8 Best Car Insurance Companies in Massachusetts of 2023

Compare car insurance rates in MA and find the best coverage for you. Learn about product features, price, and ratings from Massachusetts's top car insurers.
Boston, MA streets

Car insurance in Massachusetts protects you from unforeseen car events like car accidents, injured drivers, and theft.

These days, roads are busier in Massachusetts, and police authorities have seen a spike in drivers who drive recklessly, such as speeding.

Even if you don’t drive a lot, you are more likely to get into a car accident that’s either your fault or the fault of another driver, given that there are so many drivers on the road.

As such, purchasing car insurance is a good idea, as it will protect you and your car. Plus, it’s mandatory to have it in Massachusetts.

Also, if you cause an accident that injures the other driver, your car policy will cover that driver’s medical expenses.

Medical payments are very high in cost. You’d have to pay for them out-of-pocket if you didn't have insurance. Do you have enough money to pay them? Most don’t.

There are so many car insurance companies out there, and it can be hard to choose the one that best suits your needs.

So, if you are looking for affordable car insurance or with the right coverages, we’ve gathered a list of the best car insurance companies ranked by category to give you an idea of what’s out there. We’ve even given you a guide about car insurance to help you make an informed decision.

Compare Car Insurance Rates in MA

Best Car Insurance Companies in Massachusetts

  • Liberty Mutual: Best for Teachers
  • Progressive: Best for Usage-Based Insurance
  • State Farm: Best for Bundling
  • Farmers: Best for the Most Discounts
  • GEICO: Best for Generally Known to Offer Some of the Lowest Rates
  • Travelers: Best for Coverages You Need
  • Amica: Best for Coverage Package
  • Nationwide: Best for Accident Forgiveness

Liberty Mutual: Best Car Insurance for Teachers

liberty-mutual-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.5
Editor's Rating (4.5 Stars out of 5)

Liberty Mutual has been around for years and offers many insurance products. The insurer is known for its optional coverages that you can buy to customize your policy or make it comprehensive.

One unique coverage you can get is the teacher’s car insurance, which is rarely seen in other comparable insurers.

To get coverage, you have to be a teacher.

The teacher’s car coverage includes:

Vandalism Loss Protection

There's no deductible if your car was broken into and your personal items were stolen during a school-related event or on school property.

Collision Coverage

There’s also no deductible if your car is damaged in an accident while driving it for school-based or school-related businesses.

Personal Property Coverage

If your teaching materials are stolen or damaged while in your car,

you can get reimbursed up to $2,500 per incident.

The best thing is that if you are a teacher, these policies come with no extra charge.

Read a full Liberty Mutual car insurance review.

Liberty Mutual Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy Discount: Bundling car with home or life insurance or umbrella coverage.
  • Multi-Car Discount: Insure more than one car.

Liberty Mutual Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Being affiliated with certain employers, alumni associations, or professional groups gets you a unique discount.
  • Accident and roadside support feature on mobile app let you capture information and photos at the scene of an accident.
  • Mobile app also allows you to request a rental car after an accident.
  • Offers gap insurance.
Cons
  • Car claims satisfaction rating is below average.
  • Higher policy rates based on credit and driving record.
How is Liberty Mutual Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)818
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA
BBBA+
NAIC Complaint Index1.80

Progressive: Best Car Insurance for Usage-Based Insurance

progressive-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.0
Editor's Rating (4 Stars out of 5)

Car premiums can be expensive if you are an at-risk driver, have a blemished driving history, or have a low credit score, for example.

Insurers typically use the above and more to determine your rate.

However, with Progressive’s Snapshot, you get personalized rates that are based on your good driving habits.

So, the better you drive, the more you can save.

Snapshot measures your driving, such as the time of day you drive, the amount you drive, and how many times you hard braked and increased your acceleration.

So, if you refrain from driving during a hailstorm or keep at a distance from the car in front of you just in case that car brakes hard, you’ll get that discount.

Snapshot is easy to use. You can use your mobile app or a plug-in device that you put in your car. Then, you can check to see how well you drive using your mobile app or the insurer’s website.

