What is women’s and gender studies?

In the women’s and gender studies degree program, you’ll explore basic questions about gender roles, gender identity and social justice while examining the diverse experiences of women in various cultures and historical eras. You’ll study the intersection of gender with topics that range from gaming and sports to diversity and activism. This interdisciplinary degree program draws on areas including sociology, history and popular culture.

Why study women’s and gender studies at UNH?

As a relatively small department in the College of Liberal Arts, we’ll provide you with a sense of community and opportunities to contribute directly to social justice, including through internships at innovative organizations both on and off campus. In a rigorous academic environment, our women’s and gender studies degree offers you a springboard for activism. You will benefit from a structured yet flexible undergraduate program on cutting-edge subjects that bridges theory and applied studies. Your course of study will be tailored to your interests. Additionally, you’ll receive excellent advising and mentoring to help you with career or graduate school preparation.

Potential careers

Arts
Business and industry
Education
Government and non-governmental organizations
Healthcare
Human services
Journalism
Law
Writing

Curriculum & Requirements

Program Description

Women's and gender studies provides students with an understanding of the status of women in various cultures and historical eras, in the nexus of race, class, sexuality, religious and disability studies. Students learn the use of gender as a category of analysis and increase their knowledge of women's contributions to many fields. Women's and gender studies courses offer students critical perspectives on such basic questions of the social order as assumptions about gender roles and gender identity.

As a relatively small department in the College of Liberal Arts, we provide students with a sense of community and opportunities to contribute directly to changing the campus climate. In a rigorous academic environment, women's and gender studies offers students a springboard for activism. Our internship program enables students to gain first-hand work experience across many fields.

A major in women's and gender studies prepares students for careers where the changing roles of women are having a perceptible impact. Women's and gender studies graduates go on to law school and graduate school in a variety of disciplines. Some have taken positions with social change or family service agencies, while others have found work in such fields as health care, journalism, education, human rights, social and environmental justice, and the arts.

Students who wish to major in women's and gender studies should consult with the department chair or coordinator.

Degree Plan

The course sequence for WGS majors will vary depending on when the student declares the major. A sample course sequence for primary majors is below. Students who declare WGS as a secondary major may follow a different course sequence.

Plan of Study Grid
First Year		Credits
ENGL 401	First-Year Writing	4
Physical or Biological Science Discovery requirement (no lab)		4
Quantitative Reasoning Discovery requirement		4
WGS 401W or WGS 405	Introduction to Women's Studies or Gender, Power and Privilege	4
WGS 505	Survey in Women's Studies	4
COLA foreign language requirement (depending on proficiency an additional course may be needed)		4
Additional foreign language course (if needed) or Elective		4
Elective		4
	Credits	32
Second Year
Consider including experiential learning or study abroad opportunities in your second or third year.
Three (3) courses approved as WGS elective coursework		12
WGS 632W	Feminist Thought	4
Physical or Biological Science Discovery requirement (with lab)		4
Humanities or Social Science Discovery requirement		4
Two (2) electives (for minor or second major)		8
	Credits	32
Third Year
Consider including experiential learning or study abroad opportunities in your second or third year.
WGS 798W	Colloquium	4
Two (2) courses at the 600-level or above approved as WGS elective coursework		8
World Cultures Discovery requirement		4
Four (4) electives (for minor or second major)		16
	Credits	32
Fourth Year
WGS Capstone: WGS 798 or WGS 799H		4
Second Major Capstone (if applicable) or elective		4
Two (2) Discovery courses (if applicable) or electives		8
Four (4) electives (for minor or second major)		16
	Credits	32
	Total Credits	128

Requirements for the Program

Degree Requirements

Minimum Credit Requirement: 128 credits

Minimum Residency Requirement: 32 credits must be taken at UNH

Minimum GPA: 2.0 required for conferral*

Core Curriculum Required: Discovery & Writing Program Requirements

Foreign Language Requirement: Yes

All Major, Option and Elective Requirements as indicated.
*Major GPA requirements as indicated.

