Women’s and Gender Studies Major, B.A.
The Department of Women’s and Gender Studies offers a feminist interdisciplinary course of study that expands the process of knowledge production to include considerations of gender, race, class, and sexuality in the United States and globally. Students are exposed to scholarship on feminist theory and the intellectual, economic, political, and artistic contributions of women and feminist movements in various historical and cultural contexts.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the women’s and gender studies program, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the major concepts, theoretical perspectives, empirical findings, and historical trends in women’s and gender studies
- Conduct and present interdisciplinary research in the area of women’s and gender studies in an effective manner
- Apply the principals and insights of women’s and gender studies to personal, social, and community issues
- Think critically and analytically about current perspectives in women’s and gender studies
Requirements
In addition to the program requirements, students must
- earn a minimum final cumulative GPA of 2.000
- complete a minimum of 45 academic credit hours earned from UNC–Chapel Hill courses
- take at least half of their major core requirements (courses and credit hours) at UNC–Chapel Hill
- earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.000 in the major core requirements. Some programs may require higher standards for major or specific courses.
For more information, please consult the degree requirements section of the catalog.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | ||
| Four intellectual and theoretical foundations courses: | ||
| WGST 101 |  Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies H | 3 |
| WGST 202 | Introduction to Feminist Thought | 3 |
| WGST 695 | Senior Seminar: Principles of Feminist Inquiry H | 3 |
| or WGST 691H | Honors in Women's Studies | |
| One course on minority/Third World/non-Western women or gender (see list below). | 3 | |
| Three interdisciplinary perspectives courses chosen from at least two of the three categories (see lists below). | 9 | |
| One course in the theory and practice of women’s and gender studies from the following options: | 3 | |
| Practicum in Women's and Gender Studies 1 | ||
A fourth course chosen from one of the three interdisciplinary perspectives categories | ||
| Honors in Women's Studies 2 | ||
| Total Hours | 24 | |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
- 1
This faculty-supervised internship must be arranged in the semester prior to the semester of the internship (see Internship Guidelines on the departmental website).
- 2
For qualified students. This yearlong honors thesis must be arranged in the semester prior to the year of the thesis. Requires approval of the department and the instructor. See Honors Thesis Guidelines on the departmental website.
Students must also fulfill all General Education requirements.
Minority/Third World/Non-Western Women or Gender
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| AAAD/WGST 200 | Gender and Sexuality in Africa | 3 |
| AAAD/WGST 386 | Comparative Studies in Culture, Gender, and Global Forces | 3 |
| AAAD 232/WGST 266 | Black Women in America | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 277 | Gender and Culture | 3 |
| ASIA/GEOG/WGST 447 | Gender, Space, and Place in the Middle East | 3 |
| ASIA/HIST/WGST 537 | Women in the Middle East | 3 |
| COMM/WGST 561 | Performance of Women of Color H | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 665 | Queer Latina/o Literature, Performance, and Visual Art | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 666 | Queer Latina/o Photography and Literature | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 280 | Women and Gender in Latin American History | 3 |
| HIST 385/WGST 382 | African American Women's History | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 576 | The Ethnohistory of Native American Women | 3 |
| PLAN/WGST 662 | Gender Issues in Planning and Development | 3 |
| SPAN/WGST 620 | Women in Hispanic Literature | 3 |
| WGST 64 | Plantation Lullabies: Literature by and about African American Women | 3 |
| WGST 211 | Introduction to Latina Feminisms: Literature, Theory, and Activism | 3 |
| WGST 233 | Introduction to Latina Literature | 3 |
| WGST 281 | Gender and Global Change | 3 |
| WGST 285 | African American Women in the Media | 3 |
| WGST/HIST 313 | Women and the Law in Africa and the Middle East | 3 |
| WGST 337 | African Gender History | 3 |
| WGST 350 | Spitting in the Wind: "American" Women, Art, and Activism | 3 |
| WGST 352 | Rahtid Rebel Women: An Introduction to Caribbean Women | 3 |
| WGST 368 | Women of Color in Contemporary United States Social Movements | 3 |
| WGST 388 | The International Politics of Sexual and Reproductive Health | 3 |
| WGST 405 | Gender, Sexuality, Empire and Asian Pacific America | 3 |
| WGST 410 | Comparative Queer Politics | 3 |
| WGST 415 | Queer Theory and Religion | 3 |
| WGST 465 | Gender, (Im)migration, and Labor in Latina Literature | 3 |
| WGST 553 | Theorizing Black Feminisms | 3 |
