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Social sciences provide an analytical approach to society’s problems. As a result, faculty and students in the social sciences often focus on complex and intersectional issues such as racism, international conflict and war, climate change, and poverty. Through an objective and empirical approach to these issues, the goal is to generate genuine passion and equip future leaders with the skills they need to address the world’s challenges. Explore majors, minors, concentrations, and academic programs in the social sciences. 

 


News from Social Sciences

Experiential learning prepares many people for career and advancing education—even Dean Chris Poulsen. Hear from Poulsen about how a memorable Earth sciences undergraduate field trip set him on the path to graduate school, and read about how the CAS Experiential Learning Fund helps undergrads access life-changing hands-on learning opportunities.
GEOGRAPHY - Are flying robots taking over? Not in this geography class, where students learn how to control the drones that will help map our future. The course Mapping with Drones invites students—whether they're majoring in environmental studies, geography, or journalism—to explore the basics and fundamentals of using drones to map the geographic features of a location.
ANTHROPOLOGY - Professor Phil Scher uses science fiction and alien cultures to teach anthropology—and to challenge college students’ assumptions about humanity. In Anthropology and Aliens, a 100-level course in the Department of Anthropology, students examine speculative and science fiction to learn how societal structures influence behavior and culture—similar to how anthropologists study real-world societies.

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students walking and holding possessions during Unpack the quack day

Your Gift Changes Lives

Gifts to the College of Arts and Sciences can help our students make the most of their college careers. To do this, CAS needs your support. Your contributions help us ensure that teaching, research, advising, mentoring, and support services are fully available to every student. Thank you!

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World-Class Faculty in the Social Sciences

portrait of Jo Weaver

Jo Weaver

Associate Professor, Global Studies and Director, Global Health Program

Lesley Jo Weaver is an academic expert in medical anthropology, global health, mental health, race, gender, chronic diseases, and food insecurity. She directs the Global Health Program at UO. Her research focuses, broadly, on the social production of health and illness. In India, Weaver’s National Science Foundation-supported research explores how the day-to-day management of type 2 diabetes shapes North Indian women’s abilities to participate in social roles considered appropriate for women of their age, class, and caste groups. In Brazil, Weaver’s work has examined how food insecurity influences physical and mental wellbeing.

Weaver co-hosts and co-produces the American Anthropological Association-sponsored podcast Speaking of Race, a longstanding program that explores the history and present-day reverberations of scientific racism around the world.

Political Science faculty member Neil O'Brien stands outside smiling with arms crossed

Neil O'Brian

Assistant Professor of Political Science

Neil O’Brian is an academic expert in U.S. politics focusing on public opinion, political parties, and polarization. His recent work has focused on how people’s perceptions of politics and current events affect their political attitudes. He’s recently published the book The Roots of Polarization: From the Racial Realignment to the Culture Wars (University of Chicago Press). 

O’Brian is the second UO researcher to receive an Andrew Carnegie Fellowship. O’Brian is using the fellowship to further explore what he calls the “doctor’s project.” The start of this research began when he identified a partisan divide in the trust people have in their physicians; those on the political right expressed less trust in their doctors than those on the left. This is a recent phenomenon, as data showed no difference in trust in one’s doctor until a shift in 2020-21, during the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. O’Brian argues the partisan divide over public health measures—such as masking and vaccines—led to less trust in the medicine industry.

Laura Pulido

Laura Pulido

Collins Professor of Indigenous, Race and Ethnic Studies and Geography

Laura is a qualitative social scientist who works at the intersection of geography and critical ethnic studies, especially Chicanx Studies. Her interest in these fields began as a young child fascinated by maps, landscapes, nature, and places. At the same time, everyday life taught her that we live in a racial, class and gender hierarchy that shapes our lives. Through her research and teaching she explores how these processes shape places and how places inform racial and economic processes. Most of her work explores the various ways in which racial inequality is actively produced, as well as the various means by which it is denied. She works together with graduate students in the Critical Race Lab.

She is the author of numerous books, including A People’s Guide to Los Angeles (with Laura Barraclough and Wendy Cheng, University of California, 2012). 

 

Paris, France cityscape at night

School of Global Studies and Languages

At the School of Global Studies and Languages (GSL), UO students engage with diverse cultures, languages, histories, and lifeways across the world. Students of the social sciences, from Anthropology to Sociology, will broaden and deepen their education in their field by viewing it—and experiencing it—through a global lens. GSL prepares our graduates for life after college with an interdisciplinary curriculum, innovative language teaching, abundant learning opportunities outside the classroom, and paths of study that lead to many options for real-world careers.

Explore the GSL

Research in the Social Sciences

Research in the social sciences investigates human behavior and the motivations that influence it. Although some of our research occurs in the lab, much of it is conducted out in the field using a variety of methodological approaches, from exploratory to experimental. The results of our research often carry societal-level implications and may point to solutions for addressing local, national, or global challenges.

Explore Other Majors and Minors in the College of Arts and Sciences

 

Meet Our Dean

Welcome to the social sciences division of the College of Arts and Sciences. Within our community, we address some of the world’s problems—big or small—through interdisciplinary research and critical thinking. What drives us is a passion for exploring human behavior and society.

The social sciences provide the necessary foundation for any academic inquiry, from the creative arts to the natural sciences. Inside the classroom, we lead courses that are engaging and thought-provoking, inspiring students to become better citizens of our world and work toward a more inclusive future.

We also believe real-world experience offers some of the most impactful learning opportunities. From internships to study abroad trips that offer new cultural experiences, our students regularly engage in hands-on learning work that reaches across social, disciplinary, and geographic boundaries, allowing them to forge new connections and spark new ideas.

