Online Social Science Degree Programs

Online social science degree programs are usually divided into graduate and undergraduate behavioral science degree programs, history degree programs, economics degree programs, political science degree programs, women's studies degree programs, psychology degrees, sociology degree programs and human services degree programs.

Are you intrigued by the ways people behave? Do you try to understand people's true motives and feelings? Are you interested in the dynamic components of social interaction? If so, a degree in social sciences may be for you.

Earning an Online Social Science Degree

Many students earn their social sciences degrees by pursuing an online social science degree program. Accredited distance learning and online colleges focus on providing learners access to high-quality social science courses in a flexible manner, at the learner's convenience. You should be careful to make sure that the online social science degree program you attend is accredited to ensure that your degree will be accepted by employers and other colleges and universities, and to protect yourself against fraudulent degree programs and diploma mills.

Online Social Science Degrees and Related Programs

Social science degrees and related courses are available by distance learning in these and more areas of study:

Associates Degree in Economics
Human services degree
Political science degree
History Degree
Economics Degree
Women's Studies Degree

Bachelor Degree in Economics
Sociology Degree
Physician Assistant
Nursing Informatics
Behavioral science degree

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What can you expect from a social science degree program?

Social science degree programs introduce you to new ways to understand what motivates people, and the historical, economic, gender, and ethnic issues that affect their lives. This also may also involve learning about behavioral science, psychology and sociology.

Human services degree programs focus on providing you with knowledge about family dynamics, human behavior and psychology, childhood and human growth and development, addiction treatment, and the laws and regulations associated with social work. You can earn an associates degree in human services, a bachelors degree in human services, a masters degree in human services, or a Ph.D. in human services. Your coursework will include child development, caring for the elderly, human behavior, psychology, family counseling, abnormal psychology, and addiction.

Psychology degree programs teach you about the study of human decision-making, childhood and adult growth and development, social psychology, personality, health psychology, abnormal psychology, and psychology research methods. You may also undertake a clinical practice under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist. All states require psychologists to be licensed, which usually requires a Ph.D. or Psy.D. An associate's degree in psychology usually serves as a stepping stone to a bachelor's degree in psychology.

A degree in behavioral science will train you in the methods and techniques of conducting scientific investigations into the behaviors of animals and people. You will take classes in behavior, psychology, behavior modification and training, statistics, and behavioral science methods. You will also learn about ethics and law in research. Behavioral scientists earn at least a bachelor's degree, but usually continue on to the master's or Ph.D. degree.

Political science degree programs are designed to provide you with the tools you need to analyze public policy, develop and recommend government policy decisions, raise public awareness of social problems, and influence government actions. You will take classes in comparative political systems, American government, political parties, public policy, ethnic studies, and economics to gain the knowledge you will need. A master's degree in political science will deepen your understanding of specific subjects in political science with coursework on Islam, Middle Eastern political systems, Homeland Security and defense policy, global economic systems, and American government vis the Office of the President, Congress, and the Judicial system, American political parties, and interest groups.

Graduate and undergraduate degree programs in sociology will teach you how people interact in social and political systems. You will learn how groups form and are organized, how social and political groups make decisions, and how they change in response to social pressures. Your coursework may include social theory, criminology and social deviance, sociology of women and minorities, and social psychology. Sociology degrees are awarded at the associate's, bachelors, masters, and PhD levels.

Women's studies degree programs offer instruction in the social, political, and economic issues that affect women, and feminist theory. You will examine the historical roles of women and men, women's literature, women's health issues, women's psychology, and gender inequalities. Women's studies programs attempt to examine the role of women in history, how cultural expectations have shaped women and women's roles, and the role of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and more on women's lives.

Economics, often referred to as the "dismal science", is the study of the distribution of resources across a society so that it can produce goods and services. As an economist, you will study the forces that shift resources from one sector of the economy to another, project the future of the economy, and study the causes of economic upheaval and what can be done to prevent it. Economics degree programs offer coursework in business and finance, accounting, government policy and decision-making, geopolitics, demographics, and many other sciences that are used to create models that will help economists make their economic forecasts.