Read a full Progressive car insurance review.

Progressive Car Insurance Discounts

Multi-Policy

Bundle your car insurance with homeowners, renters, or condo insurance.

Multi-Car

Insure more than one car.

Progressive Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Competitive rates for drivers with a DUI.
  • Multiple ways to get initial quote.
  • Pet injury insurance included in most states if you buy collision coverage.
  • Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
  • Roadside assistance, rental car reimbursement, and other coverages can help you after an accident.
Cons
  • Most expensive rates among insurers for teen drivers.
  • More expensive than similar insurers.
How is Progressive Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)803
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA+
NAIC Complaint Index2.24

State Farm: Best Car Insurance for Bundling

state-farm-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.5
Editor's Rating (4.5 Stars out of 5)

State Farm is known for its bundling discount.

If you have multiple insurance policies and are looking to consolidate, State Farm is the carrier for you.

If you purchase life, home, condo, or renters insurance with your car policy with State Farm and bundle them, you can see significant savings on your policy rate.

When you purchase multiple policies, this is called bundling.

Bundling each insurance with State Farm also allows you to keep money in your pocket.

Here are some multi-policies that you should take advantage of.

State Farm Car Insurance Discounts

  • Car & Home: Bundling car with home.
  • Car & Condo: Bundling a car with a condo will save you money.
  • Car & Renters: State Farm has the best rates for renters insurance, and combining car and renters will give you a discount.
  • Multi-Car: If you have more than one car and insure all of them by State Farm, you can enjoy a very good discount.

Why Bundling?

Buying multiple policies and bundling them is a really easy way to simplify your insurance needs and make your premium more affordable.

You’ll get one bill for all your insurance products.

And by using State Farm’s website, you have access to all your insurances in one location.

State Farm Car Insurance Pros @ Cons

Pros
  • Bundling generates a single bill for each policy.
  • Pays for rental car while car is being repaired as a result of covered collision.
  • Pays for meals, lodgings, and transportation if stranded 50 miles or more from home.
  • Specializes in young drivers.
  • Young drivers get a discount if they maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher.
  • Installing alarm in car gets you an Anti-Theft discount.
Cons
  • Coverage limits apply and vary by state.
  • Doesn't offer gap insurance.
  • Policies can only be purchased through an agent.
How is State Farm Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)814
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA++
BBBA+
NAIC Complaint Index4.29

Farmers: Best Car Insurance for the Most Discounts

farmers-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.5
Editor's Rating (4.5 Stars out of 5)

Farmers car insurance may not be the cheapest. But the insurer has the most discounts compared to other insurers on our list. These will help you lower your premium.

For example, if you bundle your car and home with Farmers, you can save around 20%.

Here are some car insurance discounts from Farmers.

Farmers Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy: Bundle car with home, life, umbrella, and more.
  • Safe Driver: Get a discount based on safe driving when your policy renews.
  • Paperless: Getting bills and paperwork electronically.
  • Distant Student: If your child is on policy but then goes to school at least 100 miles away and doesn’t have much access to covered cars.
  • Good Student: If your teen has a GPA of 3.0 or higher, ranks top in class, and is on the Honor Roll or Dean’s List, you’ll get a discount.
  • Seniors Discount: If you are over 55 and completed state-approved safe driver training in the last three years.
  • Auto Pay and Pay in Full: Set up automatic payments or pay a premium in full.
  • Antilock Brakes: Antilock brakes that must be factory installed, not aftermarket.
  • Anti-Theft: Alarms and protective devices in the car.
  • Multi-Policy: Bundle car and renters, car and condo, or car and homeowners insurance.
  • Multi-Car Discount: Insure more than one car.

