American University Catalog 2015-2016 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
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Director Lauren Weis
Faculty from other schools and departments of the university teach in the program. A list of the faculty members of the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Advisory Board and other program information is available at: www.american.edu/cas/wgs/
The Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) Program is an interdisciplinary program encompassing feminist studies, masculinity studies, and sexuality studies. The program is committed to a multicultural curriculum that sustains and integrates diverse perspectives. Program courses emphasize participatory education in which student involvement, critical thinking, and personal insight are encouraged and made relevant in the learning process. Many faculty members with national and international reputations for their scholarly work on women’s/gender/sexuality issues regularly teach women’s, gender, and sexuality studies courses, as well as courses in other departments and programs that count toward the major and minor.
Students who major or minor in WGSS gain experience off-campus in the nation’s capital through an internship placement in an organization or agency whose mission embraces some aspect of women’s/gender/sexuality studies. Students have access to powerful networks in Washington, DC that can give substantial support in career development; student interns are actively sought by organizations focused on the arts, advocacy of all kinds, communication, employment and training issues, law and policy, reproductive rights and health, social research in a wide range of fields, support services for survivors of violence and abuse, and US politics. The program also encourages and facilitates students’ study abroad. Majors and minors have expanded their understanding of women’s/gender/sexuality in programs in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.
A degree in WGSS leads to challenging careers in a wide spectrum of occupations. An undergraduate education in WGSS equips students with a range of skills which are highly valued in the twenty-first century labor force. The curriculum also prepares students for graduate study in the fields of women’s/gender/sexuality studies or for advanced study in traditional disciplines and professional fields. Moreover, at AU students can earn a graduate certificate in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies by combining graduate-level coursework on women’s/gender/sexuality theory and current issues/research in WGSS with approved graduate coursework from a range of participating graduate programs. ProgramsMajorMinorGraduate Certificate
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