Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS)
College of Arts and Sciences, Interdisciplinary Program
O’Shaughnessy Educational Center (OEC) 205B, (651) 962-5159
Ehrmantraut (MCL), director
Women, Gender, and Sexuality StudiesDepartment Web Site
The Twin Cities Women’s and Gender Studies Collaborative offers a cooperative major in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (or, at St. Thomas, Women’s Studies). Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies is an interdisciplinary program which takes gender as its critical term of inquiry, exploring it as a social construct and analyzing its impact on traditional disciplines. As an interdisciplinary major and minor, Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies spans the curriculum, incorporating many disciplines in a diverse and stimulating package of courses. Courses consider historical and contemporary contexts from multicultural and multiracial perspectives, and focus on the intersections of race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, religion, and culture.
Students in the program learn how to analyze social forces and assumptions that have shaped the lives of women and men, as well as the lives of gender and sexual minorities, on individual, national, and global levels. This flexible program of study combines theoretical, practical, and research components and provides preparation for both advanced study and professional work in a variety of professions, for example, in organizations focusing on women, in human relations departments of corporations, and in health or legal professions.
Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies majors and minors are encouraged to study abroad. Specific courses taken abroad may substitute for St. Thomas requirements. See the director of Women’s Studies, a study abroad advisor in the International Education Center, or Academic Information & Programs in the front section of this catalog for program options.
Students are encouraged to speak with the program director early in their academic careers for assistance in choosing courses or arranging schedules that will most effectively serve the student’s interests.
Major in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
- WGSS 205 Foundations in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (4 credits)
- WGSS 327 Feminist Theory (4 credits)
- Internship Course (designated as Individual Study)
- WGSS 480 Women’s Studies Seminar (4 credits)
or WGSS 495 Independent Study (4 credits)
Plus:
Approved Women’s Studies electives within the following categories:
- Eight (8) elective credits
- Twelve (12) upper-level elective credits
- Four (4) credits in global/racial/ethnic elective
Note: The elective credits must be either eight (8) credits within the Humanities and 12 credits within Social /Natural Sciences, or 12 credits within Humanities and eight (8) credits within Social/Natural Sciences.
Minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
- WGSS 205 Foundations in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (4 credits)
Plus:
Approved Women’s Studies electives within the following categories:
- Eight (8) credits in Humanities
- Eight (8) credits in Social Sciences/Natural Sciences
Recommended:
- WGSS 480 Women’s Studies Seminar (4 credits)
or a Directed Research Project may be substituted with approval of campus director
Note: The seminar can count as one of the Humanities or Social/Natural science courses.
Transfer students:
Students who transfer to St. Thomas and wish to complete a major or minor in Women’s Studies are urged to consult with the director of Women’s Studies immediately upon transfer.
Courses available for this program
Because the women’s studies program at the University of St. Thomas is part of a consortium with three other area schools (Augsburg College, Hamline University, and the University of St. Catherine), appropriate courses may be taken at any of these institutions without the exchange course limitation. There is, however, potential for duplication of courses between schools, so students are urged to speak with the program director with any questions. Courses offered within the consortium are publicized by the program director, who can guide students in choosing eligible courses. Listed below are UST courses only.
The following courses may also have an attribute attached that is searchable in the class finder and Murphy. WSMJ = Major approved, WSMN = Minor approved.
Humanities Courses
- ARTH 260 Women in Ancient Art and Culture
- CLAS 245 Classical Mythology [also offered as ENGL 203]
- COMM 328 Communication of Race, Class, and Gender [Certain sections only]
- ENGL 203 Classical Mythology [also offered as CLAS 245]
- ENGL 217 Multicultural Literature: LGBTQ+ Writers of Color
- ENGL 218 Literature by Women: Critical History
- ENGL 337 Latina Women Writers
- ENGL 341 Literature by Women: Critical Questions
- HIST 112 The History of the Modern World since 1550 [Certain sections only]
- HIST 211 Women and Family in the Americas
- ITAL 489 Women and Nature: A Relationship to Recast
- MUSC 115 Music and Culture: Feminine Lens (only section 02)
- SPAN 489 Topics Women in the Zone of Conflict
- THEO 227 Contexts: Women & Bible
- THEO 227 Contexts: Bible & Culture
- THEO 227 Contexts: Women & Christianity
- THEO 227 Contexts: Women & Early Church
- SOWK 291: The Anatomy of Violence
- WMST 297 Topics Making and Unmaking Masculinities
- WMST 488 Topics Women Food Justice Envr
- WMST 490 Topics Migration and Gender
Social Science and Natural Science
- BIOL 106 Women, Medicine, and Biology
- BLAW 352 Gender Issues and the Law (J-Term)
- COMM 220 Interpersonal Communications
- NSCI 398 - Neuroscience of Gender
- POLS 302 Women and Politics
- PSYC 205 Psychology of Women
- PSYC 298 Topics: Neuroscience and Gender
- SOCI 304 Adolescence in Society
