Graduate Student Handbook

Cornell’s Graduate Field of Sociology provides top-notch training toward the PhD in Sociology, and has long been known for its emphasis on both theoretical innovation and methodological rigor. Our graduate education is highly individualized, and candidates for advanced degrees benefit from close relationships with their major professors and other mentors. Students in the graduate field of sociology have gone on to achieve professional success in academia, industry, and the non-profit and public sectors.

In addition to the regular PhD in Sociology, the Field offers a track that allows students to earn a PhD in Sociology with a focus on public policy. For students in the public policy track, TA and RA funding would come from the Brooks School for Public Policy. Sociology students can also earn a PhD Minor in Demography through the Cornell Population Center. 

Timeline Towards Ph.D. Degree

• Semester 1 (year 1) - Take 5010, 6010, 6080 and 6130 or substantive seminar; connect with faculty, peers, and research centers; apply for external fellowships
• Semester 2 (year 1) - Take 5020, 6020, 6080 and substantive seminar; plan for first concentration exam, connect with faculty mentors, apply for external fellowships
• Summer 1 (year 1) - Prepare for and take first concentration exam; conduct research either independently or with a faculty member
• Semester 3 (year 2) - Take 6130 and other relevant courses; form Special Committee by end of year; think about QP ideas; apply for external fellowships
• Semester 4 (year 2) - Take courses; take second concentration exam; make detailed plan for QP
• Summer 2 (year 2) - Write QP; take exam 2 if needed; collaborate on research or RA
• Semester 5 (year 3) - Finish QP; take A exam
• Semester 6 (year 3) - A exam must be completed by end of year 3; Revise QP and submit for publication
• Summer 3 (year 3) - Outline dissertation prospectus; work on own or collaborative research; submit work for review; RA or teach own course
• Semester 7 & 8 (year 4) - Write and defend proposal; apply for dissertation fellowships; work on research and submit work for review
• Summer 4 (year 4) - Work independently or collaborate on research; finish a paper and send it out for review; RA or teach own course
• Semester 9 & 10 (year 5) - Write dissertation and work on other research; send papers out for review
• Summer 5 (year 5) - Polish main job market paper; write statements for job applications
• Semester 11 & 12 (year 6) - Defend B exam; finish and file dissertation; on the job market

The Field of Sociology focuses on five key goals for our graduate students. Students who are working to complete a Ph.D. in Sociology should be able to:

• Conduct original, publishable research.

• Demonstrate a broad knowledge of theory and research in two subfields within the discipline.
• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge at the research frontier of one area of specialization.
• Write and speak effectively to professional and general audiences about issues in the field.

• Teach effectively. Design a course, grade and comment constructively and authoritatively on student work, lead discussion, and lecture.

The Code of Legislation of the Graduate Faculty outlines the core policies governing graduate education at Cornell. This handbook complements the Code of Legislation and Graduate School policies by offering additional academic guidance specific to students in the field of Sociology.

To remain in good standing and demonstrate satisfactory academic progress, students must meet the academic requirements as outlined in the Code of Legislation, field handbook, and by the chair/Special Committee. These layers of governance work together to provide oversight and support for academic progress, while the policies help clarify and establish mutual expectations for achieving degree progress.

To make satisfactory academic progress and remain in good academic standing in the Field of Sociology graduate program, a student must [at minimum]:

• Maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 is required

• Receive a rating of ‘Satisfactory’ or ‘Excellent’ on their Student Progress Review (SPR).
• Complete a progress report, which includes defined outcomes/goals, each semester with their Special Committee Chair.
• Make timely progress toward degree requirements, including:
  • Completing required coursework by established deadlines.
  • Forming a Special Committee by the end of the third semester (for Ph.D. students).
  • Fully passing the A Exam by the end of Year 3
  • Fully passing the B Exam by end of Year 6 (the timing of the B exam is ultimately determined by the student’s Special Committee based on readiness and progress toward completion.)
  • Write and defend prospectus by end of Year 4
  • Completing required teaching responsibilities

  • Meeting all field-specific requirements as outlined in this handbook.

