Degree: B.A., General Liberal Arts and Studies
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
The Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies major focuses on gender and sexuality as central categories of scholarly inquiry. This interdisciplinary program, leading to a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in General Liberal Arts and Studies, emphasizes diverse perspectives on both the construction and the experience of gender and sexual identities in society, including their complex interactions with ability, age, class, ethnicity, national identity, race, and religion. Students learn to appreciate the breadth of human experience and the challenges that all people face as a consequence of their gender and sexual identities.
The purpose of the major is to provide students with interdisciplinary breadth; at the same time, students are encouraged to work with their faculty advisors to formulate their course work around issues or themes of particular interest.
Student Learning Outcomes
1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of feminism as representing many forms of social movement working to eliminate systems of inequality and oppression, and working toward social justice, human dignity, and equality for all peoples.
2. Students will demonstrate an understanding of gender as an organizing principle in society, one resulting from historically embedded and contingent, yet ongoing, processes of social construction, knowledge production, legitimation, and institutionalized privilege.
3. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the diversity of sexual identities and sexualities.
4. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the history and foundational texts of the discipline.
5. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of WGST.
6. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the methodological implications of Intersectionality.
7. Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate the key concepts of Women's and Gender Studies through a variety of different types of writing.
8. Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate the key concepts of the discipline.
9. Students will demonstrate a basic understanding of Women's and Gender Studies through attendance at cocurricular events.
Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Foundations Courses | ||
| WGST 101 | Introduction to Women's Studies | 3 |
| WGST 102 | Perspectives in Sexuality | 3 |
| PHIL 220 | Introduction to Feminism | 3 |
| Methods Course | ||
| Select one of the following: 1 | 3-4 | |
| Introduction to American Studies | ||
| Methods of Art History | ||
| Methods of Advanced Literary Studies | ||
| Documentation and Field Work | ||
| Research and Writing in Political Science | ||
| Research Methods for Psychology | ||
| Quantitative Research Methods and Analysis | ||
| Qualitative Research Methods and Analysis | ||
| Public Sociology | ||
| Electives | ||
| Select six elective courses 2 | 18 | |
| Capstone | ||
| WGST 485 | Senior Project 3 | 3 |
| Total Credits | 33-34 | |
- 1
Many of these courses have prerequisites; consult the sections of this Catalog where these course descriptions appear. Ideally, a student will choose a methods class in a discipline that is likely to support their work on the capstone project.
- 2
Taken from at least three (3) different disciplines, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. One of the electives must emphasize difference in the form of race, class, ethnicity, religion, disability, age, or sexuality. Additionally, at least three of the six courses should be taken at the 300-400 level. The permanent list of approved electives appears below. An additional list of approved electives will be circulated by the program director each semester and posted on the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies website. Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Study electives are searchable in the Banner schedule of courses.
- 3
All Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies majors will design a capstone project under the supervision of an affiliated faculty member. The student will submit a proposal for approval by a committee composed of the program director, the student’s faculty advisor, and another member of the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies advisory committee the semester before it is to be completed. The project provides students with the opportunity to engage in the creation of original material and to apply the methods and approaches that they have acquired in the major.
Women’s and Gender Studies Electives List
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AMST 305 | American Gender and Sexuality | 3 |
| ANTH 212 | Anthropology of Gender | 3 |
| CLAS 310 | Women in Antiquity | 3 |
| ENGL 327 | Jane Austen | 3 |
| ENGL 353 | Asian-American Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 369 | Women and Modernism | 3 |
| HIST 334 | Early Modern European Women’s History | 3 |
| HIST 326 | History of Manhood in the US | 3 |
| HIST 368 | Gender in Chinese History | 3 |
| HIST 462 | Women in Latin America | 3 |
| LING 307 | Language and Gender | 3 |
| PSCI 370 | Gender and Politics | 3 |
| PSYC 349 | Psychology of Human Sexuality | 3 |
| PSYC 350 | Psychology of Women and Gender | 3 |
| RELG 310 | Gender and Sexuality in Early Christianity | 3 |
| SOCG 304 | Social Stratification | 3 |
| SOCG 315A | Gender and Society | 3 |
| SOCG 331 | The Family | 3 |
| SOCG 400 | Sociology of the Body | 3 |
| SOCG 434 | Gender and Work | 3 |
| SPAN 475 | Hispanic Women Writers | 3 |
| THEA 250 | Fashion History | 3 |
| WGST 300 | Special Topics in Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | 3 |
| WGST 400 | Special Topics in Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | 3 |
| WGST 491 | Individual Study | 3 |
| WGST 499 | Internship | 1-3 |
General Education Requirements
The general education requirements for Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degrees apply to all students who are seeking to earn an undergraduate B.A., B.S. or B.S.Ed. degree.