George Santayana once said "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it." History degree programs prepare you for a career studying the past and using that information to predict the future. You will take courses in American history, European history, world history, military history, the history of your choice of individual countries, and the history of your choice of specific eras in American or world history such as the Jacksonian era.

Careers and Salaries with a Degree in Social Sciences

What can you do with a social science degree? Historical sites, hospitals, managed care facilities, prisons, colleges and universities, non-profit organizations, and major corporations and labor unions are among the many potential employers of social science degree graduates. Jobs are available to social science degree holders at all levels, but the best opportunities tend to be available to those who hold advanced degrees, beyond the bachelor's degree level.

When you graduate with your degree in human services, you may find employment working with children and families as a social worker, mental health and substance abuse worker, professor in a college or university, social work assistant, case management aid, community support worker, or client advocate. Schools, public health offices, prisons, medical facilities, and government social services departments hire human services workers. Salaries for human services workers range from the mid $20,000's for associate's degree level jobs to $52,000 for graduates with a bachelor's degree in human services or higher. A substance abuse counselor, for example, can expect to earn an average of $47,000.

As a psychology graduate, you may find employment working with children and families as a mental health counselor or substance abuse counselor, forensic psychologist, organizational psychologist, or as a researcher. Salaries for psychologists range from over $48,000 to over $68,000. Industrial psychologists can earn up to $115,000. Counselors with a BS or MS degree can expect to earn between $35,000 and $55,000.

Your behavioral science degree program will prepare you for employment as a counselor, social worker, or researcher. With a bachelor's degree in behavioral science, you can expect to be a research assistant, counselor, or social worker. Master's degree holders have better likelihood of obtaining similar jobs at higher pay. Doctoral degree holders usually become scientists at a college or university, or they practice behavioral management. Employers and salaries for behavioral scientists are similar to those for human services graduates.

Because most political science careers require a bachelor's degree, an associate's degree, typically serves as a stepping stone to a bachelor's degree. Most political science jobs offer preference to those who hold a master's degree in political sciences. You can expect to work as a policy analyst, market analyst, researcher, or as a supervisor of analysts and researchers in education administration, agribusiness, media and entertainment, industrial production, hospital and medical practice management, social and community services, and local, state, and federal government.

Salaries for graduates vary widely, depending upon the degree you earn. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2008), graduates average between $75,000 and $125,000. For example, policy analysts in Washington, D.C. earn an average of over $90,000.

Sociology program graduates find employment as market and political analysts, political writers, political research assistants, and more. Sociology graduates can expect to earn between $51,000 and $92,000 annually. Sociologists tend to work as teachers, counselors, and researchers. A sociology teacher can expect to start at an average of $45,000.

Your degree in women's studies will prepare you to work as a policy analyst, women's health advocate, director of a non-profit organization, sex abuse and rape counselor, and more. Advanced degrees in women's studies open opportunities to teach and conduct research at colleges and universities. Salaries for women's studies graduates are comparable to those of graduates in other social sciences occupations.

The job market for economists is fairly flat, but opportunities exist in every field of human endeavor: business, government, or non-profit. You may be hired as an economic policy analyst, business forecaster, demographer, or consultant with a major consulting firm. Economists with graduate degrees have the best employment prospects. Salaries for economists average over $83,000.

As a historian, you will work for the government, schools, museums, historical societies, and some tourist sites to research, analyze, teach, and preserve the past. Governments often use historical data as a means of predicting future needs. As a history degree program graduate, you may be called upon to write about historical events, people, or places. Historians can expect to earn between $33,000 and $77,000, but the competition for these jobs is fairly high. A curator of a museum, for example, may earn an average of $50,000. A park ranger at a historical site earns about $38,000 to start, but the employment is often seasonal, especially in areas of the country with harsh winters.