| WGST 583 | Gender and Imperialism | 3 |
| WGST 610 | Feminism, Sexuality, and Human Rights | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Interdisciplinary Perspectives Courses–Historical Studies
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| AAAD 201 | Introduction to African Literature | 3 |
| AAAD/WGST 200 | Gender and Sexuality in Africa | 3 |
| AMST/JWST/WGST 253 | A Social History of Jewish Women in America | 3 |
| ASIA/HIST/WGST 537 | Women in the Middle East | 3 |
| CLAS/WGST 240 | Women in Greek Art and Literature H | 3 |
| CLAS/WGST 241 | Women in Ancient Rome H | 3 |
| CLAS/WGST 242 | Sex and Gender in Antiquity | 3 |
| COMM/FOLK/HIST/WGST 562 | Oral History and Performance H | 3 |
| HIST/EURO/WGST 259 | Towards Emancipation? Women in Modern Europe | 3 |
| HIST/PWAD 354/WGST 353 | War and Gender in Movies H | 3 |
| HIST/PWAD/WGST 517 | Gender, Military, and War | 3 |
| HIST 361/WGST 360 | Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Histories in the United States | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 144 | Women in the United States from Settlement to Present | 3 |
| WGST/CMPL/KOR 237 | Rebel, Lover, Martyr: Gender and Sexuality in North and South Korean Screen Cultures | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 264 | Gender in Russian History | 3 |
| WGST 272 | Masculinities | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 280 | Women and Gender in Latin American History | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 375 | History of Gender in America | 3 |
| HIST 385/WGST 382 | African American Women's History | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 479 | History of Female Sexualities | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 500 | Gender, Empire, and Nation | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 568 | Women in the South | 3 |
| HIST/WGST 576 | The Ethnohistory of Native American Women | 3 |
| WGST/HIST 313 | Women and the Law in Africa and the Middle East | 3 |
| WGST 337 | African Gender History | 3 |
| WGST 360 | Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Histories in the United States | 3 |
| WGST 370 | Race, Sexuality, and Disability in the History of Western Christianity H | 3 |
| WGST 382/HIST 385 | African American Women's History | 3 |
| WGST 560 | Women and Religion in United States History | 3 |
| WGST 583 | Gender and Imperialism | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Interdisciplinary Perspectives Courses–Humanities and Fine Arts
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| AMST/WGST 325 | Encountering Art in the Unexpected: Borderlands and Story in Contemporary American Visual Art | 3 |
| ANTH/LING/WGST 302 | Language and Power | 3 |
| ANTH/FOLK 537/WGST 438 | Gender and Performance: Constituting Identity | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 222 | Prehistoric Art | 3 |
| ARTH/WGST 254 | Women in the Visual Arts I | 3 |
| ARTH/WGST 451 | Women in the Visual Arts II | 3 |
| ASIA/CMPL/WGST 380 | Almost Despicable Heroines in Japanese and Western Literature | 3 |
| CMPL 374/WGST 373 | Modern Women Writers | 3 |
| COMM/WGST 224 | Introduction to Gender and Communication H | 3 |
| COMM/WGST 345 | Gender and Film | 3 |
| COMM/WGST 524 | Gender, Communication, and Culture | 3 |
| COMM/WGST 561 | Performance of Women of Color H | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 140 | Introduction to Gay and Lesbian Culture and Literature | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 263 | Literature and Gender H | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 361 | Asian American Women's Writing | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 363 | Feminist Literary Theory H | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 374 | Southern Women Writers | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 446 | American Women Authors H | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 665 | Queer Latina/o Literature, Performance, and Visual Art | 3 |
| ENGL/WGST 666 | Queer Latina/o Photography and Literature | 3 |
| GERM/WGST 220 | Women in the Middle Ages | 3 |
| GERM/CMPL/WGST 271 | Women in German Cinema | 3 |
| MUSC/WGST 188 | Introduction to Women and Music | 3 |
| MUSC/WGST 248 | Gender on the Musical Stage | 3 |
| PHIL/WGST 275 | Moral and Philosophical Issues of Gender in Society H | 3 |
| PHIL/WGST 475 | Philosophical Issues in Gender, Race, and Class | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 362 | Mary in the Christian Tradition H | 3 |
| RELI 665/WGST 664 | Body and Suffering in Christian Mysticism | 3 |
| RUSS/WGST 486 | Exploration of Russian "Women's Prose" and Svetlana Alexievich (Nobel Prize in Literature 2015) | 3 |
| SPAN/WGST 620 | Women in Hispanic Literature | 3 |
| WGST 64 | Plantation Lullabies: Literature by and about African American Women | 3 |
| WGST 66 | First-Year Seminar: Growing Up Girl, Globally | 3 |
| WGST 68 | First-Year Seminar: Assumed Identities: Performance in Photography | 3 |
| WGST/ASIA 127 | Iranian Women Writers | 3 |
| WGST 202 | Introduction to Feminist Thought | 3 |