Farmers Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Discounts offer more than the ones cited.
  • Allows you to customize your coverage to suit your needs.
  • Over 48,000 exclusive and independent agents so you can reach an agent quickly.
  • Handles claims promptly.
  • Available in all 50 U.S. states.
  • Great selection of coverage options and add-ons.
  • Praised for simple mobile app.
Cons
  • Premium rates are higher than the national average.
  • Premiums can be high in certain states.
  • Roadside assistance can be slow.
How is Farmers Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)839
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA
BBBA-
NAIC Complaint Index1.19

GEICO: Best Car Insurance Generally Known to Offer Some of the Lowest Rates

geico-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.0
Editor's Rating (4 Stars out of 5)

GEICO car insurance is generally known to offer some of the lowest rates in the industry.

However, your rate depends on a lot of factors. These include:

  • Driving experience.
  • Whether or not there are blemishes on your driving record.
  • Accidents that result in a claim can impact your rates.
  • Speeding tickets may increase your rates.
  • Your qualification for discounts may also change based on your record.
  • If you have safety features in your car.
  • If you live in a safe area with a low crime rate, your rate will go down.
  • The more time you drive (such as to and from work), the higher the chance you may get into an accident.
  • If you’ve filed a claim.

In addition, your car's make and model help determine the following:

  • Expected repair costs
  • If theft rates are higher for your car.
  • Types of safety features installed.

Read a full GEICO auto insurance review.

GEICO Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy Discount: Bundle with many of GEICO’s insurance products.

GEICO Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Accident forgiveness is free, although you need clean driving record for at least five years.
  • Prices are the most competitive against other companies.
  • Can access policy information using Google Assistant or Alexa.
  • Lowest rates for drivers with poor credit.
  • Has usage-based app.
  • Easy online quoting and purchasing.
  • Multi-purpose mobile app.
Cons
  • Coverage options limited.
  • Not much of a local presence.
  • No phone support except for emergencies.
How is GEICO Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)824
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA++
BBBA+

Travelers: Best Car Insurance for Coverages You Need

travelers-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.0
Editor's Rating (4 Stars out of 5)

Travelers is known for its car insurance coverage options that can make your policy more comprehensive.

The options you can include in your car coverage are:

Gap Insurance

This is coverage you need if your car is financed or leased. If your car is totaled, gap insurance will pay the difference between the actual cash value of the car and the unpaid balance of the car loan or lease.

Rental Coverage

Rental reimbursement can help pay for a rental car if your car is damaged and can’t be driven for more than 24 hours.

Roadside Assistance

This coverage is for you if you are left stranded in a place you don’t know due to unexpected car trouble like a flat tire or dead battery.

New Car Replacement

If you total your new car in the first five years, this coverage will replace your car with a brand new one of the same make and model.

Accident Forgiveness

You’ll be forgiven if you have one covered accident within a specified time period. As such, accident forgiveness protects your rate from increasing because of that one accident.

Travelers Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy: Bundle car with home and three other insurances.

Travelers Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Safe driving discount if you don’t file a claim, don’t have an accident, or don’t have any violation tickets.
  • Policyholders with a teen who is in high school or college can get you a discount if your teen receives high grades.
  • Two levels of 24/7 roadside assistance.
  • Minor violation forgiveness.
  • New driver discount.
  • Easy car insurance quotes process.
Cons
  • Below-average customer service.
  • Rates can be expensive.
How is Travelers Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)824
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA++
BBBA
NAIC Complaint Index3.88

Amica: Best Car Insurance for Coverage Package

amica-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.0
Editor's Rating (4 Stars out of 5)

Amica offers many insurance products that make bundling easy. As such, the insurer allows you to take a good percentage off your premium.

Amica also has a wide range of coverage options. But do you want to waste your time picking and choosing coverages and having to research them?

Well, then, this is a policy you need. It bundles together the most useful features you may need.

It’s called Platinum Choice, where you can get your premium coverage in one convenient package.

Platinum Choice includes:

Glass Repair

Glass repair or replacement comes without a deductible

Credit Monitoring

Protects your valuable personal information. And if your bank accounts and credit cards were used fraudulently, you can get credit monitoring or an identity-theft add-on.

New Car Replacement

This feature replaces your totaled new car with a new one. Your car must be under one year old and have fewer than 15,000 miles to qualify.

