Did you have a personal reason as to why you chose this as a career path and did you achieve it?
I am interested in psychology and/or sociology because human behavior has a lot to do with the way we interact with one another and I feel if I can attain more information as to why we react to the things we are faced with, I can help people in all different types of situations. I also know that everything is not as it seems and some people never get to live out there dreams because they got stuck with a job that requires a college degree and not a career that they love and I was wondering you achieved your own personal goal choosing this as your career path. #sociology #pyschology
2 answers
Jen’s Answer
My path, after college took me to Market Research where I conducted studies and analyzed data. This became a passion and began working in technology for a statistical software company. So my sociology degree was a path to technology down a long and fun road. Now I am in Customer Success working with people. I lead a team and understanding how people work together has made me a better leader and mentor. Now, would I recommend this major if you want to end up in technology, probably not. But, it has been a great experience.
If you want to focus your career as a social worker or therapist. You will need an advanced degree. There are universities that have social work programs where you can get your Master's Degree in 5 years.
My husband also majored in Sociology (we met in marriage and family class :). He had a great career in law enforcement for 25 years before retiring.
Kim’s Answer
Hi Jennifer!
I have been in job placement for seven years in a major city, and have never seen a job vacancy for a Sociologist, at least not at the BA level. When majoring in Sociology, as I did, you have to chart your own course.
Why did I choose this major? As crazy as it sounds, I was interested in a career training seeing-eye dogs, and this was the recommended course of study. Did I do that? No. Why not? Because, at the time, (1983) there were only 3 such schools, and I was not interested in living in any of those cities. Yes, I knew that at the time I chose the major, but I was young and not too concerned about it at the time. I went to school because I wanted to learn, not because I was looking for a career. Sociology gave me that. It taught me to think and write.
I am not one who truly had a "goal," I sort of just went along in life. I happened into a job as a police officer, liked it, and stayed 25 years. While it did not require a degree, I think of this as an "applied sociology" position. While there, I got involved in union activity, where the research and writing skills paid off. This was my first career. Was it in the field of Sociology? You decide. I think I did a good job handling calls and resolving disturbances, based on an understanding of human nature.
Now in my second career, job placement, I think this is more closely tied to Sociology, at least from a traditional point of view. I work with job seekers, helping them to see where they are, where they want to go, and how they intend to get there. A lot of times I have to help them to open their eyes to the reality of their circumstances, which seems more like psychology than sociology. Sociology is about the study of people in groups, and I am working with people individually, except when teaching classes. So, in my opinion, the police job was more related to Sociology than this job.
There are many jobs out there, usually in government agencies, where you can get your foot in the door with any liberal arts degree. Many of these may be rewarding, but do not pay well, and you will need to have a plan to move on with your career. They are great entry-level jobs, but if you have not moved up in 2-5 years, it is time to start looking for the next step.
Hope this helps!
Kim