The Undergraduate Program
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The Department has an Undergraduate Program in three areas of concentration: Anthropology, Administration of Justice, and Sociology. Generally speaking, the Undergraduate Program provides students with the basic tools for analysis and insight, including research methods (both quantitative and qualitative) and theory. Furthermore, our curriculum equips students to more effectively negotiate the diverse society in which we live by addressing social inequalities such as race/ethnicity, gender and social class. Above all, our program--which emphasizes writing, critical thinking, group dialogue, and one-on-one faculty mentorship-- gives our graduates the strong writing, research, and analytic skills that are increasingly attractive to employers in the information age.

Anthropology – Overview

Anthropology is unique among the social sciences in exploring humanity in all its aspects, past and present. It provides a broad understanding of the similarities and differences in the human experience through time and space. This vast subject matter is divided up into four subfields: cultural, linguistic, archaeological, and biological (also known as physical) anthropology. Each of these in turn covers a wide array of topics:

• Cultural anthropology explores contemporary and historical diversity among people
• Linguistic anthropology describes how languages are structured and used
• Archaeological anthropology studies the material remains of past human cultures.
• Biological anthropology examines human evolution and human biological diversity.

Administration of Justice – Overview

The undergraduate major in Administration of Justice (AOJ) began in fall 1978. It was part of a comprehensive program effort of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Howard University to examine various institutions that impacted upon the African American community. The AOJ major is organized essentially around the concept of liberal arts education, while at the same time providing career-specific educational training. Students must, therefore, satisfy all general education requirements established by the College of Arts and Sciences, in addition to those specified in the major program.

Sociology – Overview

Sociology is the study of social life and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. It investigates the structure of groups, organizations and societies, their information development and interaction. Since all human behavior is social, the subject matter of sociology ranges from the intimate family to the hostile mob; from crime to religion; from divisions of race, gender and social class to a shared belief of a common culture.