Rental Car

Unlike other insurers that put a cap on your rental usage, Amica’s rental coverage has no daily limit and a $5,000 max that allows you to rent a car that is similar to the one you own if your car is damaged or totaled.

You don’t necessarily have to buy the complete package. You can also add these features individually.

Also, it’s good to know that Amica offers the following for free:

  • Free lock replacement if you lose your car keys.
  • Free repair if your airbag deploys in an accident.

Amica Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy: Bundle car with home, renters, and other products.
  • Multi-Car: Insure more than one car.

Amica Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Live chat available if you have questions or need help.
  • Provides $1,000 for bail bonds and lost wage coverage if you need to go to court to settle a claim from a covered accident.
  • Generous discounts.
  • High customer satisfaction ratings.
  • Potential for earning dividends.
  • Easy-to-navigate website
  • Lots of insurance options.
Cons
  • Discounts not available in all states and may vary.
  • Doesn’t use agents to sell its insurance policies and its physical offices are limited.
  • No ridesharing coverage.
  • No better car replacement.
How is Amica Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)891
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA+
BBBA+
NAIC Complaint Index1.32

Nationwide: Best Car Insurance for Accident Forgiveness

nationwide-car-insurace-ma
Editors star rating review
4.0
Editor's Rating (4 Stars out of 5)

In the US, there are well over 50,000 car accidents each year.

Accidents can happen to anyone, even the safest drivers on the road.

You want to be a safe driver because your rates will rise if you cause an accident. Many car owners don’t have extra money reserved for this rise.

Nationwide has your back with Accident Forgiveness.

Accident Forgiveness is a car insurance coverage option that can help you avoid a rate increase after your first at-fault accident.

You have to buy this coverage as an addition to your standard car insurance.

If you have other people on your policy, like family and friends, these drivers can also benefit from Accident Forgiveness.

However, it can only be used once per policy.

Nationwide Car Insurance Discounts

  • Multi-Policy: Bundle home and car insurance.
  • Multi-Car: Insure more than one car.

Nationwide Car Insurance Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Offers gap insurance.
  • Most insurers will not allow you to buy accident forgiveness without a clean driving record of 5 years. But Nationwide qualifies drivers with a clean driving record of 3 years.
  • Vanishing Deductible: For every year you don’t have an accident, your deductible will go down by $100, up to a $500 reduction.
  • To determine if your policy fits your needs, an agent will call you each year to make sure you are getting the right coverage.
  • New to insurer: Work from Home is designed for those drivers who work remotely and bundle car with home or renters insurance to cover identity theft and much more.
  • Wide variety of options for customers who want to buy multiple products from one company.
Cons
  • Accident forgiveness not in every state.
  • Higher than average consumer complaints.
  • No coverage for rideshares.
  • Doesn't insure mobile or manufactured homes.
  • Not available in Alaska, Hawaii, or Louisiana.
How is Nationwide Car Insurance Rated?
J.D. Power (out of 1,000)787
A.M. Best - Financial Strength RatingA+
BBBA+
NAIC Complaint Index2.37

How We Picked and Ranked the Best Car Insurance Companies

Here are some of the factors we took into consideration when picking the best insurers on our list.

Discounts

Your car insurance shouldn’t break your bank. So, we looked at affordable car insurance companies that had the most discounts to lower your premium.

Coverage

We looked at an insurer’s coverages to see if they were useful enough to buy. If an insurer has a good number of useful coverages, we put that company on our list.

In particular, we tried to find insurers that offered the most important coverages, including:

  • Gap Insurance.
  • Rental Reimbursement.
  • Roadside Assistance.
  • New Car Replacement.
  • Accident Forgiveness.

Technology

If a company had a website and mobile app, and both could simplify your life by allowing you to do several things related to your policy online or on the app, then that’s an insurer we put on our list.

For a company’s website or mobile app, it was important that they had the following:

Getting a quote and then buying a policy electronically without having to talk to an agent.

And being able to file a claim, track it, and have useful tools on the website such as comparison shopping.

