Minors

The social science minors below are supported by the Division of the Social Sciences and the Social Sciences Collegiate Division:

Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies

Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies offers an interdisciplinary curriculum through which students can examine the histories, languages, and cultures of the racial and ethnic groups in and of themselves, in relationship to each other, and, particularly, in structural contexts of power. Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies examines the material, artistic, and literary expressions of peoples who originated in Africa, Latin America, Asia and Europe, who moved voluntarily or were forcefully bound over to the Americas.

Education and Society 

At the heart of the Education and Society curriculum is a concern with how individuals and institutions reconcile the tasks of child and youth cognitive development, identity formation, and socialization with the changing role of schooling in society and widespread concerns about social inequality and mobility. Students can take courses from faculty across the university, including courses by instructors from the Urban Education Institute (UEI) and the UChicago Consortium on School Research.

Geographic Information Science

The minor in Geographic Information Science provides a coherent exposure to rigorous spatial thinking and its expression through the theories and methods of Geographic Information Science. Geographic Information Science covers all aspects pertaining to accessing, storing, transforming, manipulating, visualizing, exploring and reasoning about information where the locational component is important (spatial data). This includes the technical and computational aspects of geographic information systems, the methodologies of spatial analysis and spatial statistics, mapping and geo-visualization, as well as societal aspects related to the use of geographic data.

Health and Society

Health and Society courses explore the processes that shape individual and population health in their social, material and physical contexts. Disability, psychiatric disorders, ideals of well-being, and models of medical intervention vary between cultural settings and across history. To understand health in its broader contexts, the minor encompasses a range of disciplines and methods, and differential emphases on theory, practice and policy implications.

History

Studying history sheds light on human experience and thought in different times and places. Fields of study may be defined by nations (e.g., Chinese, Roman, U.S., international history) or by genres (e.g., legal, cultural, gender history). Topics include the history of revolution, slavery, sexuality, colonialism, ethnicity, war, and work. History is excellent preparation for a wide field of endeavors from law, government, and public policy to the arts and business.

History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Science and Medicine

History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Science and Medicine (HIPS) covers a wide range of social, historical, and conceptual issues relating to science. The goal of the program is to provide students with a sound basis on which to interpret and evaluate science and science policy. Students in the program must do sufficient work in one or more sciences to acquire a sound foundation for studying the nature of science.

Latin American and Caribbean Studies

Students who minor in Latin American Studies gain a thorough grounding in selected aspects of Latin American history, politics, economics, or related subjects; knowledge of one or more of the social sciences as they deal with Latin American materials; and competence in Spanish or Portuguese as a tool for further work. The BA program in Latin American Studies can provide an appropriate background for careers in business, journalism, government, teaching, or the nonprofit sector, or for graduate studies in one of the social sciences disciplines.