The College of Behavioral and Social Sciences offers 11 majors in 10 departments, two of which are Limited Enrollment Programs (LEP). All majors in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences require completion of benchmark or gateway courses to progress in the majors.
To begin the process of changing to, or adding a major in, the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences:
- Visit the department of your major to discuss the major requirements with a department advisor and to obtain the change/addition of major form or LEP application.
- Register for an academic planning workshop, by going to the BSOS Workshops website.
- Submit your academic plan via email:
- First Semester Graduation Plan: firstsemgradplan@umd.edu
- Change/Addition of major form and Graduation Plan: bsosmajorchange@umd.edu.
- Once your plan is reviewed and approved, your major will be changed/added. You can find out the approximate review time for plans/major changes when you submit your paperwork.
For a list of BSOS undergraduate majors, combined Bachelor / Masters programs and minors click here.
Graduation Plans by Major
The African American & Africana Studies Department (formerly known as African American Studies) offers a bachelor of arts degree in African American & Africana Studies. The degree emphasizes a global sociocultural analysis of the Black experience while providing a foundation in traditional Black studies to raise consciousness about issues of structural racism, and ground students in the history of resistance and resilience.
Additionally, the department offers a certificate program and several minor programs open to all students at the University of Maryland. More information about our department's programs can be found here. Please reach out to the department with any questions.
Gen Ed Program
For students who declared African American Studies after February 9, 2019.
- AAAS website
- Location: 2169 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-1170
- AAAS Minors and certificates
The African American & Africana Studies Department (formerly known as African American Studies) offers a bachelor of arts degree in African American & Africana Studies with a concentration in Public Policy. The public policy concentration emphasizes problem-solving, analytical decision-making, and practical applications of policy analysis and organizational skills.
Additionally, the department offers a certificate program and several minor programs open to all students at the University of Maryland. More information about our department's programs can be found here. Please reach out to the department with any questions.
Gen Ed Program
For students who declared African American Studies Public Policy Concentration.
- AAAS website
- Location: 2169 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-1170
- AAAS Minors and certificates
Anthropology, the study of culture, seeks to understand humans as a whole -- as social beings who are capable of symbolic communication through which they produce a rich cultural record. Anthropologists try to explain differences among cultures -- differences in physical characteristics as well as in customary behavior. Anthropologists study how culture has changed through time as the human genus has spread over the earth. Anthropology is the science of the biological evolution of human species, and the disciplined scholarship of the cultural development of human beings' knowledge and customary behavior.
The Bachelor of Arts degree provides a strong foundation with bases in all the subfields of anthropology.
Gen Ed Program
- ANTH website
- Location: 1111 Woods Hall
- Phone: 301-405-1423
Anthropology, the study of culture, seeks to understand humans as a whole -- as social beings who are capable of symbolic communication through which they produce a rich cultural record. Anthropologists try to explain differences among cultures -- differences in physical characteristics as well as in customary behavior. Anthropologists study how culture has changed through time as the human genus has spread over the earth. Anthropology is the science of the biological evolution of human species, and the disciplined scholarship of the cultural development of human beings' knowledge and customary behavior.
The Bachelor of Science degree provides an opportunity to match quantitative and laboratory skills with a focus in archaeology, ecological anthropology, or medical anthropology.
- ANTH website
- Location: 1111 Woods Hall
- Phone: 301-405-1423
The mission of the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology is to provide a supportive academic and professional environment for faculty and students. The department promotes study and teaching concerning crime and delinquency and their prevention and control. The University of Maryland's Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice is a national and international leader in research and criminal justice education, and its graduate program is ranked number one in the field. Courses offered by this department may be found under the following acronym: CCJS.
Gen Ed Program
For students enrolled as freshmen in Fall 2015 or later, or new transfer students outside of the University System of Maryland and Maryland community colleges.