Price

An insurer with a low premium and the ability to lower it more by using discounts ranked higher on our list than others.

Is Car Insurance Mandatory in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts law requires all car drivers to be covered by car insurance.

However, to drive legally, you only have to carry liability insurance and PIP (personal injury protection).

This means purchasing additional car insurance, such as uninsured/underinsured motorist, and comprehensive and collision coverage is optional.

What is Car Insurance?

Car insurance covers the costs if you hurt someone after an accident, destroy a car after an accident, and cause damage to a person’s property with your car.

What Does Car Insurance Cover?

Your coverage will vary by state. However, to drive your car,

there are two main components of a car insurance policy: bodily injury liability and property damage liability.

Liability

Liability insurance covers property damage or injuries you may have caused to others in an accident.

Liability also includes medical payments if you or your passengers were injured in a car accident.

Bodily Injury

If you injure another driver and it was your fault, a bodily injury will cover a person’s medical expenses and lost wages if the person can’t work due to bodily injuries. It also covers funeral costs.

Property Damage

If you damage someone else’s property that has structures such as a fence or a detached garage, this liability will cover any expenses related to repairs or replacements.

Is That All I Need for Car Insurance Coverage?

No, a basic policy will not have these coverages below. If you add them to your policy, you’ll have the right amount of coverage that best suits your needs.

Physical Damage

Physical damage is optional. Below are the coverages that make physical damage necessary.

Comprehensive / Collison Coverage

Comprehensive

Comprehensive collision pays for your car when you cause physical damage due to a non-collision-related incident. These include theft, fire, hail damage, falling objects, contact with animals such as deer, vandalism, glass breakage, and storm damage.

Collision Coverage

If you want coverage for your car, you need to purchase collision coverage.

Collision coverage protects your car against accidents.

Collision covers named perils in your car policy, such as fire, theft, vandalism, and hail.

Collision coverage is what pays for the repairs to your car if you come into contact with another car or inanimate object.

However, a collision won’t cover you if you hit an animal.

So, if you hit a deer, repairs to your car will be paid by comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive and collision insurance are usually optional and are not required in the state of Massachusetts.

But if your car is financed, the lender may require both comprehensive and collision.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist

This protects you when you have an accident where the motorist is at-fault, and either doesn’t carry insurance or else has insurance limits that are not enough to reimburse you for damages the motorist caused.

Uninsured/Underinsured motorists will pay you the difference between your expenses and the policy limit of the other motorist.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

If you are injured in a car accident, regardless of who caused the accident, PIP will cover any medical treatments you need.

Massachusetts requires PIP coverage so some bodily injury expenses can be covered.

In no-fault states, PIP coverage is mandatory.

Is Massachusetts a No-Fault State?

Massachusetts is a no-fault state.

A no-fault state means drivers are required to carry their own protection.

This means if you have a car accident, regardless of who caused it, each driver will file a claim with their own car insurer.

In Massachusetts, no-fault reduces the number of extraneous lawsuits in the court system by preventing them.

No-Fault also guarantees drivers and any passengers in the car to receive immediate medical attention in the event of an accident without having to wait for the at-fault driver’s insurance to pay.

What are the Minimum Amounts of Liability Insurance Required by the State of Massachusetts?

The minimum liability coverage is as follows:

  • Bodily injury liability: $20,000 per person and $40,000 per accident.
  • Property damage liability: $5,000 per accident.
  • Personal injury protection: $8,000.

Massachusetts limits are quite low.

PIP can help pay bodily injury expenses.

But if you cause serious injuries to one or more parties, expenses could very quickly exhaust PIP limits as well as your bodily injury liability.

In addition, the property damage liability required by Massachusetts is among the lowest in the nation, at $5,000. In all likelihood, this will not be sufficient coverage, even for a minor accident.

Should I Increase My Limits?

The minimum level of a basic insurance policy will not give drivers enough protection and they may want to insure themselves for other types of losses that may result from car accidents.  

As such, potential policyholders choose to buy higher limits of property damage and bodily injury coverage.