Students are encouraged to work closely with their Special Committee and the DGS to stay on track and to communicate early about any delays or challenges. Failure to meet these expectations means that a student is not making satisfactory academic progress and is deemed not in good academic standing, which may impact continued enrollment their degree program (see Accountability and Due Process, for more information).

In our field, students are typically assigned a temporary advisor upon matriculation. This advisor must be recorded in Student Center no later than three weeks after the start of their first semester. Students should consult the DGS for assistance in confirming or changing advisors.

Doctoral students must form a complete Special Committee of at least three faculty members preferably by the beginning of the second year and no later than the end of the third semester. The chair of the Special Committee is a member of the graduate faculty of the Field of Sociology; the Special Committee chair is usually an expert in the student’s major concentration subject. A minimum of two other members of the Committee are Cornell faculty in any graduate Field. Additional members of the Committee are optional, and can be from either inside or outside Cornell. The membership of the Committee can, and often does, change as a student’s intellectual interests develop.  All committee members must meet Graduate School requirements and reflect relevant areas of expertise.

Students experiencing difficulty identifying an advisor should contact the DGS early as possible. Failure to secure an advisor within the first three weeks of their program, and a permanent Special Committee chair no later than the end of the third semester will impact academic standing and funding.

If a chair or committee member steps down, students must find a replacement within expected timeframes outlined in the Code of Legislation of the Graduate Faculty to remain in good standing. Students may not remain registered in the Graduate School if they fail to reconstitute a committee. If a student is unable to find a new chair within the required timeframes, they will be withdrawn from the Graduate School.

Doctoral students may make changes to their Special Committee at any time prior to the A exam. Committee changes after an A exam require the dean’s approval. Updates must be submitted through Student Center.

Doctoral candidates in our field are required to complete a dissertation that demonstrates original research contributing new knowledge to the discipline. The dissertation should address significant theoretical questions and may take the form of a traditional monograph or a set of three publishable papers.

Before starting dissertation work, you must submit a dissertation proposal, also known as a prospectus, to your Special Committee. The proposal should give details on the theoretical problem to be addressed in the dissertation, the methods for collecting and/or analyzing data, and the relevance of the expected results as a contribution to the literature. The dissertation proposal is evaluated by the Special Committee and needs to be defended, or at least discussed, at a meeting with Special Committee members. Once completed, you must submit the Dissertation Prospectus form to the Graduate Field Assistant.

The dissertation must include an abstract and adhere to a recognized academic style guide, such as the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, as approved by the Special Committee chair. It must also meet the Graduate School’s formatting requirements for doctoral dissertations.

Concentration Exams

As part of the A exam, students are required to complete area concentration exams in two areas of their choice. The department website lists approved areas of concentration, describes the general format for these exams (including the option to take a course in partial fulfillment of the requirement), and links to the forms that must be submited upon completion of each exam.

The purpose of these exams is to develop in-depth knowledge of a subfield or method that doctoral students can specialize in. Reading articles or books within a specific area gives doctoral students a mental map of the field, giving them broad familiarity with its intellectual history, major concepts, and key questions and debates. 

Upon completion of the written examination/course for each concentration area, you must submit a signed Concentration Area Completion Form to the Graduate Field Assistant. The form must be signed by both the faculty member who has offered the examination/course and by the chair of the student’s Special Committee. If you have not yet selected a Special Committee chair, then the Director of Graduate Studies signs the form as the default Special Committee chair.

The Qualifying Paper (QP)

The Qualifying Paper (QP) is designed to be a major research experience and can serve as the first phase of dissertation research. It is usually a relatively short but high-quality exercise in empirical research and theoretical analysis. The paper, which must be read and approved by the Special Committee, follows the style and format of an article in the American Journal of Sociology or American Sociological Review.

