Gender and Women's Studies

Faculty

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Chair

Anne Brodsky

Program Faculty

Jodi Kelber-Kaye
Carole McCann

Affiliate Faculty

Marina Adler
Tiffany Baffour
Jessica Berman
Rebecca Boehling
Kathy Bryan
Sarah Chard
Susan Dwyer
Jean Fernandez
Amy Froide
Marjoleine Kars
Carolyn G. Koehler
Kriste Lindenmeyer
Ilsa L. Lottes
Christine Mallinson
Susan McCully
Patrice McDermott
Susan McDonough
Eileen O'Brien
Sara Z. Poggio
Michelle Scott
Orianne Smith
Christel N. Temple
Constantine Vaporis
Shelly Wiechelt

Courses in this program are listed under GWST.

Gender and women's studies is an interdisciplinary field of inquiry that seeks to understand and articulate how gender makes a difference - in the lives and experiences of women, as well as men; in the practices and institutions of human societies; and in the cultural products of societies, such as art and literature. Emphasizing the importance of historical and cross-cultural perspectives, the Gender and Women's Studies Program at UMBC critically examines the intersections of gender, class, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age and ability to make visible structures of power that otherwise remain hidden.

Career and Academic Paths

Each of the Gender and Women’s Studies Program options — the undergraduate major, the certificate, and the minor — reflects a deep commitment to the interdependence of theory and practice. In this way, the program equips students with the substantive knowledge and critical skills required to respond to rapidly changing environments in areas such as government, business, education, public service, the health professions, social services and the law, at local, national and global levels.

Academic Advising

Each student is assigned an academic advisor from the program’s faculty upon declaring gender and women’s studies as a major, certificate or minor. Students may also request to be assigned to a particular faculty member. Advisees are urged to consult regularly with faculty advisors, utilize information on the Gender and Women’s Studies Program Web site (www.umbc.edu/wmstudies), and to take part in program activities, especially the Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL) program, which provides co-curricular programming geared to career development as part of its many activities.

The major in gender and women’s studies consists of 36 credits, divided as follows:

CORE COURSES
(15 credits)

GWST 100
Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies
GWST 200
Studies in Feminist Activism
GWST 300
Methodologies of Gender and Women’s Studies
GWST 480
Theories of Feminism
GWST 495
Colloquium: Research and Activism

ELECTIVE COURSES
(21 credits)

12 credits must be spread across the three content areas – history and public policy; representation as/in culture; and material, social and technological contexts. The remaining nine (9) credits may be from any non-core approved GWST course. Six (6) of the 21 credits must be designated “range of experience” (RoE) courses.

History and Public Policy (6 credits)

GWST/AMST 210
Introduction to Lesbian and Gay Studies (RoE)
GWST/HIST 325
History of Women in America to 1870
GWST/HIST 326
History of Women in America Since 1870
GWST 327/AFST 354/HIST 323
African-American Women’s History (RoE)
GWST/POLI 328
Women and Politics
GWST 330/ANCS 320
Women and Gender in the Classical World
GWST/POLI 338
Women and Law
GWST 340
Global Perspectives on Gender and Women (RoE)
GWST/HIST 374
European Women’s History 1200-1750
GWST/HIST 375
European Women’s History 1750-1914
GWST/HIST 376
European Women’s History 1914-Present
GWST/ SOWK 377
Women and Social Policy
GWST/HIST 380
History of Women and Gender in Asia (RoE)
GWST/AMST 382

Perspectives on the Family Representations as/in Culture (3 credits)

GWST/PHIL 258
Introduction to Feminist Philosophy
GWST/MLL320
International Women Directors (RoE)
GWST 321
Queer Representations in Film and TV (RoE)
GWST/ENGL/MLL 322/ AFST 347
Women and the Media: Myths, Images and Voices
GWST/THTR 349
Women and Theatre
GWST/ENGL 364
Perspectives on Women in Literature
GWST 365/AFST 360
Black Women Novelists (RoE)
GWST/PHIL 391
The Philosophy of Sex
GWST/PHIL 458

Advanced Topics in Feminist Philosophy Material, Social and Technological Contexts (3 credits)

GWST/ECON 250
Gender Roles in Economic Life
GWST/AMST 310
Gender and Inequality in America
GWST/SOCY 332
Human Sexuality in Sociological Perspective
GWST/SOCY 333
Human Sexuality in Cross-Cultural Perspective
GWST/CMSC/IS 352
Women, Gender and Information Technology
GWST/SOCY 353
Marriage and the Family
GWST/SOCY 355
The Sociology of Women
GWST/PSYC 356
Psychology of Sex and Gender
GWST/PSYC 357
Psychology of Women
GWST/AFST 370
Black Women: Cross-Cultural Perspectives (RoE)
GWST/AFST 371
The Female Offender
GWST 378
Women, Gender and Science
GWST 381
Cultural Politics of Population in the U.S.
GWST/SOCY 433
Gender Work and Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective (RoE)
GWST/SOCY 434
Gender in the Life Course

Note: A maximum of 6 credits of GWST electives may be taken at the 200 level.

A maximum of three GWST independent studies may be counted toward the major, and a maximum of three GWST internship credits may be counted toward the major.

A grade of “C” or better is required in all courses applied toward the major.

Certificate Program

To earn the certificate, students must complete 24 credits of gender and women’s studies coursework, including the following four required courses:

GWST 100
Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies
GWST 200
Studies in Feminist Activism
GWST 300
Methodologies of Gender and Women’s Studies
GWST 480
Theories of Feminism

AND One of the following women’s history courses:

GWST/HIST 325
History of Women in America to 1870
GWST/HIST 326
History of Women in America Since 1870
GWST 327/AFST 354
African-American Women’s History
GWST 330/ANCS 320
Women and Gender in the Classical World
GWST/HIST 374
European Woman’s History: 1200-1750
GWST/HIST 375
European Women’s History: 1750-1914
GWST/HIST 376
European Women’s History: 1914-Present
GWST/HIST 380
Women and Gender in Asia

As well as nine credits of elective gender and women’s studies courses, including at least two course that specifically address the range of women’s experiences (RoE), for example through a focus on international women, ethnicity, sexual orientation and/or class.

A grade of “C” or better is required in all courses applied toward the certificate.

Minor Program

To complete the minor, students must complete 18 credits of gender and women’s studies coursework, including the following three required courses:

GWST 100
Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies
GWST 200
Studies in Feminist Activism
GWST 480
Theories of Feminism

AND nine credits of upper level elective gender and women’s studies courses, including at least one course that specifically addresses the range of women’s experiences (RoE), for example through a focus on international women, ethnicity, sexual orientation and/or class.

No more than nine of these credits can be from any one department.

A grade of “C” or better is required in all courses applied toward the minor.

Special Opportunities

Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL)

All students academically connected to the Gender and Women’s Studies Program through a declared major, certificate or minor are encouraged to participate in the WILL program, a learning community that promotes academic excellence, leadership development and civic engagement. WILL students utilize their expertise in understanding gender issues to organize campus events that raise awareness about such issues, bring nationally and internationally renowned speakers to campus, participate in national conferences, work with feminist and other social change organizations and explore the diverse range of career opportunities available to gender and women’s studies students. In conjunction with WILL, the Gender and Women’s Studies Program sponsors a single-sex, living-learning floor in the residence halls.

Students have the opportunity to apply their gender and women’s studies course work in a wide variety of internship options available in the Baltimore Washington region, including such organizations as the Feminist Majority Foundation, the National Organization for Women, Choice USA, Planned Parenthood and WMST-L, (the international electronic discussion forum for women’s studies based at UMBC).