Master’s Program in Sociology

The M.A. in Sociology, which is taught in English, is a research-oriented program. In line with the school’s research focus, it looks at empirical-analytical approaches, particularly at quantitative methods and comparative research. 

As early as in the first semester, students enrolled in this program can choose a sociological field they would like to explore further, such as Economy and Welfare State, Education and Work, Migration and Integration, Family, or Social Inequality. In addition, they will select an elective module, allowing them to either acquire knowledge of another sociological field or look into social psychology or learn methods of empirical social research.

In their fourth semester, they will write their master’s thesis, which takes the form of a research paper that is suitable for submission for publication to a social sciences journal. This is meant to prepare our graduates for a career in academia. 

The Department of Sociology cooperates with a variety of research institutions in the field of social sciences, such as the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES), the newly founded Collaborative Research Center 884, and the GESIS Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences. This is the perfect environment for you to gain practical experience, for example as a student assistant in leading research teams.

One of the university’s great assets is its international campus. In Mannheim, you will meet students and acclaimed researchers from all over the world, and you can join one of our large international student organizations. You will also benefit from the fact that our academic calendar as been aligned with the international academic year. In addition, we will support you if you want to go abroad. One option is to spend a period of study abroad at one of the school’s prestigious partner universities, such as Indiana University, the University of Haifa, the University of Toronto, or the University of Bergen.

The Career Support at the School of Social Sciences helps students find suitable internships and advises them on their first steps on the job market.

Mannheim is a vibrant city located at the heart of the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region. People with many different nationalities and cultures live here side by side. With more than 8,000 companies headquartered in the region, among them international corporations such as SAP or BASF, it is also a business hub. 

If you complete the master’s program in Sociology and subsequently earn a doctoral degree, you will be qualified for a career in academia. Many of our graduates begin a doctoral program at the Center for Doctoral Studies in Social and Behavioral Sciences (CDSS) of the Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences (GESS).

Apart from research and teaching, sociologist are sought after in a number of different areas. You can for example work 

• in market and opinion research,
• at TV and radio broadcasting companies, publishing companies for books and magazines, other media outlets,
• in public relations,
• as an advisor in public service, the private sector, for associations, or for NGOs,
• in organization or people development,
• in public administration: cross-sectional functions and staff departments (e.g., HR, gender equality, organization, planning, statistics, PR, finance, quality management),
• at educational institutions,
• in health care.

Read more about your career prospects

Students of Sociology should:

Module catalog
The module catalog gives you an overview of the courses and their content.

It is also possible to pursue a doctorate at a chair of the School of Social Sciences.

Applicants need to have a bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences to be admitted to the master’s program in Sociology (M.A.). A degree in a different field is sufficient if it is recognized as equivalent by the admissions committee. The following requirements must be met:

• a total of 180 ECTS credits or a standard period of study of six semesters,
• a final grade of 2.5 or better,
• sound knowledge of methods of empirical social research and statistics (grade: 2.5 or better).

Selection
We take a variety of criteria into account in our selection process:

• (current) grade average achieved in your bachelor’s degree (10 percent),
• letter of motivation (30 percent),
• sample of written work in German or English (60 percent).

Foreign language requirements
You must be very proficient in English. We accept the following as proof of language proficiency:

• attendance of English classes during the final years of German secondary school education with a minimum of 11 points achieved on average,
• a higher education entrance qualification from a school with English as the language of instruction,
• the successful completion of a program of study at a higher education institution with English as the language of instruction and examination,

• a certificate of the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet Based Test (TOEFL iBT) with a score of at least 90 points, the Test of English as a Foreign Language Paper Based Test (TOEFL pBT) with a score of at least 577 points,
• the Cambridge ESOL Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) or the Cambridge ESOL Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) with Level C or better,
• a certificate of the International English Language Testing System – Academic Test (IELTS) with an overall band score of at least 6.5.

Selection statutes
You can find the exact requirements for the program in the selection statutes, which are only available in German.