CGS Sociology Courses
CGS SOC 101X Introduction to Sociology
3 cr.
Introduction to the basic concepts, theories and methods of Sociology, emphasizing the significance of the self and culture, social process and organization, and forces of social stability and change.
Prerequisites: none.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Summer 2024, Spring 2024.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 130 Contemporary Social Problems
3 cr.
Sociological analysis of the nature, extent, causes, and potential solutions to selected major social problems such as poverty and wealth, racial and gender discrimination, crime and violence, drug abuse, family problems, quality of education, inadequate health care, population problems, intergroup conflict, and threats to the environment.
Prerequisites: none.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2020, Fall 2019.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 160 Sociology of Human Sexuality
3 cr.
Sociological overview of issues in human sexuality. Course is based on sociological investigations of the origins, nature and biosocial consequences of varying customs and ideals of human sexuality. Among topics that may be covered are: sex and family life, contraception, abortion and social power, violations of sexual norms and ideas about sexual propriety, origins and impact of sexual liberation movements, sociosexual aspects of epidemics, sociological interpretations of sexual dissatisfactions.
Prerequisites: none.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Fall 2021, Fall 2020.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 205 Global Social Problems
3 cr.
Sociological analysis of the nature, extent, causes, and potential solutions to global social problems such as consumerism, poverty and wealth, human rights, population growth and hunger, health issues, militarism and terrorism, and threats to the environment.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Fall 2021, Fall 2020.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 220 Sociology of Marriage and the Family
3 cr.
Marriage and the family as social institutions in a changing world. Historical changes and societal variations in family patterns. Changes over the life cycle. Explores the sources and consequences of a variety of family forms.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2025, Spring 2024.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 231 Crime and Criminal Justice
3 cr.
Explores the nature of crime and reviews ideas about definitions, causes, and solutions. Includes an introduction to the day-to-day functioning of the criminal justice system, the police, lawyers, courts, and correctional personnel.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Fall 2023, Fall 2022.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 234 Sociology of Race and Ethnicity
3 cr.
The experience of American racial, religious, ethnic and nationality groups. The nature of intergroup relations in the United States. Relationship of intergroup dynamics to social change, and to basic ideological, technological, and institutional structures and processes. Emphasis on social conflict over the distribution of economic and political power, family patterns, housing, education and access to the legal system.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS, CD
Last Taught: Spring 2025, UWinteriM 2025.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 246 Juvenile Delinquency
3 cr.
Examines the theories of the nature, causes, consequences, and prevention of juvenile misbehavior through examination of historic changes in the definition and frequency of juvenile offenses. Controversies over the practice of distinguishing juvenile crime and misbehavior from adult crime. Controversies over the treatment and punishment of juveniles, in connection with the activities of juvenile courts, parents and school officials, local communities, police departments, politicians, networks of attorneys and treatment personnel, and correctional authorities.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2024, Spring 2023.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 250 People, Organizations, and Society
3 cr.
Role of organizations, including business, governmental, and educational, in American society. Impact of organizations on members and clients, the internal dynamics of organizations, and the interchange between organizations and their environment, including the society as a whole.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 275 Religion, Spirituality, and Secularism in Society
3 cr.
The sociological approach to the study of religious beliefs, practices, and organizations, as found in the world religions, the religions of indigenous peoples, and new religions. Includes the role of religion in socialization, personal identity, family, politics, economics, and other social institutions. How religious patterns relate to race, ethnicity, class, and gender. The place of religion in modern and postmodern societies, including discussions of religion and secularization, fundamentalism, and globalization.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students, except with consent of instructor.
Course Rules: CGS REL 275 and CGS SOC 275 are jointly offered and count as repeats of one another.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2022, Spring 2021.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 285 Sociology of Health and Illness
3 cr.
Sociological perspectives on health and illness, with special attention to changes in patterns of illness and death as they relate to broader socio-economic changes and to changes in orientation and organization of health care providers. Among major topics that the course covers are: competing theories of disease and death trends; social circumstances under which epidemics emerge and are curbed; public health and medical center models of providing health care and preventing disease, injury, and death; organization of health care providers; comparisons among health systems.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2020.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 294 Practice in Applied Sociology
1-3 cr.
An individually arranged internship in an area museum, field site, public agency, or other organizations for students to gain practical experience as field researchers. Intended for advanced students with prior Sociology coursework. Students will work under the supervision of a department member and receive credit based on hours employed and completion of a final report summarizing how their experiences reflect classroom learning and how they will apply their experience in future work.
Prerequisites: previous Sociology course and consent of instructor.
Course Rules: Repeatable for a maximum of six credits.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 299 Independent Reading in Sociology
1-3 cr.
Prerequisites: consent of instructor.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 355 Sociology of the Environment
3 cr.
Explores the socio-cultural foundations of our relationship with the natural environment. Examines the relationship between environmental degradation and social, political, and economic structures. Explores beliefs and values about the environment and their expression in various forms of environmentalism and environmental movements. Also analyzes the presentation of environmental issues in cultural, political, and scientific domains.
Prerequisites: Not recommended for first-semester students.
General Education Requirements: SS
Last Taught: Spring 2024, Fall 2023.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/
CGS SOC 455 Sociology of the Environment
3 cr.
Socio-cultural foundations of our relationship with the natural environment; relationship between environmental degradation and social, political, and economic structures; beliefs and values about the environment and their expression in various forms of environmentalism and environmental movements.Also analyzes the presentation of environmental issues in cultural, political, and scientific domains.
Prerequisites: junior standing or consent of instructor.
Last Taught: Spring 2020.
Current Offerings: https://catalog.uwm.edu/course-search/