- CCJS website
- Location: 2201 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4729
Economists study a wide range of phenomena using analytical methods that describe how people and collections of people behave and interact. Many economists define their profession as the analysis of decisions made in the context of scarcity. Economics can also be described as the study of the production, pricing and distribution of goods and services within societies. Economists study such problems as inflation, unemployment, poverty, environmental quality, financial markets and international trade. Economists also apply their methods of analysis to such diverse areas as crime, health care, discrimination and the problems of developing countries.
The Bachelor of Arts (BA) requirements allow students to choose between 400-level ECON courses that examine real world issues and those that focus on developing expertise in economic methodology. The Bachelor of Arts (BA) requirements emphasize breadth of exposure to different topics in economics.
Gen Ed Program
- ECON website
- Location: 3108 Tydings Hall
- Phone: 301-405-8367
Economists study a wide range of phenomena using analytical methods that describe how people and collections of people behave and interact. Many economists define their profession as the analysis of decisions made in the context of scarcity. Economics can also be described as the study of the production, pricing and distribution of goods and services within societies. Economists study such problems as inflation, unemployment, poverty, environmental quality, financial markets and international trade. Economists also apply their methods of analysis to such diverse areas as crime, health care, discrimination and the problems of developing countries.
The Bachelor of Science (BS) emphasizes methodology and techniques of economic analysis.
Gen Ed Program
For students who declared the ECON-BS after February 5, 2021
For students who declared the ECON-BS by February 5, 2021
- Location: 3108 Tydings Hall
- Phone: 301-405-8367
Environmental Science and Policy (ENSP) is a unique undergraduate major co-sponsored by three Colleges, the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences and the College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences.
All new students begin in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR), where they learn about the natural sciences and human context of environmental problem-solving while completing a multi-disciplinary "core" and a structured, exploratory advising program. After 2-3 semesters, students choose an area of concentration and move administratively to the College and academic department sponsoring the concentration (below) where they receive faculty advising and advanced training and background. Together, the three Colleges and 8 academic departments enroll 300+ students who aspire to solve the world's greatest environmental challenges.
Major Checklist by Concentration
How do you see the future? More of everything: food, parks, leisure, personal electronic devices, peace between the nations? Or more people, new diseases, traffic gridlock, and starvation? Will there still be crabs and oysters from the Chesapeake Bay?
Gen Ed Program
- GEOG website
- Location: 2108 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4073
The Computational Earth Observation Science major allows students to explore the analytical capabilities offered by current Earth-observing satellite missions, including the different types of information collected by various satellites and how this information is analyzed to solve important environmental and societal problems.
Gen Ed Program
Major Checklist and Sample Plan
- GEOG CEOS website
- Location: 2108 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4073
Students specializing in Geospatial Data Science gain the technical skills needed to acquire, manage, and analyze large amounts of geographic data. Students will get computer training in digital processing of remote sensing observations and cartographic vector data, spatial analysis, and the display of information in Geospatial Data Science (GDS) software.
Gen Ed Program
- GDS website
- Location: 2108 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4073
- GDS Minors and certificates
Government and politics is one of the largest majors on campus with approximately 1,000 students taking courses in American politics, international relations, comparative politics, political theory, political philosophy, law, public policy and environmental policy. Its large and diverse group of students are mentored by faculty through a variety of in- and out-of -classroom experiences and have been extremely successful in garnering campus and national awards, acceptance to competitive law and graduate programs, and exciting careers in all levels of government and the private sector. Students also benefit from a large and active group of local alumni who have reached the highest levels of their respective careers and who actively meet, recruit, and mentor current students.
Gen Ed Program
- GVPT website
- Location: 3104 Tydings Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4124 or 301-405-4142
The field of political science has become increasingly methodologically sophisticated utilizing relatively new techniques developed by all of the social sciences to collect and analyze political data. The Bachelor of Science in Government and Politics provides students with rigorous substantive and methodological training to understand, interpret, and produce empirical political science research. The B.S. option is primarily for students with a strong background and interest in statistics and data science. Students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in political science (or a related field) or careers that use quantitative research should consider the Bachelor of Science in Government and Politics.
