Student Experiences
Here are what our current graduate students are saying about the Sociology Masters Program:
Nick Andre
The BYU Sociology program interests me for many reasons. I talked with friends and other BYU alumni before making this decision. I graduated from BYU-Idaho with a degree in sociology, but before I went in to graduate studies, I wanted to make sure I was fully invested. I enjoy learning about human behavior and understanding why people do what they do. Before entering graduate school, three of my concerns were succeeding in the program, networking, and finding a job after the program. The sociology program at BYU fulfills potential interests I have which include teaching, research, and other potential job opportunities. I enjoy the culture of learning principles in religious context and interacting with others for learning. My long-term goals include teaching in academia or doing research for an organization such as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Jorden Jackson
I decided to get a masters in sociology because I wanted to make the world a better place for women. I hope that my research informs organizations and policy makers on the most effective ways to improve women's lives. My thesis examines the effects of distance from women's health services, i.e. OBGYN, labor and delivery services, on women's health, healthcare accessibility, and healthcare satisfaction. I am using survey data from the Rural Utah Community Study (RUCS). In the RUCS, rural Utah residents self-reported information on their healthcare utilization patterns, healthcare access issues, physical and mental health status, and satisfaction with local healthcare services. I gathered supplementary data by phone interviews, providing information on the distance women travel from their community for different women`s health services, including tests and exams, labor and delivery services, and gynecology. The specific research objectives of my thesis are to understand how distance to women's healthcare services effects rural women's: (1) self-reported health; (2) healthcare accessibility; and (3) healthcare satisfaction.
Kayci Muirbrook
I decided to pursue a Master’s degree in sociology because I strongly believe that social science research enables voices to be heard that would not have been heard otherwise, thus improving lives and creating a more aware and inclusive society. I decided on this program because the one to one mentoring with faculty members that this program offers is unique, the faculty are incredibly supportive, and there are opportunities for growth and improvement both in the classroom and through hands on research experience. This all helps me feel that I will be successful in life after school. My research interests include communities, race and ethnic discrimination, immigration, stratification, and poverty. My goal is to work in applied social research, helping to provide information for policy implementation and evaluation for disadvantaged groups.
Jared Poff
I chose to do my master's degree in Sociology at BYU because of the great relationships I have developed with the faculty here. I am interested in studying family structure and how it affects personal health and well-being. I love everything Japanese and hope to study Japanese families in my research! After graduation I plan to pursue a PhD in sociology and continue studying families and personal well-being in an international context.
Kirsten Rasmussen
I decided to pursue a master’s degree in Sociology at BYU because of the research experiences that it offers. As an undergraduate I was able to research family structure and parental mental health, and now as a master’s student I have been researching residential mobility. Working on these projects has taught me important research skills and given me a chance to utilize the research knowledge and sociological foundation my classes have taught me. I am interested in race, sports, and media, and plan to research these in the future. After graduation I plan to take the skills I developed through this program into an applied field.
Tacey Shurtliff
I decided to pursue a Master’s degree in Sociology at BYU because of the experiences it offers. The faculty is very invested in helping you achieve all that you want to in a graduate experience. The hands on experience in research is another aspect that really interested me in this program. I am working with Dr. John Hoffmann, Dr. Melissa Jones and many others and I am interested in race, multiracialism, crime, and family. The faculty here helps support that interest by research, publishing papers, and conference possibilities. My goals after completion of the program here is to go on to earn a PhD in sociology and continue my education in race and crime and help the world better understand a marginalized group of people.
Elizabeth Sigler
I decided to pursue the sociology program at BYU because of the inspiring faculty and the research experience they offer. As an undergraduate student, I had incredible professors that included me in their research and helped me see my potential. I never thought I was graduate student material. I would not be where I am today without the faculty here. I am currently working on a project researching family structure and the different impacts it has on children and parents. In the near future, I also hope to dive into fatherhood research. I am confident this program will help prepare me with the skills I need to be successful in the applied world. I never thought I would be here and I am grateful that I am.
Sadie Slighting
I chose to pursue a master's degree in sociology at BYU because I love learning and working with the incredible faculty to address big questions about society. I love getting to see the progress of social research and be a part of the conversation. I am interested in family, race, and mental and physical health. I enjoy using data to discuss societal issues and address problems that are happening at both the micro and macro level.
Claudia Soto
I am doing a Master's in Sociology because I want to produce knowledge that will alleviate issues in immigration. Being an immigrant from Costa Rica has given me first-hand experience in the hardships that immigrants experience in the United States. I am working with Dr. Jane Lopez on a project studying the integration of immigrants in the state of Utah. Dr. Lopez and all other professors in the department are willing to help the graduate students to learn, grow, and succeed in the field of sociology. I am very thankful to be a part of this program, and I know it will help me in my goals of earning a PhD in sociology and later entering academia or an applied field related to immigration.
Jared Thorpe
To be completely honest, Sociology never crossed my mind as something I would like to study. I came to sociology as a back-up to business, with the intent to go on and get an MBA. What I didn't expect, was that I would fall in love with Sociology itself and the social justice that guides it as a discipline. The things I learned in my first semesters as a Sociology undergrad blew my mind and I immediately knew that I wanted to become a professor and open students minds the way that my professors had done for me. So here I am! I wasn't the best undergraduate student so getting straight into a PhD program wasn't an option. However, the Masters degree at BYU is a great launching point into some of the best programs in the country! I am currently researching adolescent mental health and several things which influence it, such as the number of siblings someone has.
Taylor Topham
I joined the master's program in sociology at BYU because the student to faculty ratio allows for great mentoring relationships to develop. This makes the program ideal for those who want the deeper research experience and skill-building opportunities that kind of relationship can provide, which should be pretty much anyone looking to enter a grad program in sociology. I was an English major as an undergraduate, so a program that offered this kind of close-knit experience was what I was looking for, as it will provide me ample opportunities to develop the social research skills that I didn't get a chance to develop as an undergraduate. My specific research interests are in education, trying to understand how the ways we are educated and choose to educate ourselves end up influencing our lives. I am interested in understanding how much learning is a social phenomenon versus an individual one and whether that varies by context. Ultimately, I want these understandings to influence the way we organize our education system to make it more enjoyable, equitable, and effective.
Kirstie Weyland
I decided to pursue a Masters in Sociology because I am interested in human behavior and how we influence each other in different groups and organizations. I learned a lot about religious mindsets and religious motivation as I worked for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in their headquarters office. I felt the need to return to BYU and gain more skills in research so that I could decide what I wanted to research so I could use it to help many communities. I decided to attend BYU's Master of Sociology program because of the faculty and their willingness to work with students on research. I like the 1 to 1 teacher to student ratio and that I've been assigned to an adviser who is a great mentor. I am interested in immigration, racial and ethnic identity, crime and deviance, and the criminal justice system. I hope to use my research skills in an applied field in the future to help inform policy maker's decisions about programs, laws, and institutions that greatly affect people's lives.
Jake Wixom
I chose to pursue a master's degree at BYU because of the amazing hands-on experience available here. I am interested in political sociology, social change, and how organizations operate in their institutional environments. I particularly enjoy qualitative research methods for their ability to provide rich context, insight, and empathy. After graduation I plan to pursue a PhD in sociology with the goal of furthering scientific knowledge in this area of study and hopefully making the world a better place.