The purpose of these exams is to develop in-depth knowledge of a subfield or method that doctoral students can specialize in. Reading articles or books within a specific area gives doctoral students a mental map of the field, giving them broad familiarity with its intellectual history, major concepts, and key questions and debates. 

The Qualifying Paper form is internal to the department and certifies that the QP meets the committee’s expectations. It must be signed by all members of the committee and delivered to the Department’s Graduate Field Assistant. Students should receive their committee's approval of the QP before scheduling the oral A-Exam defense (see next section), and obtain all necessary signatures on the QP form at the same time as they obtain signatures on the Graduate School’s A-Exam scheduling form. In some cases, the committee can decide that the A-Exam defense itself will be pivotal in shaping and finalizing the QP. In these cases, the Special Committee can elect to sign off on the written QP only after the A-Exam oral defense has occurred. In such cases, the student has four weeks after the oral defense to revise the QP, submit the revised version to the committee members, and submit the QP form with each committee member's signatures to the Graduate Field Assistant.

The Graduate School requires that the A exam includes an oral component. Therefore, to complete the A exam, you must present your QP. The nature and venue of the presentation of your qualifying paper is at the discretion of your Special Committee. It could be at a brownbag, in a workshop, or in a presentation to your committee. Regardless, the members of your Special Committee must be present in order for you to satisfy the oral component of the A Exam.

In lieu of the qualifying paper, you can complete a Master’s thesis, per Graduate School guidelines for theses. Although there is no formal defense of a Master’s thesis prospectus, students should discuss the expectations for their theses with their Special Committees well in advance of initiating their projects. A Master’s thesis fulfills the Qualifying Paper requirement for the Ph.D. program. Therefore, a presentation of the Master’s thesis satisfies the oral component of the A Exam.

Students who choose part way through the Ph.D. program to obtain a so-called terminal Master’s degree should consult with the Director of Graduate Studies about the possibility of obtaining a no-thesis Master’s degree.

The master’s thesis must be defended orally, usually in a two-hour session that is formally open to all members of the Field (although typically attended only by members of the Special Committee). A Schedule of Examination Form must be filed with the Graduate School at least seven calendar days prior to the examination, and a Results of Examination Form must be filed with the Graduate School within three business days of the examination. Both forms must be signed by all members of the Special Committee, the Director of Graduate Studies, and the Graduate Field Assistant.

Admission to Candidacy (A) Exam 

The Graduate School requires that the A exam includes an oral component. Therefore, to complete the A exam, a doctoral student must present their QP. The nature and venue of the presentation of the QP is at the discretion of the student’s Special Committee. It could be a brown-bag, in a workshop, or a presentation to the student’s Special Committee. Regardless of the venue, all the members of the student’s Special Committee must be present at the presentation of the QP for the student to satisfy the oral component of the A Exam.

A Schedule of Examination form must be filed with the Graduate School at least seven calendar days before the oral presentation of the QP. Signatures must be secured by the student from all members of the Special Committee, the Director of Graduate Studies,  and the Graduate Field Assistant. A Results of Examination form must be filed with the Graduate School within three business days of the examination. This form must be signed by all members of the Special Committee, the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Field Assistant. Once the Special Committee has approved the dissertation proposal, the student is admitted to candidacy in the Ph.D. program. Forms can be found on the Grad School Form page.

Doctoral (B) Exam

The B Exam is an oral defense of the dissertation. Here, doctoral students are challenged to demonstrate mastery of the relevant literature, to justify the thesis, and to defend the data analysis and interpretations. A complete draft of the dissertation must be given to each committee member at least six weeks before the B exam is scheduled and submitted to the Graduate School within 60 days of passing the final exam. Enrollment in future semesters is not permitted after passing the final exam, even if the 60-day submission window extends into a subsequent semester.

The B exam must be scheduled through the Graduate School and attempted before the end of the 11th semester. Conditional outcomes will include a written remediation plan and timeline. If the committee agrees, one retake is allowed within [Y] months. Failure to pass the exam [after [X] attempt(s)] will result in withdrawal from the program.