Gen Ed Program
- GVPT website
- Location: 3104 Tydings Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4124 or 301-405-4142
The Department of Government and Politics offers an exciting array of international politics courses, taught by leading scholars of international and comparative politics. Studying international relations at Maryland means exploring the politics and political economy of cross-border interactions, including the determinants of foreign policy behavior. Students in the International Relations concentration will learn about topics such as the causes of war, the workings of international organizations, the complexities of international negotiations, and the politics of foreign economic policy and economic development. They will also have the opportunity to study the international relations of particular countries (such as China) or regions (such as the Middle East). And because international and domestic politics are closely related, students will learn as well about comparative politics, and will have the opportunity to enroll in classes that explore the politics and political institutions of different countries and regions.
Gen Ed Program
- GVPT website
- Location: 3104 Tydings Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4124 or 301-405-4142
Hearing and speech sciences is an inherently interdisciplinary field, integrating knowledge from the physical and biological sciences, medicine, psychology, linguistics and education in order to understand human communication and its disorders. The department curriculum leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree. An undergraduate major in this field is an appropriate background for graduate training in speech-language pathology or audiology, as well as for graduate work in other disciplines requiring knowledge of normal or disordered speech, language or hearing. The student who wishes to work professionally as a speech-language pathologist or audiologist must obtain a graduate degree in order to meet national certification requirements and most state licensure laws.
Gen Ed Program
- HESP website
- Location: 0131 LeFrak Hall
- Phone: 301-405-4236
- HESP Minors and certificates
The Colleges of Behavioral and Social Sciences (BSOS) and College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences (CMNS) are offering a new undergraduate major (BS) in Neuroscience (NEUR) at University of Maryland. The Neuroscience major will offer rigorous training in the interdisciplinary study of brain and behavior. Students will complete a required set of NEUR courses as well as a supporting sequence of coursework in mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology. Students will then choose an upper-level specialization and coursework in (1) cellular, molecular, and physiological neuroscience or (2) behavioral and cognitive neuroscience. The Neuroscience major will prepare students for a broad range of career paths including: scientific research, medicine, clinical psychology, allied health professions, or science-related government, nonprofit, or private sector employment.
Gen Ed Program
Major Requirements and Four Year Plan
- NEUR website
- Location: 1107 Biology-Psychology Building
- Phone: 301-405-8381
The undergraduate major in psychology provides an introduction to the methods by which the behavior of humans and other organisms are studied, and to the biological conditions and social factors that influence behavior.
Gen Ed Program
For students who declared PSYC after September 13, 2021
For students who declared PSYC by September 13, 2021
- PSYC website
- Location: 1121 Biology-Psychology Building
- Phone: 301-405-5866
Effectively, ethically, and efficiently creating high quality information products (datasets, visualizations, models) about human social activity is critical for progress in many domains, including health, education, climate, entertainment, policy making, and government. Social Data Science seeks to address the unique challenges of working with social and behavioral data at ever increasing scales, broader scope, and for novel purposes.
For students who declare SDSC after February 6, 2024
For students who declare SDSC by February 6, 2024
If you have additional questions regarding the program, you can connect with your SDSC advisor during Drop-In hours from 9:45 am to 12pm on Thursdays via Zoom here using password: SDSCSP24
Sociology is the scientific study of society and its institutions, organizations, and groups. By observing the broad range of activities in society, and exploring topics such as social class, race, gender, deviance, family, religion, the work place, and demographic trends, sociologists provide important information and perspectives on our social order and the causes and impacts of social change. Sociology provides important information useful both to personal life and public policy decisions. Sociology is among the broadest of the social sciences and is characterized by considerable pluralism in theoretical and methodological approaches, substantive specializations, and in units of analysis.
Gen Ed Program
Undergraduates adding the Sociology major or changing to the most recent Sociology curriculum after February 10, 2020, follow this major checklist and sample plan.
Undergraduates adding the Sociology major between May 18, 2016 and February 7, 2020, follow this major checklist and sample plan.
- SOCY website
- Location: 2108 Parren Mitchell Art/Sociology Building
- Phone: 301-405-6389
