What Counts for the HSOC Major: Courses and Grades
College Sectors
The HSOC major automatically completes Sector IV: Humanities and Social Sciences. You cannot complete any other Sectors with a course that also counts toward your major.
HSOC 0480 (HSOC 010) or HSOC 0490 (HSOC 145)
There is no exception to the rule that in order to declare the HSOC major, a student must have already taken or be currently enrolled in HSOC 0480 or HSOC 0490 after the end of the drop period.
Core Courses
There are no substitutes for courses fulfilling quantitative and core discipline requirements.
HSOC Departmental Electives
These are courses listed on the HSOC Department Electives page. Courses from abroad, other departments, or other schools cannot fulfill the departmental elective requirement.
Concentration courses
Pre-approved courses for the concentration count automatically and do not need to be petitioned.
Non-College Courses for the Concentration
Students may use up to three (3) non-College courses in the concentration, including transfer courses approved through XCAT.
Petitions for Concentration Courses
Petitions must show how a course substantively (in terms of relevant content) and substantially (in terms of time spent on relevant content) advances a student's coherent, purposeful intellectual trajectory. That is, a petition explains how a petitioned course contributes insight to the concentration's core questions, issues, challenges, etc. in ways that complement and enhance the work of their other concentration courses.
A student may not petition a course before the drop deadline of the semester in which they are taking the course. Seniors may not petition courses after the add period in their last semester.
Transfer courses & Study Abroad
Up to two (2) courses from abroad count, if approved through XCAT. These count toward the concentration only.
EXCEPTION: Up to three (3) courses from IHP may be counted in the major.
Unless a course is accepted as a direct equivalent to an HSOC elective or core course, all transfer and study abroad credits will count towards the concentration requirement.
Double-counting courses
There is no double-counting within the major or between sections of the major. The capstone course is a separate requirement and cannot double-count within the major.
Double-counting with MINORS
HSOC majors may only double count three (3) courses between an HSOC major and the BIOE minor and two (2) courses between an HSOC major and the STSC minor. Students with the Bioethics & Society concentration may not minor in BIOE.
Double-counting with other MAJORS
Please check with the College office on how to manage double-counting between two majors. There must be at least nine (9) courses for the HSOC major which are not double-counted. Double-majoring between HSOC and STSC is not permitted.
AP Credits
Cannot be counted toward the HSOC major.
Pass/Fail
Courses taken pass-fail cannot count toward the major (this is College policy, with limited exceptions only for the pandemic in 2020-2021).
Minimum Grade Required for HSOC Credit
The minimum course grade for credit in the major is C-.
How Your HSOC Major Works in Path@Penn
- You cannot update or change your own Degree Audit.
- The Degree Audit may require manual override by the HSOC Undergraduate Chair or Associate Director in order to make sure courses are counting the way you want them to. It is your responsibility to check your Degree Audit and reach out to the Associate Director if something does not look correct.