Gender Studies
Recommended Plans of Study with a Concentration in Gender Studies
Our faculty representative for Gender Studies is Dr. Jaime Harker, 
Director of The Sarah Isom Center for Women and Gender Studies
Gender Studies is an interdisciplinary endeavor organized around questions, particularly about how gender and sexuality affect people’s lives and individual lived experiences in the present and at different times in history. What do we mean when we say “gender”? How does sexuality relate to masculinity and femininity? Why do those who challenge conventional expressions of gender and sexuality make folks uncomfortable? Many young people’s expressions of gender fluidity and “nonbinary” and “trans” identity have taken these questions in new directions, giving these questions a broader relevance.
The interdisciplinary nature of Gender Studies makes it a perfect match for the interdisciplinary studies major because it provides a critical lens and then applies that lens to real world pursuits and endeavors. What Gender Studies students share is a keen analytic intelligence and an ethical commitment to a better world.
Below, we give five possible concentrations for combining Gender Studies with other kinds of disciplinary study. These are possible models, but more importantly, they are an invitation for students to imagine their own passions and interests. Tell us what you dream of doing in the world, and we will shape a curriculum that gives you the tools and critical skills to achieve it.
All Gender Studies Concentrations require the following core courses:
G ST 201: Introduction to Gender Studies
G ST 202: Introduction to Queer Studies
In the following tables, R = Required Course E = Recommended Elective
Unifying Theme: Gender and Media
Discipline 1: Gender Studies Discipline 2: Journalism
Students pursuing this theme study representations of gender in the media, broadly defined, and learn the skills to contribute to these conversations through film, print, social media, and more.
| Discipline 1 | Discipline 2 | Other | |
| Course 1: | G ST 201 R | JOUR 101 Media, News & Audience R | SST 350 The South and Sexuality E |
| Course 2: | G ST 202 R | JOUR 102 Introduction to Multimedia Writing or IMC 205 Writing for IMC R | SOC 314 Sociology of News E |
| Course 3: | G ST 333 R | JOUR 310 Social Media in Society E | |
| Course 4: | G ST 350 Gender and Sexuality in Cinema E | JOUR 345 Digital Media DiversityE | |
| Course 5: | G ST 353 Gender and Sexuality in the Media E | Jour 574 Public Opinion and the Mass Media E | |
| Course 6: | G St 386: Gender on Film E | Jour 575 Mass Media Ethics and Social Issues E | |
| 18 Hrs | 18 Hrs | 6 hrs |
Unifying Theme: Gender and Spirituality
Discipline 1: Gender Studies Discipline 2: Religion
The question of gender has played an outsized role in our understanding of spirituality, from the nature of God to the leadership of religious institutions to the experience of believers. This concentration provides historical context and the critical tools to consider the relationship of gender and spirituality across centuries, cultures, and traditions.
| Discipline 1 | Discipline 2 | Other | |
| Course 1: | G ST 201 R | Rel 101: Introduction to Religion R | Hst 434: US Religious History
|
| Course 2: | G ST 202 R | Rel 102: Introduction to Asian Religions E | Hst 455: History of Religion in the South
|
| Course 3: | G ST 333 M/R | Rel 311: Women and the Goddess in Asian Religions E | |
| Course 4: | G St 337: The South and Sexuality | Rel 326: Saints and Sexuality E | |
| Course 5: | G ST 368: Feminism, Women, and Religion E | Rel 366: Sex, Gender, and the Bible E | |
| Course 6: | G St 425: Religion, Gender, and Sexuality E | Rel 389: Religious Responses to Poverty E | |
| 18 | 18 | 6 |
Unifying Theme: Gender and Health
Discipline 1: Gender Studies Discipline 2: HERSM – Community Health Emphasis
Health care professions have come to consider the importance of gender and sexuality in terms of quality of care, access, and the recruitment of health care professionals. This concentration provides expertise and the critical tools to understand how to provide equitable health care across gender and sexual diversity.
| Discipline 1 | Discipline 2 | Other | |
| Course 1: | G ST 201 R | HP 191: Personal and Community Health R | Jour 585: Health Communication |
| Course 2: | G ST 202 R | PH 195: Foundations of Public Health R | Anth 349: Medical Anthropology |
| Course 3: | G ST 333 R | ES 350: Research Methods in HESRM M | |
| Course 4: | G ST/NHM 329: Gender and Families E | PH 528: Public Health Policy E | |
| Course 5: | G St 325: Sociology of Gender E | PH 305: Program Planning and Evaluation E | |
| Course 6: | G St 565: Psychology of Gender E | PH 319: Global Health
E |
|
| 18 | 18 | 6 |
Unifying Theme: Gender and Non-Profit Management
Discipline 1: Gender Studies Discipline 2: Business
Non-profits play a significant role in improving the lives of women, the LGBTQIA+ community, and nonbinary and trans people. Learn how to combine your passion for gender and sexual equality with the practical skills for managing nonprofits, fundraising, and building successful programs.
| Discipline 1 | Discipline 2 | Other | |
| Course 1: | G ST 201 R | Bus 101: Business for a Better World R | Accy 201: Introduction to Accounting Principles I |
| Course 2: | G ST 202 R | Bus 220: Starting and Building Your Business R | Econ 202: Principles of Microeconomics |
| Course 3: | G ST 333 R | Bus 250: Legal Environment of Business E | Econ 203: Principles of Macroeconomics |
| Course 4: | G St 396: Exploring the Feminist Nonprofit R | Bus 271: Business Communication E | |
| Course 5: | G St 423: Black Women’s Enterprise & Activism E | Ent 101: Social Entrepreneurship E | |
| Course 6: | Ent 476: Entrepreneurial Leadership E
|
||
| 15 | 18 | 9 |
Unifying Theme: LGBTQ+ Life and Culture
Discipline 1: Gender Studies Additional disciplines: Sociology, Theatre and Film, English, History
LGBTQIA+ culture is diverse, exciting, and transformative. This concentration provides grounding in queer history, activism, aesthetics, and distinctive cultural practices.
| Gender Studies | Discipline 2 | Other | |
| Course 1: | G ST 201 R | ENG 488 Special topics in gender/sexuality studies | NMH 535 Human Sexuality |
| Course 2: | G ST 202 R | ENG 490 Special topics in queer theory | SOC 425 Gender, Religion, and Sociology |
| Course 3: | G ST 333 R | HIST 436 US Sexuality History | SOC 433 Theory of Gender and Sexuality |
| Course 4: | G ST 384 Gay and Lesbian Literature and Theory | PSYCH 100 Psychology of Human Sexuality | THEA 329
Queer Playwriting |
| Course 5: | GST 402 Advanced Queer Studies | PSYCH 460 Psychology of Human Sexuality | |
| Course 6: | |||
| 15 | 15 | 12 |