SOC 3660 - Immigration Law and Policy

Credits: 4

SOC3660 will examine the immigration system in the US. It is through the system of laws, regulations, agencies, and courts that we determine how many people can enter the US, who can stay, and who must leave. It outlines how long immigrants may remain within our borders, what they can do when they’re here, and what activities might get them deported. It determines who can acquire citizenship and who can get it taken away. This system also outlines our approach to undocumented immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and other specific categories of individuals. Full consideration of these questions will require us to thoroughly examine the actual immigration laws and court interpretations of these laws as primary sources. We will consider both historical and contemporary examples. Through the process, we will study the US Constitution, Federal and state law, proceedings from the US Supreme Court, district courts, immigration appeals courts, the US immigration bureaucracy (ie. What are the USCIS, CBP, and ICE?), immigration data from the present day and form the past, as well as numerous case studies. While we will cover some of the same subjects as SOC3650 (Sociology of Immigration), SOC3660 will do so with a much deeper focus on immigration law and process. This course will provide important foundational skills for individuals interested in pursuing immigration law as a career, but also many other paths, like social work, human resources, business, and criminal law.