Major Requirements

The Women's and Gender Studies (WGS) major requires students to complete 40 credits of major-approved coursework with grades of C- or better and an overall grade point average in major courses of 2.00 or higher.

Course List
Code	Title	Credits
Required Courses
WGS 401W	Introduction to Women's Studies	4
or WGS 405	Gender, Power and Privilege
WGS 632W	Feminist Thought	4
Discovery Program Capstone
WGS 798W	Colloquium	4
or WGS 799H	Honors Thesis
WGS-Approved Electives
Select seven (7) courses approved for the WGS major as elective coursework from the list below.		28
Total Credits		40

WGS-Approved Electives

Select seven (7) elective courses chosen in consultation with a WGS academic advisor.

No more than one (1) course at the 400-level
At least three (3) courses at the 600-level or above
At least two (2) WGS courses

Click here to view a list of additional courses offered and approved for the WGS major as elective coursework.

Course List
Code	Title	Credits
WGS-Approved Electives
WGS Courses (select at least 2)
WGS 444A	Race Matters	4
WGS 505	Survey in Women's Studies	4
WGS 510	Framing Feminism: Gender Politics in Film	4
WGS 795	Independent Study	1-4
WGS 796	Advanced Topics	4
WGS 797	Internship	4
WGS 798W	Colloquium	4
Additional courses approved for the WGS major (select no more than 5)
ANTH 525	Anthropology of the Body: Fat, Fitness and Form	4
ANTH 625	Sexuality in Cross-Cultural Perspective	4
ANTH 685	Gender, Sexuality and HIV/AIDS in Africa	4
ANTH 750	Islam and Gender: Gendered Lives of Muslims	4
CLAS 550A	Identities and Difference in the Ancient World: Greek and Roman Women	4
CMN 567	Gender, Race, and Class in the Media	4
CMN 614	Gender, Race and Technology	4
CMN 685	Gendered Rhetorics	4
ENGL 575	Sex and Sensibility: The Rise of Chick Lit	4
ENGL 585	Introduction to Women in Literature	4
ENGL 728	Language and Gender	4
ENGL 778	Race and Gender in Film and Popular Culture	4
HIST 565	Women in Modern Europe	4
HIST 665	Themes in Women's History	4
INCO 505A	Becoming a Problem Solver	4
INCO 505I	Internship: Semester in the City (Boston) or Semester for Impact (NH)	8
INCO 682A	The Washington Center Career Readiness Seminar	4
INCO 682I	Washington DC Internship	4 or 8
ITAL 444B	Mamma Mia! Italian Motherhood from the Virgin Mary to Carmela Soprano	4
JUST 410	Sexual Harassment and Rape Prevention (SHARPP) Peer Advocacy	2-4
JUST 520	Girls Gone Bad: Delinquent Girls in Cultural Context	4
NURS 450	Making Babies: Technology, Nature, and Social Context	4
NURS 621	Maternal and Newborn Nursing	1-2
NURS 621C	Maternal Newborn Nurs Clin	2
PHIL 419	Race, Gender and Social Justice	4
PHIL 510	Philosophy and Feminism	4
POLT 511	Women & Politics	4
POLT 721	Feminist Political Theory	4
SOC 570	Sexual Behavior	4
SW 715	Affirming Practice with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer+ People	4

Women's and Gender Studies majors may use two major-required courses to satisfy two Discovery category requirements. First and second majors may double count no more than two courses between the WGS major and another major or minor.

Candidates for a degree must satisfy all of the University Discovery Program requirements in addition to satisfying the requirements of each individual major program. Bachelor of arts candidates must also satisfy the foreign language proficiency requirement. ASL: COMM 401 American Sign Language I and COMM 502 American Sign Language II may be used to satisfy the language competency requirement.

Student Learning Outcomes

Program 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.