If you have bodily injuries after crashing your car, or your car is totaled and you need medical attention, you may need more liability insurance so you don’t end up paying out-of-pocket.

And if you’ve reached your policy limits or your accident limits, you will be held responsible for any remaining out-of-pocket costs.

As such, it is strongly suggested to increase your liability limits beyond the required amount so you don’t end up paying a portion.

What Does Car Insurance Not Cover?

  • Contents in Car: If your car was broken into and a thief stole your laptop or any personal items in your car.
  • Damage: Any damage you cause to your car intentionally.
  • Normal Wear and Tear
  • Mechanical Failure: If you have mechanical failure unrelated to a covered peril.

What Factors Determine Your Premium?

Insurance premiums vary a lot by insurers because each considers certain factors while offering policies to potential policyholders. This means no two comparable insurers will have identical prices for the same policy.

To determine your rate, the following are the most important factors that can impact your car premium.

Your Age

If you have a teenager or young adult on your policy, expect your rate to increase because the insurer will assume that your young ones tend to drive more recklessly and get into many accidents since they haven’t been driving for long.

Even older people will see their rates increase due to the assumption that they have vision problems or limited bodily movement.

Credit Score

To an insurer, if you have a good to great credit score, you will be less likely to cause an accident or skip your monthly rates. As a result, your premium will be lowered.

But if you have poor credit, the insurer will assume that you will be more likely to file claims or skip payments. So, your premium will rise.

Driving History

The insurer will increase your premium if your driving record has too many derogatory remarks.

Location

If your neighborhood is safe, then there’s less risk of having your car stolen or broken into.

Gender

Statistically, women tend to drive more safely than men, which means their rate will be low.

As for men, they are often risk-takers on the road and, as such, their rate will be higher.

How Can I Get a Lower Premium?

There are several factors that can lower your rate that you should look into to get the most affordable coverage you need.

Shop Around

The best way to get a rate that fits your budget is to shop around and get quotes from several insurers.

Then compare your multiple quotes for the same coverage from different companies.

Discounts

Car insurers usually have discounts for policyholders. Discounts can lower your premium significantly. These include:

Multi-Policy/Multi-Car

Multi-Policy

If you bundle your car with home or renters insurance from the same company.

Multi-Car

If you insure one or more cars with the same insurer.

Note that the multi-policy/multi-car discount is the one you should take advantage of because it takes the largest percentage off your premium.

Safe Driver

If you drive carefully, don’t get into accidents, and don’t make any claims, you’ll get a discount.

Raise Your Deductible

Raising your deductible means you’ll have a lower premium.

However, lowering your deductible will increase the amount you pay if you file a claim.

How Much Does Car Insurance Cost in Massachusetts?

The cost of your car policy varies depending on different factors.

Here are some of the factors.

  • Your insurance history.
  • Your driving experience.
  • How many miles do you drive.
  • Where you live, work, or park your car.
  • Your past violations and accident history.
  • Your age, gender, and marital status.
  • Your vehicle's make, model, and year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do all cars in Massachusetts need insurance?

Massachusetts law requires all car drivers to be covered by car insurance. However, to drive legally, you only have to carry liability insurance and PIP (personal injury protection).

What are 5 factors that determine your insurance premium?

Your age, credit score, driving history, gender, and location.

What is multi policy insurance?

Multi policy is if you bundle your car with home or renters insurance from the same company. Multi-Car If you insure one or more cars with the same insurer.

Is Massachusetts a no-fault state?

Massachusetts is a no-fault state.

What does no-fault state meaning?

A no-fault state means drivers are required to carry their own protection. This means if you have a car accident, regardless of who caused it, each driver will file a claim with their own car insurer.
Augustine Reyes Chan
About the author

As a real estate professional, Augustine Reyes Chan has helped many buyers and sellers through the process of homeownership. He is an expert in the field of how-to for potential buyers, qualifying for a mortgage, and all that goes into car, homeowners, and renters insurance. Augustine Reyes Chan graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Bachelor's degree in Sociology.