COURSE CURRICULUM

The three-year Bachelor of Arts Community Studies (BACS) in Sociology at Cape Breton University is designed to provide a strong understanding of social structures, human relationships, and community dynamics through an applied and interdisciplinary approach. In the first year, students take introductory sociology courses along with core community studies and general arts electives, focusing on foundational concepts such as social interaction, culture, socialization, and basic sociological theories, while also developing writing and research skills. In the second year, students move into core subject areas including classical and contemporary sociological theory, social inequality, research methods, statistics, family and gender studies, and deviance, gaining a deeper understanding of how societies are structured and how social forces influence human behaviour. In the third year, the curriculum becomes more advanced and applied, with courses in areas such as globalization, social justice, environmental sociology, criminology, race and ethnicity, identity, and qualitative research methods, often involving seminar discussions and community-based learning. Across all three years, students build strong skills in critical thinking, data analysis, communication, and research design. The BACS structure also allows electives from other disciplines such as psychology, anthropology, political science, and gender studies, preparing graduates for careers in social services, community development, policy work, education, and other human-focused fields.