- SOCI 321 Global Marriages and Families
- SOCI 354 Sex in Society
- SOWK 391 Social Policy for Social Change
- WMST 297 Topics Making and Unmaking Masculinities
- WMST 488 Topics Women Food Justice Envr
- WMST 490 Topics Migration and Gender
Multicultural or Ethnic Studies
- ARTH 284 Arts of the African Diaspora
- COMM 370 Intercultural Communication
- HIST 117 Latin America in Global Perspective
- HIST 216 African-American History
- MUSC 216 Jazz in America
- SOCI 251 Race and Ethnicity
- SOCI 301 General Anthropology
Women's Studies Undergraduate Courses
| Course Number | Title | Credits |
|---|
Women, Gender, & Sexuality Undergraduate Courses
| Course Number | Title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| WGSS 205 | Found in Women/Gen/Sexuality | 4 | |
| Description of course Found in Women/Gen/Sexuality : | This multi-disciplinary course is designed to raise awareness of women's status and women's diversity, to explore gender identities and interrogate the way that these categories are constructed, and to critically examine disciplines and social practices through the lens of feminist theory. Course readings and discussion will examine ideas about race, class, sexuality, and other aspects of identity as they intersect with sex and gender. Available once a year, usually offered in the Fall semester. | ||
| WGSS 225 | Women and Gender in Film | 4 | |
| Description of course Women and Gender in Film : | Women and Gender in Film explores the diverse roles women have taken in film from an intersectional perspective that includes analysis of gender along with considerations of race, class, migrant status, disability status, religious/spiritual identity, or other dimensions of diversity. Through readings, lectures and film analysis students will be able to consider how gender constructions have influenced the roles women and non-gender conforming individuals could take in film as an industry and in film as an art, focusing primarily in film production in the United States. Through a social justice lens, this course will lead students to become aware of how gender constructions are circulated, recast, and reinforced through film, which can also be a space for resistance, change and imagination of a more egalitarian future. | ||
| WGSS 243 | Individual Study | 0 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Individual Study : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 269 | Research | 2 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Research : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 297 | Topics | 4 | |
| Description of course Topics : | The subject matter of these courses will vary from year to year, but will not duplicate existing courses. Descriptions of these courses are available in the Searchable Class Schedule on Murphy Online, View Searchable Class Schedule | ||
| WGSS 327 | Feminist Theory | 4 | |
| Description of course Feminist Theory : | This interdisciplinary feminist theory course is designed as a mid-level course to serve as a bridge between the Foundations in Women's Studies course and the Senior Seminar. The content of the course will focus on theorizing around multiple differences of gender, race, ethnicity, class, and sexuality. As an interdisciplinary course, it provides an overview of historical and ideological trends in feminist thought around these differences. The focus may vary, and may include feminist theories from the fine arts, history, literary studies, philosophy, psychology, the sciences, and sociology. Prerequisites: WGSS 205 | ||
| WGSS 389 | Research | 2 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Research : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 393 | Individual Study | 2 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Individual Study : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 476 | Experiential Learning | 1 TO 4 | |
| Description of course Experiential Learning : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 480 | Women's Studies Seminar | 4 | |
| Description of course Women's Studies Seminar : | This advanced capstone course for the Women's Studies major is a multi-disciplinary seminar usually taken during the student's senior year. The course will include student research and presentations that incorporate feminist theory. It will rotate among the different campuses of the ACTC. Prerequisite: WGSS 205 | ||
| WGSS 487 | Topics | 2 | |
| Description of course Topics : | The subject matter of these courses will vary from year to year, but will not duplicate existing courses. Descriptions of these courses are available in the Searchable Class Schedule on Murphy Online, View Searchable Class Schedule | ||
| WGSS 488 | Topics | 2 | |
| Description of course Topics : | The subject matter of these courses will vary from year to year, but will not duplicate existing courses. Descriptions of these courses are available in the Searchable Class Schedule on Murphy Online, View Searchable Class Schedule | ||
| WGSS 489 | Topics | 4 | |
| Description of course Topics : | The subject matter of these courses will vary from year to year, but will not duplicate existing courses. Descriptions of these courses are available in the Searchable Class Schedule on Murphy Online, View Searchable Class Schedule | ||
| WGSS 490 | Topics | 4 | |
| Description of course Topics : | The subject matter of these courses will vary from year to year, but will not duplicate existing courses. Descriptions of these courses are available in the Searchable Class Schedule on Murphy Online, View Searchable Class Schedule | ||
| WGSS 491 | Individual Study | 2 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Individual Study : | No description is available. | ||
| WGSS 495 | Individual Study | 2 OR 4 | |
| Description of course Individual Study : | No description is available. | ||