We look forward to changing the world with you.

Bruce McGough    
Divisional Associate Dean, Social Sciences

Bruce McGough

Happening at CAS

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

UO College of Arts & Sciences (@uocas) • Instagram photos and videos

Dec 9
History Pub Lecture Series: "Science and the Seafloor: A History of Cabled Observatories on the Juan de Fuca Plate" 7:00 p.m.

"Science and the Seafloor: A History of Cabled Observatories on the Juan de Fuca Plate" Hayley Brazier  The UO Department of History and the Lane County...
History Pub Lecture Series: "Science and the Seafloor: A History of Cabled Observatories on the Juan de Fuca Plate"
December 9
7:00 p.m.
Whirled Pies Downtown

"Science and the Seafloor: A History of Cabled Observatories on the Juan de Fuca Plate"

Hayley Brazier 

The UO Department of History and the Lane County Historical Society present a series of talks with scholars about history, from the local to the global. Join us for stories, food, and conversation in a casual setting! Free and open to everyone. For more information, please visit history.uoregon.edu.

Dec 10
Let's Talk - Tuesdays 3-5PM (CMAE/Zoom) 3:00 p.m.

Meet with Counseling Services Gonzalo Camp, who specializes in working with LatinX/ undocumented and LGBTQIA+ students, at the Center for Multicultural Academic Excellence (Oregon...
Let's Talk - Tuesdays 3-5PM (CMAE/Zoom)
October 15–December 10
3:00–5:00 p.m.

Meet with Counseling Services Gonzalo Camp, who specializes in working with LatinX/ undocumented and LGBTQIA+ students, at the Center for Multicultural Academic Excellence (Oregon Hall-Room 130) or click here: https://zoom.us/j/99144795374

 

Let’s Talk is a service that provides easy access to free, informal, and confidential one-on-one consultation with a Counseling Services staff member. See our website for six additional Let’s Talk days/times offered throughout the week.

Let’s Talk is especially helpful for students who:

Have a specific concern and would like to consult with someone about it. Would like on-the-spot consultation rather than ongoing counseling. Would like to consult with a CS staff member about what actual therapy looks like. Would like to meet with one of our CS identity-based specialists. Have a concern about a friend or family member and would like some ideas about what to do.

How does Let’s Talk work?

Let’s Talk will be offered via Zoom and/or in satellite locations across campus. As a drop-in service, there is no need to schedule an appointment and no paperwork to be completed. Students are seen individually on a first-come, first-served basis at the times listed below. There may be a wait in the Zoom waiting room if the Let’s Talk staff member is meeting with another student. Please wait and we will be with you as soon as we can. Let’s Talk appointments are brief (usually between 15-30 minutes) and are meant to be used on an as-needed basis.

Dec 11
Let's Talk - Wednesdays Noon-2MP (Peterson Hall/Zoom) noon

Meet with Counseling Services Rachel Barloon at Peterson 203 or click here: https://zoom.us/j/98335445813   Let’s Talk is a service that provides easy access to...
Let's Talk - Wednesdays Noon-2MP (Peterson Hall/Zoom)
October 16–December 11
noon

Meet with Counseling Services Rachel Barloon at Peterson 203 or click here: https://zoom.us/j/98335445813

 

Let’s Talk is a service that provides easy access to free, informal, and confidential one-on-one consultation with a Counseling Services staff member. See our website for six additional Let’s Talk days/times offered throughout the week.

Let’s Talk is especially helpful for students who:

Have a specific concern and would like to consult with someone about it. Would like on-the-spot consultation rather than ongoing counseling. Would like to consult with a CS staff member about what actual therapy looks like. Would like to meet with one of our CS identity-based specialists. Have a concern about a friend or family member and would like some ideas about what to do.

How does Let’s Talk work?

Let’s Talk will be offered via Zoom and/or in satellite locations across campus. As a drop-in service, there is no need to schedule an appointment and no paperwork to be completed. Students are seen individually on a first-come, first-served basis at the times listed below. There may be a wait in the Zoom waiting room if the Let’s Talk staff member is meeting with another student. Please wait and we will be with you as soon as we can. Let’s Talk appointments are brief (usually between 15-30 minutes) and are meant to be used on an as-needed basis.

Dec 11
Let’s Talk – Wednesdays 2PM-4PM (BCC/Zoom) 2:00 p.m.

Meet with Counseling Services Cecile Gadson, who specializes in working with Black and African American students, at the Black Cultural Center. Let’s Talk is a service...
Let’s Talk – Wednesdays 2PM-4PM (BCC/Zoom)
October 16–December 11
2:00–4:00 p.m.

Meet with Counseling Services Cecile Gadson, who specializes in working with Black and African American students, at the Black Cultural Center.

Let’s Talk is a service that provides easy access to free, informal, and confidential one-on-one consultation with a Counseling Services staff member. See our website for six additional Let’s Talk days/times offered throughout the week.

Let’s Talk is especially helpful for students who:

Have a specific concern and would like to consult with someone about it. Would like on-the-spot consultation rather than ongoing counseling. Would like to consult with a CS staff member about what actual therapy looks like. Would like to meet with one of our CS identity-based specialists. Have a concern about a friend or family member and would like some ideas about what to do.

 

How does Let’s Talk work?

Let’s Talk will be offered via Zoom and/or in satellite locations across campus. As a drop-in service, there is no need to schedule an appointment and no paperwork to be completed. Students are seen individually on a first-come, first-served basis at the times listed below. There may be a wait in the Zoom waiting room if the Let’s Talk staff member is meeting with another student. Please wait and we will be with you as soon as we can. Let’s Talk appointments are brief (usually between 15-30 minutes) and are meant to be used on an as-needed basis.