This area includes rural sociology and rural development (Canada and international), women and gender relations in development, anthropology of development, sociology of agriculture and of the rural community, community development, political economy of rural agricultural systems and the like, agro-food systems, environment, subsistence and commodification.

This area incorporates sociology of work, the workplace, political economy, labour markets, transition from school to work, skills and lifelong learning, technological change, women and work, work and economic restructuring, the labour movement, labour process and social policy.

This area covers sociology of policing, corrections and penology, violent crime, sociology of law, criminological theory, critical criminology, street youth, young offenders, gender and offending, and criminal justice theory.

Graduate students are admitted each fall semester (approximately 15 - 17 students). February 1 is the deadline for application to the MA in Sociology program or the MA in Sociology with collaborative International Development program. Graduate students are admitted into the program in the fall semester only. The on-line application and application information can be found at http://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/graduatestudies/index.cfm?apply

Applicants must possess an Honours BA (4 years) degree or its equivalent with at least a B+ average in the final two undergraduate years. Students who do not meet departmental requirements, e.g., students whose undergraduate degree does not include basic courses in Sociology, may be admitted provisionally and required to complete appropriate make-up courses from offerings in the undergraduate program.

Students must either complete a minimum of 2.0 credits and write a thesis or complete a minimum of 4.0 credits (including 1.0 credit in the Major Paper course) and write a major paper. All students are required to master basic theory and methodological skills. This is fulfilled through the successful completion of the courses SOC*6140 and SOC*6070 in the fall semester and SOC*6130 in the winter semester.

Students typically begin their studies in the fall semester. You will be assigned an interim advisor who may be a likely candidate to be your advisor, given your stated area of interest. When you arrive, the graduate coordinator will inform you as to which faculty members, on the basis of their areas of specialization, are likely candidates for membership on your advisory committee. Until you have formed your advisory committee, your interim advisor will fill out your evaluation reports. It is strongly recommended, that you choose your permanent advisor and your committee by the end of February in your second semester.

All students are required to pass SOC*6700, Pro-Seminar. This is a two semester course (fall and winter) and is graded as SAT/UNSAT. This course is intended to introduce students to the department, the university, and the profession of Sociology.