Women's and Gender Studies (WGS)
Visit the Course Schedule Search website to find out when courses will be offered during the academic year.
Read more about the courses within this subject prefix in the descriptions provided below.
WGS 832 - Feminist Theory
Credits: 4
A multidisciplinary introduction to some of the major conversations and methodologies in feminist theory (e.g., materialist feminism, standpoint epistemologies, psychoanalysis, discourses of sexuality and the body, transnational feminism, postcolonialism and decolonization). Critical readings of landmark and more recent feminist texts, and discussion of gender in relation to other categories of analysis including sexuality, race, class, nation, disability and religion.
Equivalent(s): WS 832
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
View Course Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to think critically about categories of difference—including gender, sexuality, race, nation, class, religion--and explore the relationship between inequality and those categories of difference.
- Demonstrate understanding of how difference influences the values, beliefs, and experiences of individuals and groups in across historical, cultural, political and geographic contexts.
- Define and apply central concepts in Women's and Gender Studies and Queer Studies, including but not limited to sexuality, power, privilege, inequality, justice, violence, the body, reproductive health, and intersectionality (i.e., interlocking and simultaneous forms of oppression).
- Know the history of feminist thought and production, especially as it has been inflected by cultural difference.
- Demonstrate self-reflectiveness, cultural awareness, critical analysis, and the ability to effect personal and community change.
- Write and speak clearly, be able to construct persuasive arguments based on their experiences, the experiences of others, and on scholarship; be able to conduct research using feminist methodologies.
WGS 895 - Directed Study
Credits: 1-4
Independent study of advanced or specialized topics requiring extensive reading and writing. To be elected only with permission of the Department Chair and of the supervising faculty member.
Repeat Rule: May be repeated for a maximum of 4 credits.
Equivalent(s): WGS 899, WS 895, WS 899
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
WGS 898 - Colloquium in Feminist Studies
Credits: 4
An advanced course on a topic to be chosen by the instructor. Please inquire at the Women’s Studies office for a full course description each time the course is offered. Examples include Equality, Privacy and Consent; Queer Theory; Transnational Feminisms; Major Women Writers.
Equivalent(s): WS 898
Grade Mode: Letter Grading
View Course Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to think critically about categories of difference—including gender, sexuality, race, nation, class, religion--and explore the relationship between inequality and those categories of difference.
- Demonstrate understanding of how difference influences the values, beliefs, and experiences of individuals and groups in across historical, cultural, political and geographic contexts.
- Define and apply central concepts in Women's and Gender Studies and Queer Studies, including but not limited to sexuality, power, privilege, inequality, justice, violence, the body, reproductive health, and intersectionality (i.e., interlocking and simultaneous forms of oppression).
- Know the history of feminist thought and production, especially as it has been inflected by cultural difference.
- Demonstrate self-reflectiveness, cultural awareness, critical analysis, and the ability to effect personal and community change.
- Write and speak clearly, be able to construct persuasive arguments based on their experiences, the experiences of others, and on scholarship; be able to conduct research using feminist methodologies.
WGS 899 - Directed Study
Credits: 1-4
Directed study for graduate students.
Repeat Rule: May be repeated for a maximum of 4 credits.
Equivalent(s): WGS 895, WS 899
Grade Mode: Letter Grading