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Sociology Education Abroad Guide

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CU Boulder Education Abroad offers over 400 programs in over 70 countries! You can go abroad for a semester, year, 2-12 weeks in the summer, or even winter break. Going abroad is strongly encouraged by the Sociology department. Use the following information as a general guideline to plan your time abroad, and connect with your academic advisor as well. Work with Education Abroad advisors to get more details on how to get started, discuss your program options, and next steps. 

Quick Facts

  • Sociology majors most commonly study  abroad during their sophomore or junior year.
  • The most common degree requirements taken abroad are upper-division SOCY electives, certain Gen Ed classes, and general elective hours
  • Use the Course Approvals List to find programs that offer courses approved for the credit you need

Planning and When to Go

  • First-year: Take Gen Ed and sociology courses that may not be available on the education abroad program you choose (see below for more details). 
  • Sophomore: Finish SOCY 1001 and SOCY 3001 courses so you'll have the pre-reqs needed for the upper-division SOCY classes you need upon return to CU Boulder. If needed, make sure your language abilities match the program you wish to attend. Education abroad during sophomore year is absolutely possible, though.
  • Junior: Go abroad! Going abroad during your junior year allows you plenty of variety in your choices of classes.
  • Senior: Work closely with your advisor to ensure that you can get all of your requirements completed.
    Be sure that you know when the credits may be transcripted, as this can delay your official graduation date.

What Kind of Credit Can You Earn Abroad?

Usually Doable Tricky Probably Not
General Electives  A&S Gen Ed SOCY A&S Gen Ed SOCY A&S Gen Ed SOCY
Overall credit hours  Arts and Humanities, Natural Science (Non-Lab), Social Sciences Upper-division SOCY electives Global Diversity Sociological Research Methods
 		 Natural Science (Lab), Written Communication N/A

Suggested Programs

Use these links to find programs that may be a good match for you and your course needs.
    

Submitting Courses for Evaluation

Note that the Sociology department requires that their students submit syllabi for all new course evaluation requests that are submitted on the Major/Minor/Certificate Evaluation Form. If you cannot find syllabi on your program's website, reach out to your program manager through your provider (e.g. CIEE, ISA, etc.) and/or contact your CU program manager.
 

Additional Resources

Last Updated March 2023