The sociology department at Yonsei University has consistently climbed the QS World University Rankings for Sociology since 2021, ranked 80th, 67th, and 41st respectively. This rising through the ranks can be attributed to the fact that Yonsei Sociology is the only sociology department in Korea that has been continuously selected for the BK21 project of the Ministry of Education from the second stage (since 2006) to the fourth stage, which has improved its research capabilities and reputation. Also, Yonsei Sociology is the only Korean sociology department whose authors have published articles with the department’s name in both the American Sociological Review and the American Journal of Sociology, which are top two academic journals of sociology in the world.

Students can focus on their academic interests by engaging in their personal research project rather than short-term tasks so that to grow into independent researchers. We have an education environment that can support and facilitate research productivity.

Sociology is a study that seeks to explore the dynamics of society by analysing individuals and the structure. In the field of sociology, we examine social structures and institutions scientifically and historically, such as families, schools, the government, and industries. As the foundation of many fields of study, sociology provides a critical perspective to understand the world. 

Detailed Major and Focus Areas

Courses in graduate program are listed below:

• Self&Interaction (Body, Medical, Gender, Emotion, Family, etc.)

• Network & Inequality (Network, Mathematical, Knowledge and Information, Organisation, Inequality, Stratification, etc.)

• Institution & Culture (Culture, Art, History, Politics, Policy, etc.)

• Research Methods

Prospects and Career Paths after Graduation

Graduates of this department play an important role in society by studying sociology. As sociology is a fundamental study of social sciences and humanities, it can be applied to a wide range of fields such as policy research, social data analysis, politics, education, and journalism. After achieving a doctoral degree, many graduates pursue academic careers in universities or research institutes, and a lot of graduates obtaining a master’s degree choose to study aborad for doctoral programs. Many graduates also enter the civil society sector for public sociological activities, and recently, the proportion of graduates employed in the industry of data science is higher than that of other social science field of other universities.