Undergraduate Programme in Sociology and Anthropology

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Undergraduate Programme in Sociology and Anthropology

The Sociology and Anthropology Programme at Ashoka will train future scholars and professionals to be engaged observers, attentive readers, clear writers, and rigorous social analysts. Over the course of their study, our students will develop a critical awareness of changing social values and practices, the capacity to think relationally, and the skills to draw out vital but often invisible connections. In this way, they will learn how to describe and explain complex social processes. Above all, we are convinced that our students will engage with the world and come to inhabit it in ways that open up new possibilities for shaping shared futures. These possibilities are at the heart of what we think it means to nurture an anthropological imagination.

Structure and Curriculum

SOA Majors must complete 12 courses in the discipline to graduate with a B.A. in Sociology and Anthropology. All students will take 6 compulsory courses specially designed to introduce them to the “core” fields of the discipline: key concepts and themes that are at the centre of both classical and contemporary work in Sociology and Anthropology. Majors will then select a series of 6 electives from a wide range of course offerings. All SOA courses, both cores and electives, will create space for students to explore their own, individual interests and questions, but the electives are especially intended to give advanced undergraduates a sense of the breadth of the discipline and the frontiers of anthropological research. The set of core courses also includes a hands-on Research Methods course that all Majors will take in their third year. Instead of confining the Sociology and Anthropology of India to a single course, the study of India and South Asia will be woven in throughout the curriculum and critical themes (such as caste, hierarchy and stratification) will be explored in multiple and interrelated courses.

  • Major

    Requirements: Each student will take a total of 12 courses towards their major. For completing a major in Sociology and Anthropology, one must take the following courses (1+4+1 required courses and 4+2 electives):

    • SOA 1101: Sociology and the Making of Concepts (to be completed by the end of 2nd year)
    • The following four 2000-level core courses:
      • SOA 2101: State, Stateless Societies and the Problems of Power (Monsoon Semester)
      • SOA 2102: Gift, Commodity and the Exchange of Value (Spring Semester)
      • SOA 2103: Magic, Science, Religion (Monsoon Semester)
      • SOA 2104: Kin, Friends and Enemies (Spring Semester)
    • SOA 3101: Anthropology’s Methods (Must be taken in the third year)
    • Four 3000 level electives in SOA
    • Any other two courses in SOA (selected from the two remaining core courses or the electives) or cross-listed courses with SOA code

    (*Please note that UG 22 and UG 23 who had completed the former 2000 cores, i.e. Language, Signs, and the Problem of Representation, and Natures Futures can make these count towards their Major)

  • Minor

    Requirements: Each student will take a total of 6 courses towards the minor. For completing a minor, a student has to take the following courses (3 required courses and 3 electives):

    • SOA 1101: Sociology and the Making of Concepts
    • Any three of the below 2000 level core courses:
      • SOA 2101: State, Stateless Societies and the Problems of Power
      • SOA 2102: Gift, Commodity and the Exchange of Value
      • SOA 2103: Magic, Science, Religion
      • SOA 2104: Kin, Friends and Enemies
    • Any two 3000 level electives in SOA

    (*Please note that UG 22 and UG 23 who had completed the former 2000 cores, i.e. Language, Signs, and the Problem of Representation, and Natures Futures can make these count towards their Minor)

     

  • Concentration

    Requirements: Each student will take a total of 4 courses towards the concentration. For completing a concentration, a student has to take the following courses (1+ 2 required courses and 1 elective):

    • SOA 1101: Sociology and the Making of Concepts
    • Any two of the following core courses:
      • SOA 2101: State, Stateless Societies and the Problems of Power
      • SOA 2102: Gift, Commodity and the Exchange of Value
      • SOA 2103: Magic, Science, Religion
      • SOA 2104: Kin, Friends and Enemies
    • Any one 3000 level elective in SOA

    (*Please note that UG 22 and UG 23 who had completed the former 2000 cores, i.e. Language, Signs, and the Problem of Representation, and Natures Futures can make these count towards their Concentration)

  • Pre-requisites

    If a student from outside of the Department wishes to take any 3000-level elective, they will have to seek approval from the faculty member first. 1000 and 2000-level courses do not have prerequisites and we welcome students from other Departments to take these courses subject to availability. In the event that any other course has prerequisites, it will be communicated at the start of the semester.

Department of Sociology and Anthropology Handbook

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Joining Undergraduate Programmes

Ashoka University’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology offers systematically crafted undergraduate programmes. Students are trained to acquire critical thinking, creative, theoretical and field-based practice skills in the discipline. 

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Frequently Asked Questions

Yes.

Yes. Majors must complete this course by the end of their second year.

It is not mandatory, but we strongly recommend that you do so since 3000 level electives require at least two of the 2000 level core courses as prerequisites and you will get much more from these courses if you have taken the set of 2000-level cores.

Cross-listed courses are those courses which arise out of a discipline different from SOA but are cross-listed with SOA. The students can only count two cross listed courses towards their Major and Minor.

Yes.

No. It is normal for courses to not be cross-listed with other departments in every semester that they’re offered. If you took a course, which was cross-listed in the semester that you took it, it will count towards your degree. Please cross-check the course code of such courses in your LMS.

No. Only ASPs can write a thesis with the department.

The specific course along with its detailed syllabus will need to be shared with the Department’s HOD and a decision will be taken on a case-by-case basis.

Only ASP students are eligible to TA for courses. The Department notifies all ASPs of TA requirements in the beginning of the semester and calls for applications.

You can email the Student Representative and cc the Department Manager Anjali Panwar (anjali.panwar@ashoka.edu.in) for any queries.

You may consult the course descriptions provided on the LMS or may reach out to your peers or seniors who have already taken courses you may be interested in. You can also consult your year advisor for seeking guidance.

We recommend that you take the 1000 level course first. Then take the core 2000 level core courses. This will not only ensure that you have fulfilled the prerequisites for the 3000-level electives, but you will get much more from the advanced elective courses when you take them.

Yes, you can take the 2000 level core courses before the 1000 level courses, but we recommend that you take 1101 as your first course in SOA and then opt for 2000 level core courses.

Yes, you can, provided you fulfil the prerequisite for 3000 level electives, which is 1101 and any two 2000 level courses.

After fulfilling the required number of level-based requirements, you are free to take 2000 or 3000 level courses to fulfil your remaining requirements.

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