Dear Prospective Student,

Welcome to the Division of the Social Sciences. I hope that your exploration of our website and degree programs will provide you with practical information and a good sense of the exceptional character of our scholarly endeavors at the University of Chicago. The Division offers nine doctoral programs and four master’s programs grounded in an abiding commitment to fundamental intellectual inquiry and graduate training of the highest order. If you are interested in one of our programs for undergraduates, please visit the University of Chicago College Admissions.

Our links to Departments and Committees provide a good beginning for your investigation, where you can explore the on-going research of our world-renowned faculty, read about the rich work of our graduate students, browse course offerings, and tap into other news and events.

Few universities can present so high a proportion of social sciences doctoral programs ranked among the world’s top ten as the University of Chicago. We are proud of the long tradition of fundamental research in the social sciences that has established a ‘Chicago School’ approach in four disciplines: anthropology, economics, political science, and sociology. Our interdisciplinary master’s programs date to the early 1930s and are among the oldest and most distinguished in the nation, and provide exceptional opportunity for students to study with distinguished faculty in a one-year master’s curriculum.

Historically, a particularly strong emphasis on interdisciplinary research and collaboration distinguishes the University of Chicago among top research institutions. You will find this emphasis reflected in our research projects, journals, and the many multi-discipline centers connected to the Social Sciences. One powerful form of interdisciplinary confluence at Chicago is the graduate workshop, which brings together faculty and students from diverse fields across the University to explore topics of common interest. The University’s Council on Advanced Studies sponsors some sixty Graduate Workshops in the Humanities and Social Sciences, and I encourage you to browse them at The Council on Advanced Studies for a good sense of the intellectual range and vigor of our community of scholars.

I encourage you also to spend a little time in our Current Students pages, where you will find links to many resources, activities, and initiatives in support of our diverse student population. To explore the rich range of course offerings, visit the University’s Time Schedules for both current and archived listings.

We very much welcome your interest in our Division. I hope you enjoy exploring these web pages and discover in them reflections of the rich and exciting intellectual life of our community of scholars. If you decide to apply to one or more of our programs, go to Admissions and Financial Aid to begin the application process. If you have further questions, please contact us. We will be happy to talk with you.

B. Patrick Hall
Dean of Students