Gender Studies
Undergraduate Minor
Westminster College of Arts and Sciences
The Gender Studies Program at Westminster University
Gender studies is the exploration of issues and ideas related to all aspects of gender, including the social construction of gender, masculinity, intersectionality, and the women's rights movement. Gender studies is interdisciplinary, drawing on the work from many other academic disciplines including sociology, psychology, political science, history, philosophy, and English.
Gender Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that has produced some of the most influential and groundbreaking cultural theory. Most of gender studies scholarship engages cross-cultural approaches to gender and explores how gender intersects with class, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation.
What You'll Learn in the Gender Studies Program
- Think critically about the historical and current impact of sex and gender on societies, individuals, organizations (or institutions), and understanding humanity
- Analyze how issues such as race, class, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, etc., intersect with and complicate understandings of gender
- Become familiar with theories that underlie studies of feminism as well as studies of female and male identities
- Integrate the study of gender with various fields of study
- Learn how various disciplines approach the study of gender
What Are the Key Benefits of the Gender Studies Program?
- The opportunity to understand and analyze critically the impact of sex and gender on individuals, communities, and societies.
- Many classes are cross-listed with other disciplines, such as biology, communications, English, history, mathematics, philosophy, psychology, religion, and sociology.
sample gender studies courses
- GNDR-101: Gender, Sex, and Identity
- GNDR-131: Philosophy of Gender and Power
- GNDR-319: American Woman's History
- GNDR-325: Human Trafficking
Our Faculty
Bonnie Baxter, PhD
Professor
Georgiana Donavin, PhD
Professor
Jeff Nichols, PhD
Professor
Michael Popich, PhD
Professor
gender studies career opportunities
The Gender Studies minor is designed to help you develop a deeper understanding of yourself and the world in which you live, sharpen your critical thinking skills, and prepare you for careers in business, industry, government, academic settings, or any career and personal pursuit.
The minor is designed to complete classes that are cross-listed with other programs, including: