Program Overview
Women's, gender, and sexuality studies is an interdisciplinary major that examines the complexities of human experiences. It explores gender, race, sexual identity, nationality, and social class, particularly their intersections. The program fosters critical thinking, self-awareness, and empowers students to promote social change. Graduates pursue careers such as advocates, therapists, social workers, lawyers, ministers, and writers.
Program Outline
Degree Overview:
Women's, gender, and sexuality studies is an interdisciplinary major that explores the complexity of human experiences and lives. Through a broad range of subjects, women’s studies raises questions about gender, race, sexual identity, nationality and social class, focusing particularly on their intersections. Women's, gender, and sexuality studies also examines women’s roles and achievements historically and cross-culturally. This program of study challenges stereotypes and inequalities, promotes critical thinking and self-awareness and empowers individuals to work for social change.
Teaching:
Students in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at UC experience small classes with much individualized attention, outstanding research and teaching faculty, rigorous and diverse curricula, internship and study-abroad opportunities, graduate student teaching experience, regular symposia and guest speakers, an excellent placement record and a highly supportive environment. They also enjoy mentoring and grant support from the Friends of Women’s Studies, one of the oldest and largest women’s studies community support groups in the country.
Careers:
advocate for domestic violence or hate crime victims, art therapist, battered women's center director, business owner, clinical social worker, doctor, health clinic medical assistant, human services administrator, lawyer, minister, recreational therapist, town manager, union organizer, writer
Other:
Attention to the intersections between theory and practice is at the heart of women's, gender, and sexuality studies. As an interdisciplinary course of study, women’s studies calls for a range of verbal, analytic and critical skills, as well as the ability to integrate different modes of scholarly inquiry. Students with a keen interest in literature, social science or critical analysis can also focus their work in elective courses.