Students seeking a Bachelor of Liberal Studies degree have a separate set of BLS general education requirements.
Electives
Elective courses are those that are not needed to fulfill a general education requirement or major program requirement but are chosen by the student to complete the 120 credits required for graduation with a B.A./B.S./B.S.Ed. degree or the BLS degree. These courses may be taken graded or pass/fail (or S/U in the case of physical education and 100-level dance). No student in a regular B.A./B.S./B.S.Ed. program may count more than 60 credits in a single discipline toward the 120 credits required for graduation.
Total Credits Required for the Degree: 120 credits
Plan of Study
This suggested plan of study should serve as a guide to assist students when planning their course selections. It is not a substitute for a student's Degree Evaluation or the Program Requirements listed for this major in the catalog. Academic planning is the student's responsibility, and course selections should be finalized only after speaking with an advisor. Students should familiarize themselves with the catalog in effect at the time they matriculated at the University of Mary Washington. Students should also familiarize themselves with general education requirements which can be fulfilled through general electives as well as major/minor course requirements. Course requirements and sequencing may vary with AP, IB, CLEP, Cambridge or previous coursework, transfer courses, or other conditions. To be considered full-time, an undergraduate student must be enrolled in 12 or more credits for the semester.
| Freshman | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| FSEM 100 | First-Year Seminar | 3 |
| WGST 101 | Introduction to Women's Studies | 3 |
| General Education Courses | 9 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| WGST 102 | Perspectives in Sexuality | 3 |
| General Education Courses | 12 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Sophomore | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHIL 220 | Introduction to Feminism | 3 |
| WGST Elective | 3 | |
| General Education Courses | 9 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| WGST Methods Course | 3 | |
| WGST Elective | 3 | |
| General Education Courses or Electives | 9 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Junior | ||
| Fall | ||
| WGST Electives (2) | 6 | |
| General Electives | 9 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| WGST Electives (2) | 6 | |
| General Electives | 9 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Senior | ||
| Fall | ||
| WGST 485 | Senior Project | 3 |
| General Electives | 12 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| General Electives | 15 | |
| Credits | 15 | |
| Total Credits | 120 | |
Note: Because of the flexibility of the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGST) requirements, it is possible to begin a WGST major late in a student’s sophomore year or sometimes later. WGST also works well as a second major because of the large number of electives that might overlap with the requirements in many Arts, Humanities, or Social Sciences majors.
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
Mindy J. Erchull, Program Coordinator
Affiliated Faculty
Jennifer M. Barry, Classics, Philosophy, and Religion
Laura A. Bylenok, English and Linguistics
Tracy B. Citeroni, Sociology
Rosalyn L. Cooperman, Political Science and International Affairs
Shumona Dasgupta, English and Linguistics
Antonia L. Delgado-Poust, Modern Languages and Literatures
Mindy J. Erchull, Psychological Science
Susan R. Fernsebner, History and American Studies
Surupa Gupta, Political Science and International Affairs
Mary Katherine Haffey, English and Linguistics
Christine R. Henry, Historic Preservation
Benjamin J. LaBreche, English and Linguistics
Janie Lee, English and Linguistics
Elizabeth F. Lewis, Modern Languages and Literatures
Miriam N. Liss, Psychological Science
Will B. Mackintosh, History and American Studies
Kristin L. Marsh, Sociology
Mary Beth Mathews, Classics, Philosophy, and Religion
Jeffrey W. McClurken, History and American Studies
Kevin J. McCluskey, Theatre and Dance
Laura H. Mentore, Anthropology
Krystyn R. Moon, History and American Studies
Gary N. Richards, English and Linguistics
Farhang Rouhani, Geography
Mara N. Scanlon, English and Linguistics
Debra J. Schleef, Sociology
Gregg Stull, Theatre and Dance
Laura C. Wilson, Psychological Science