Despite the faculty shortage, students in the department have given the department largely positive ratings. In the 2010 Senior Exit Survey, the concentration satisfaction ranking for sociology was significantly above the College mean.

The department has also topped national rankings in the field. A study conducted this year by the Chronicle of Higher Education ranked Harvard’s undergraduate and graduate programs number one in the nation.

In addition, according to Patterson, an outside committee that was sent to evaluate the department two years ago gave it “rave reviews,” surpassing the goals set by the previous evaluation. However, the committee also recommended the hiring of more faculty members.

“It’s not just an issue of student demand, but does Harvard want to maintain the quality of its undergraduate education,” Winship said.

But, according to Patterson, the University has yet to provide any indication that it will undertake an expansion of the department in the future.

“They’re just saying, ‘We understand your situation, you’re doing a great job, and we’ll think about it,’ and we never hear anything more,” Patterson said.