| WGST 211 | Introduction to Latina Feminisms: Literature, Theory, and Activism | 3 |
| WGST 215 | Gender and Spirituality | 3 |
| WGST 230 | Women in Contemporary Art: A Field Study | 3 |
| WGST 231 | Gender and Popular Culture | 3 |
| WGST 232 | Identity in Transit: Performing the Self through Photography | 3 |
| WGST 233 | Introduction to Latina Literature | 3 |
| WGST 281 | Gender and Global Change | 3 |
| WGST 285 | African American Women in the Media | 3 |
| WGST 315 | Sexuality and Salvation | 3 |
| WGST/ASIA 329 | Middle East Women Writers | 3 |
| WGST 336 | Digitizing the Body | 3 |
| WGST 350 | Spitting in the Wind: "American" Women, Art, and Activism | 3 |
| WGST 352 | Rahtid Rebel Women: An Introduction to Caribbean Women | 3 |
| WGST 402 | Feminist Ways of Knowing | 3 |
| WGST 405 | Gender, Sexuality, Empire and Asian Pacific America | 3 |
| WGST 415 | Queer Theory and Religion | 3 |
| WGST 465 | Gender, (Im)migration, and Labor in Latina Literature | 3 |
| WGST/ASIA 471 | Gender and Sexuality in Middle Eastern Literature | 3 |
| WGST 555 | Women and Creativity | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Interdisciplinary Perspectives Courses–Social Sciences
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| AAAD/WGST 200 | Gender and Sexuality in Africa | 3 |
| AAAD/WGST 386 | Comparative Studies in Culture, Gender, and Global Forces | 3 |
| AAAD 232/WGST 266 | Black Women in America | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 277 | Gender and Culture | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 278 | Women in Science | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 441 | The Anthropology of Gender, Health, and Illness | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 443 | Cultures and Politics of Reproduction | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 445 | Migration and Health | 3 |
| ANTH/WGST 458 | Archaeology of Sex and Gender | 3 |
| ANTH 442/WGST 440 | Health and Gender after Socialism | 3 |
| ASIA/GEOG/WGST 447 | Gender, Space, and Place in the Middle East | 3 |
| EXSS/WGST 260 | Women and Sport | 3 |
| GEOG/WGST 225 | Space, Place, and Difference | 3 |
| JWST/RELI 444/WGST 448 | Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Judaism | 3 |
| MEJO/WGST 442 | Gender, Class, Race, and Mass Media | 3 |
| PLAN 52/WGST 51 | First-Year Seminar: Race, Sex, and Place in America | 3 |
| PLAN/WGST 662 | Gender Issues in Planning and Development | 3 |
| POLI/WGST 217 | Women and Politics | 3 |
| POLI/WGST 265 | Feminism and Political Theory | 3 |
| POLI/WGST 477 | Advanced Feminist Political Theory | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 244 | Gender and Sexuality in Western Christianity H | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 371 | Women Mystics | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 424 | Gender Theory and the Study of Religion | 3 |
| RELI/WGST 450 | Sexuality in Jewish Tradition and History | 3 |
| SOCI/WGST 124 | Sex and Gender in Society | 3 |
| SOCI/WGST 444 | Race, Class, and Gender | 3 |
| WGST 111 | Introduction to Sexuality Studies H | 3 |
| WGST 270 | Introduction to Transgender Studies | 3 |
| WGST 340 | Leadership in Violence Prevention | 3 |
| WGST 355 | Youth, Sexuality, and the Law | 3 |
| WGST 368 | Women of Color in Contemporary United States Social Movements | 3 |
| WGST 388 | The International Politics of Sexual and Reproductive Health | 3 |
| WGST 410 | Comparative Queer Politics | 3 |
| WGST 460 | The Social Construction of Gendered Bodies | 3 |
| WGST/ASIA/RELI 482 | Sex, Gender, and Religion in South Asia | 3 |
| WGST 553 | Theorizing Black Feminisms | 3 |
| WGST 573 | Psychology of Women and Gender | 3 |
| WGST 610 | Feminism, Sexuality, and Human Rights | 3 |
| WGST 695 | Senior Seminar: Principles of Feminist Inquiry H | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
Special Opportunities in Women’s and Gender Studies
Honors in Women’s and Gender Studies
The honors program is designed to encourage independent thought and research among outstanding undergraduate majors in women’s and gender studies. Students must take the capstone WGST 695H and WGST 691H during the fall semester and WGST 692H (spring semester). Students must plan their project with a faculty advisor and secure permission from both the chair of the department and the faculty advisor. Guidelines and forms for the initial contract are available in the department’s office and on our website. Students interested in the honors thesis must have at least a 3.3 overall grade point average and a 3.5 or greater grade point average in courses taken for the major.
Internships (Fall Semester Only)
The Department of Women’s and Gender Studies Internship Program (WGST 393) allows students the opportunity to receive course credit while gaining practical experience in a variety of fields concerned with feminist issues. The internship has two components:
- work in a local agency
- a weekly class taught by a faculty member in the Department of Women's and Gender Studies.
For further information visit the department website.
Department Programs
Major
Minors
Department of Women’s and Gender Studies
208 Smith Building, CB# 3135
(919) 962-3908