Except for the QP, all other exams must be documented and reported through official Graduate School processes, and consequences must be clearly communicated in advance. Students who attempt their M or B exams and fully pass prior to the start of the subsequent semester are not eligible for student status and enrollment.

The graduate program requires a minimum of six courses in addition to the first-year proseminar, as described on the department website. Beyond the minimum coursework requirements, a doctoral student can take other courses in specific subfields, methods, or outside the department.

• Soc 5010: Basic Problems in Sociology and Soc 5020: Basic Problems in Sociology II
• Soc 6010: Statistics for Sociological Research and Soc 6020: Intermediate Statistics for Sociological Research
• Soc 6080: Proseminar in Sociology
• Soc 6130:  Logics and Methods of Sociological Research (effective AY 23-24 for incoming doctoral students)

• At least one graduate-level substantive seminar

In addition, doctoral students are strongly encouraged to take a third methods course in Sociology or an allied social science field. Methods courses taught by members of the Field include:

• Soc.5070: Research Methods III
• Soc.5080: Qualitative Methods

• Soc.6090: Causal Inference

The student’s Special Committee will suggest other courses, depending on their interests.

Students can obtain a minor, which requires taking certain courses and having a faculty member from the minor-granting field on their committee. Graduate minors that Sociology doctoral students may be interested in include: American Studies, Asian American Studies, Computer Science, Data Science, Demography, Feminist, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Information Science, Latina/o Studies and Statistics.

Students who have completed graduate research methods classes at other institutions are still required to take the Cornell methods sequence. Exceptions can be made for students who choose to enroll in advanced methodological training offered in other fields (e.g., the advanced econometrics series offered in Economics). Other exemptions are unusual and require the permission of the instructor of the course(s), in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies and the student’s Special Committee.

Students must complete 18 credits of required coursework by the end of their fourth semester. A minimum grade of 2.25 is required for all required courses. Students who do not meet this grade threshold may not advance to the next academic milestone and will no longer be in good academic standing. Exceptions or substitutions to course requirements require approval by the Special Committee and must be submitted before the semester begins. Failure to meet course requirements will trigger an academic review, the results of which can affect eligibility for exams or continued funding.

Because Cornell’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy stipulates that students in research degrees must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.25 to be in good academic standing or to be eligible for Title IV Aid, it is required that a MINIMUM GPA of 2.25 be set. A GPA below this threshold triggers a formal academic warning, requiring a remediation plan. If GPA is not raised within [X] semesters, the student faces loss of funding or dismissal, following Graduate School and CGSU‑UE due process procedures.

Teaching is a skill that will be useful to many students, whether they intend to become university faculty members or not. The Field requires that all students fulfill a teaching assistantship and, as usual, the Special Committee determines whether the requirement has been satisfied.

The teaching requirement may be met in a variety of ways. The most common way is to serve as a teaching assistant in an existing course that has discussion sessions for which a TA is responsible. All Ph.D. students must meet the teaching requirement within their first four years of enrollment. 

Teaching performance will be formally evaluated by supervising faculty, with constructive feedback shared to promote professional growth in pedagogical skills. The mid-semester and final evaluation will be shared in writing with the student, director of graduate studies (DGS), and graduate field administrator (GFA). If teaching performance is found to be unsatisfactory or incomplete, the student will not be considered in good academic standing.

Teaching well is a difficult task. The Field urges students to improve their teaching skills by taking advantage of the University’s resources for teaching assistants offered by the Center for Teaching Excellence and by observing colleagues and faculty members in action

Doctoral students enrolled in our program normally complete their degrees within six years and receive full financial support for the duration of their graduate studies if they remain in good academic standing, make satisfactory academic progress towards the degree, and (if applicable) perform satisfactorily in their assistantship responsibilities. 

Students in our field are generally funded through a Sage Fellowship or Dean’s Excellence Sage. These academic requirements are described on the Fellowships page. Students in our program regularly apply for and receive external fellowships and grants. Cornell will supplement qualified external awards. 

