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Department of Sociology

Admissions

Application Deadline: February 15

Application Process:

Note:  a detailed description of USF Graduate School policies surrounding admission can be found at:  http://www.grad.usf.edu/policies.asp

1.  Application and application fee:

            on-line:  http://admissions.grad.usf.edu/forms.html

2.  Send to the Office of Graduate Studies:
                                University of South Florida
Office of Graduate Studies BEH 304
4202 East Fowler Avenue
Tampa, Florida  33620-8470

  • two official transcripts from previous college work leading to the B.A. degree.  Successful applicants typically will have an accumulative GPA of at least 3.25 in undergraduate work;
  • official  GRE scores.  Successful applicants typically will have a GRE score (verbal and quantitative) of at least 1000 (with a 500 minimum on the verbal portion of the test).  International students must have their transcripts evaluated by a foreign transcript evaluation service.
  • international students having earned a B.A. or higher degree in a country whose official language is not English are required to send official TOEFL scores which should be a minimum of 79 (internet based), 213 (computer based), 550 (paper based).

3.  Send to Graduate Director, Department of Sociology:
                                University of South Florida
Graduate Director, Department of Sociology CPR 107
4202 East Fowler Avenue
Tampa, Florida  33620-8470

  • statement of purpose (no more than three pages, essay form) detailing:  Research interests, reasons for seeking a M.A. degree at the University of South Florida, future career goals, a summary of scholarly and extra-curricular activities.
  • a writing sample written solely by the applicant (such as a senior research project or seminar paper) which demonstrates the ability to effectively communicate. 

4.  Arrange to have three letters of reference from academic sources or others able to judge academic abilities and potential sent directly to the Graduate Director, Department of Sociology.

Notes: 

  1. All applications are subject to a competitive review by the members of the Sociology Department Graduate Committee. Meeting minimum requirements does not guarantee admission into the program. 
  1. Students can begin study only in fall semesters. 
  1. Students need not be formally admitted to enroll in graduate courses:  Courses can be taken as a non-degree seeking student (https://www.grad.usf.edu/fastapp.html )  Upon approval of the Graduate Director, it is possible to transfer up to 12 credit hours into the program.  To apply for transfer of units follow the links at  http://www.registrar.usf.edu/forms.  Students requesting such transfers also might be required to provide syllabi and/or samples of work accomplished in these courses.
  1. It is highly recommended that applicants establish contact with the Sociology Graduate Director early in the application process:  socgraddirector.cas.usf.edu