Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (BA)

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Offered by the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program , College of Arts and Sciences .

Admission to the Program

Formal admission to the major requires a grade point average of 2.00 (on a 4.00 scale) and the approval of the program director.

University Requirements

120 credit hours with a cumulative GPA of 2.00 or better
Completion of college writing requirement
Completion of university mathematics requirement

Note: Women’s, gender, and sexuality studies majors are advised to take STAT-202 Basic Statistics to fulfill the University Mathematics Requirement.

General Education Requirements

A total of ten courses, consisting of two courses from each of the five foundational areas
At least one course from Area Five: The Natural and Mathematical Sciences must include a laboratory science component
No more than two courses may be taken in the same discipline

Major Requirements

39 credit hours with grades of C or better, including at least 18 credit hours at the 300 level or above

Course Requirements

Required (15 credit hours)

WGSS-125 Gender in Society FA4 (3)
WGSS-150 Women’s Voices through Time FA2 (3)
WGSS-400 Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Theory (3)
WGSS-491 Internship in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (1-6) (3 credit hours required)
WGSS-500 Current Issues and Research in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (3)

Multicultural Perspective (3 credit hours)

One course on women and/or gender in multicultural perspective from the following:

ANTH-215 Sex, Gender, and Culture FA3 (3)
JWST-320 Topics in Jewish Culture (3) (approved topic)
SOCY-235 Gender in Transnational Perspectives FA3 (3)
WGSS-350 Interpreting Gender in Culture (3) (approved topic)
or another course approved by the program director

Area of Focus (12 credit hours)

12 credit hours (9 of which must be at the 300 level or above) from one of three options: Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences, or an individually defined theme or issue.

Note: The same course may not be used to satisfy both the women and/or gender in multicultural perspective requirement (see above) and the area of focus requirement.

Arts and Humanities

AMST-330 Contemporary American Culture (3) (approved topics)
AMST-340 Community Activism and Regional Studies (3) (approved topics)
ARTH-335 Twentieth Century Women Artists of the Americas (3)
ARTH-520 Seminar in Art History (3) (approved topics)
COMM-516 Topics in Film and Media Arts (3) (approved topics)
EDU-419 Children’s Literature: A Critical Literacy Perspective (3)
EDU-565 Gender and Cultural Diversity in School (3)
HIST-219 Women in America to 1850 (3)
HIST-220 Women in America since 1850 FA4 (3)
HIST-344 Topics in Jewish History (3) (approved topics)
HIST-449 Topics in U.S. History (3) (approved topics)
HIST-459 Topics in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality History (3) (approved topics)
HIST-479 Topics in African American History (3) (approved topics)
HIST-500 Studies in History (3) (approved topics)
JWST-320 Topics in Jewish Culture (3) (approved topics)
LIT-310 Major Authors (3) (approved topics)
LIT-332 Shakespeare Studies (3) (approved topics)
LIT-370 Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies (3)
PHIL-416 Feminist Philosophy (3)
SPAN-559 Colloquium on Latin America (3) (taught in Spanish) (approved topics)
WGSS-350 Interpreting Gender in Culture (3) (approved topics)
Other courses approved by the program director

Social Sciences

ANTH-215 Sex, Gender, and Culture FA3 (3)
ANTH-254 Language and Culture (3)
ANTH-537 Topics in Language and Culture (3) (approved topics)
ANTH-544 Topics in Public Anthropology (3) (approved topics)
COMM-510 Women in Journalism (3)
COMM-534 Race and Gender in Communication and Media (3)
ECON-374 Gender Roles in the Economy (3)
GOVT-482 Women and Politics (3)
GOVT-483 Women, Politics, and Public Policy (3)
GOVT-484 Women and Political Leadership (3)
GOVT-485 Topics in Women and Politics (1-4)
GOVT-486 Feminist Political Theory (3)
HFIT-245 Multicultural Health FA4 (3)
HFIT-323 Issues in Women’s Health (3)
JLC-526 Domestic Violence (3)
JLC-535 Gender and the Law (3)
PSYC-320 Women and Mental Health (3)
PSYC-430 Human Sexual Behavior (3)
PSYC-545 Psychology of Sex Similarities and Differences (3)
SIS-517 Gender and Conflict (3)
SIS-559 Selected Topics in Cross-National Studies (3) (approved topics)
SOCY-205 Diverse and Changing Families FA4 (3)
SOCY-235 Gender in Transnational Perspectives FA3 (3)
SOCY-354 White Privilege and Social Justice (3)
SOCY-352 Women, Men, and Social Change (3)
SOCY-570 Sociology of Gender and Family (3)
SPAN-456 Spanish Topics (3) (taught in Spanish) (approved topics)
WGSS-225 Gender, Politics, and Power FA4 (3)
WGSS-350 Interpreting Gender in Culture (3) (approved topics)
Other courses approved by the program director

Individually Defined Area of Focus

An individually defined group of four courses (12 credit hours) centered on a particular theme or issue in women’s and gender studies, with approval of the program director.

Electives (9 credit hours)

Elective courses focused on women and/or gender studies, to make a total of 39 credit hours, from a list of courses approved each semester by the program director.

University Honors Program

To graduate with University Honors in the major through the University Honors Program, students must meet the requirements detailed on the Honors website and have been enrolled as either a first-year student between Fall 1989 and Spring 2014, or as a transfer or self-nominated student through Spring 2015. The University Honors Program should not be confused with the AU Honors Program, which begins in Fall 2014 and has separate requirements, also detailed on the Honors website.

Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees

American University offers students the opportunity to earn both undergraduate and graduate degrees through its combined bachelor’s/master’s programs. See Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees for more information.