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Women’s Studies Minor

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Women’s Studies is an interdisciplinary program of study that facilitates the critical investigation of women’s issues and the workings of gendered society and promotes research by and about women and others whose status and roles demand feminist attention. It provides a forum for the academic study of interrelated issues concerning sex, gender, sexuality, race, class, disability, and other feminist issues within scholarship and activism. The objectives of the minor are to foster an understanding of

  • The roles of women (historically and today) in society, politics, and culture
  • The contributions of women and other feminists to a more nuanced view of sex/gender
  • The intersecting operations of sex, gender, sexuality, race, class, ability, nation, and other axes of identity
  • The knowledge that sexism, homophobia, racism, classism, heterosexism, nationalism, colonialism, and other systems of oppression demand critical responses
  • The necessity for inclusive areas of study committed to interdisciplinary and coalitional critical practices and strategies of analysis

This program within the Department of Gender and Race Studies recognizes the importance of race and ethnicity to women’s studies and the importance of women’s and gender studies to race and ethnic studies. The department’s scholarly and curricular contributions, as well as its campus presence, emphasize the intersectionality of its related degree programs as well as their relative autonomy.

Required Courses

Required Core Courses for Minor (18 Hours)

  • Introduction to Women’s Studies (WS 200) – 3 hours
  • Women in Contemporary Society/Feminist Theory (WS 430) or Gender, Race, and Class (WS 470) – 3 hours
  • Women’s Studies courses or related courses chosen from approved courses offered by departments throughout the University, such as PY 371, AMS 340, EN 373, COM 425 and COM 469 – 12 hours
  • A minimum of 6 hours at the 300 or 400 level must be earned on this campus

More Information

For more information about the undergraduate minor in Women’s Studies, see the UA Undergraduate Catalog.