessary for the Masters thesis. In the spring, the student should plan on meeting again with the advisor to discuss courses and pre-register for the fall semester of the second year. Faculty advisors are available for advice and consultation; faculty advisors can be changed at any time that the student develops interests that match those of another faculty member. The Chair of the Graduate Committee should be notified of the change. For program planning for the second and succeeding years, the student should consult with a member of the faculty to work out a course schedule and have it signed by the Chair of the Graduate Committee.
All students are expected to use computers for research, preparation of seminar and course papers, and communication between faculty and students and among students. Formal communications and announcements between students and faculty will usually occur through electronic mail. Research and teaching opportunities, fellowship announcements and assistantships, departmental subsidies for attending professional meetings, and social events during the year will be posted electronically. It is essential that in the week prior to the beginning of classes all students obtain an E-mail address and learn the basics of the Brown computer system and the Social Science Research Laboratory (SSRL). A graduate student proctor in the SSRL will be available to assist in obtaining an E-Mail address.
Subsequent Advising
Students will select their areas of specialization in conjunction with their faculty advisor and other faculty members. The advisor assigned at entrance will work with the student to formulate a plan of studies for the first year. Subsequently, the student will select an appropriate advisor in conjunction with a M.A. thesis project, committees for the preliminary examination in the three areas of specialization for the doctorate, and a committee for the Ph.D. dissertation. Each student will have a major faculty advisor (or committee chair) at each of the various stages of the progress toward the Ph.D., although the student may be working with several faculty members.
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