Career Prospects

Sociologists holding the Ph.D. degree from Princeton have been extraordinarily successful in obtaining research and teaching positions at firstrate universities and colleges. In recent years, for example, Princeton Ph.D.s have gained positions at institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, Stanford University, Harvard University, the University of Chicago, the University of Wisconsin, Rutgers University, Duke University, MIT, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as universities abroad (such as in Japan and Hong Kong). A smaller but significant number have pursued careers in research institutes, business, planning commissions, and other branches of government. To prepare adequately for today’s job market, graduate students in the department are encouraged to gain teaching experience, to master both quantitative and qualitative research techniques, and to progress early in their studies toward producing publishable research papers. Students also benefit from close faculty supervision of their research and from opportunities to meet with faculty from other institutions in seminars and to present their own research in department workshops and at professional conferences.