All eligible students in our field are required to prepare and submit an external fellowship application by the end of their third year. Qualified external fellowships will replace internal funding. If a student receives an external fellowship or grant, the GFA must be notified as soon as possible so appropriate arrangements can be made.

Failure to make timely, satisfactory academic progress may result in the loss of good academic standing, funding, and/or eligibility for future opportunities. 

Students appointed to assistantships are subject to the terms of the CGSU‑UE Collective Bargaining Agreement. Students appointed to fellowships are not included in the bargaining unit and therefore not represented by the union.

All field policies will be enforced consistently across students and timeframes. A doctoral student is expected to design, execute, and manage an independent research agenda and meet their academic milestones in a timely manner. If a student is not meeting expectations, their Special Committee chair and the DGS will provide timely written notice (as soon as concerns become evident) outlining the issues, outcomes, or potential consequences, including:

• Written notice of a lack of academic progress or loss of academic standing (separate, and in addition to, the SPR).

• A clear explanation of the concerns and specific expectations for improvement.
• A reasonable timeline and opportunity to meet expectations before any adverse action (e.g., changes in funding status or withdrawal recommendations).

• Further, all students should be provided with an opportunity to meet with the DGS to discuss the concern and plan for improvement.

If a student fails to meet the conditions of that plan, the Special Committee in collaboration with the field DGS will consult with the Graduate School to review the case and determine next steps. This can include academic withdrawal from their degree program and the Graduate School accompanied by documentation showing that the process above was followed, and in accordance with Graduate School policy and the terms of the CGSU-UE Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Graduate students will be given an opportunity to respond or appeal as outlined by the Graduate School and CGSU‑UE policies. Final decisions will be documented and archived by the DGS and GFA and the Graduate School.

Cornell supports the Faculty Advancing Inclusive Mentoring (FAIM) framework for faculty/student mentoring that draws upon a strengths-based and identity-informed approach to support mutual growth, development, and success (NASEM, 2019; Windchief, 2019).

The FAIM philosophy, key principles, and core mutual expectation areas for inclusive mentorship provide a foundation for fulfilling mentoring relationships by:

• supporting mentors and mentees as they seek to develop an understanding of one another’s expectations, cultures, values, and sources of motivation;

• helping mentors and mentees develop a mentorship plan better aligned to a mentor’s and mentee’s strengths, needs, and goals; and

• providing resources and tools that can be adapted and adopted by mentors and mentees to be contextually relevant.

Please refer to the FAIM website for resources and tools to support your mentoring relationships. Both the GFA and DGS can assist with providing advice and help navigating mentoring challenges. 

Per the Code of Legislation, the Graduate Faculty requires all research degree students, both master’s and doctoral, to complete responsible conduct of research (RCR) training. This includes training on authorship, peer review, and avoidance and consequences of research misconduct. This training is through the Cornell Office of Research Integrity and Assurance (ORIA) and must be completed before the end of the second semester (Code E.2.a.).

In addition to the course work, examinations, the qualifying paper, and dissertation research, the Field expects students to develop a set of professional skills, embodied in the following requirements and recommendations.

Proseminar

All first-year graduate students are required to attend the Sociology Proseminar (Soc. 6080). The proseminar introduces students to aspects of their graduate and professional careers and acquaints them with the members of the graduate faculty and their research and interests.

Summer Research Experiences

In 2012, the Field instituted a new requirement for graduate students. As a condition of receiving summer funding, students are required to be involved in a research project sponsored by a Field member during the summer. In the Spring semester, you must submit a brief statement describing your summer research plans, signed by your Special Committee chair or another Sociology Field member who is willing to serve as the advisor of your project for the upcoming summer. (For most advanced students, this will be the Special Committee Chair. For first-year students, this will be some other Field member. You should then submit the form to the Graduate Field Assistant.

