Why do some people have more resources than others? Who winds up at the top of economic hierarchies, and who winds up at the bottom? These are the primary questions for the study of stratification. In this course, we focus primarily on the most influential contemporary sociological theories of status attainment and gender inequality, with additional but briefer treatments of the central theories on other topics (e.g., poverty and the welfare state, networks, rents, racial inequality). This is a program-only course and is restricted to Sociology Majors and Specialists.