The faculty member who acts as sponsor in a given summer has full discretion in structuring the experience, although the plan is worked out in collaborative discussion with the student. The sponsor may decide to involve you in an ongoing project, work with you one-on-one on a new project, or provide support/feedback on an independent project that you proposed.

The summer research experience should not be regarded as the only academic activity that you should pursue in the summer. Most students will also be preparing for written examinations for the A exam, working on group research projects, and beginning to explore potential dissertation topics by reading the latest published scholarship.

For first-year students, the summer research experience is not linked explicitly to your later selection of a Special Committee, although you will often work with faculty members who later become members of their Special Committees.

Once you nominate a Special Committee chair, s/he will be charged with the responsibility of ensuring that graduate students have summer experiences that develop the research skills necessary to complete a qualifying paper and a dissertation.

Research Assistantship

Understanding the process of research — from formulating the question and arranging funding through evaluating the data, compensating for its deficiencies, and presenting the final results of the analysis — is an essential component of graduate study. It is not only important for students who expect to be employed as faculty in research universities, but also for those who will work in public or private sector organizations where data collection and evaluation are part of the job description.

The research assistantship is designed as a learning experience. By working on a collaborative project, students become exposed to, and learn, the research process and its potential pitfalls under the guidance of a mentor. The research assistantship may take many forms, ranging from working on data collection or management tasks assigned by the faculty member to managing undergraduate research assistants to more co-equal collaboration on a major research work, depending on your prior experience and abilities. Research assistantships often lead to a product such as a coauthored paper.

The Field recommends that students obtain at least a semester’s worth of collaborative research experience, usually with a faculty member in the Field. Students typically work on collaborative research projects in their second or third years, but first-year students are also encouraged to begin working with at least one faculty member.

The Special Committee can help students find an appropriate mentor, but ultimately students are responsible for arranging their own research assistantships. For an updated list of the available projects, students should peruse Field members’ home pages and the web sites of the research centers.

The research assistantship is an opportunity for the student to develop a body of skills that will prove useful in professional life. It is also a service that the student provides to the department. You may, but will not necessarily, be paid for acting as a research assistant. In particular, students who are funded externally should still spend at least one semester as an RA, but cannot expect to receive both the external fellowship and research assistant “pay” for that semester.

Professional Paper Presentations

At some point in his or her graduate career, a student is expected to make a public presentation of research findings. Most students present papers at the American Sociological Association meetings. Other presentation opportunities are available around campus, including the ISS theme projects, Graduate Student Association events, and colloquia sponsored by allied academic units and research centers. Graduate students are also encouraged to present a working paper (i.e., a draft of the qualifying paper, a conference paper, or a dissertation chapter) in Sociology 6030, the Graduate Research Practicum.

Participation in the Sociology Colloquia and Practicum Series

All graduate students are expected to attend Department of Sociology colloquia, job talks given by candidates who are being considered for positions at Cornell, brownbags, and practice job talks given by advanced graduate students who are going on the job market. These events are extremely valuable for learning the tone of scholarly discourse, the structure of presentations, and the current state of sociological research in general.

Teaching Own Course

If the student has passed their A exam, they can teach a summer course, offered through Cornell’s Summer Session. 

Travel Funding Opportunities    

The Graduate School provides graduate degree students the opportunity to travel the world to enhance their scholarship. Eligible students are encouraged to apply for grant funding related to professional conferences, research travel, or summer language education.

Additional conference funding from the Sociology Department: Up to $400/year. If the total cost of the conference is not covered by the Graduate School conference grant, students can apply for additional departmental support. If the student does not request funding for a professional conference, the department provides up to $100 a year to fund the costs of participation in a program (in-person or virtual) that provides training that will enhance the student’s academic work.

RC28 Travel Grants: Up to $750/year. For doctoral students presenting their work at the RC28 (Research Committee 28 of the International Sociological Association) summer meeting. 
The Center for the Study of Inequality (CSI) offers the option of booking travel for students. Students must exhaust the Graduate School's conference grant first.