Why Gender & Women's Studies
Gender, race and sexuality play integral roles in all of our lives. Pursuing a degree in gender and women's studies empowers you to work across disciplines and investigate how complex cultural, social and political contexts shape race, gender and sexuality.
Our interdisciplinary program offers opportunities to learn in classrooms, through internships and internationally through studying abroad. Through our program, you'll develop skills you'll need for civic engagement and a wide range of careers.
What is Gender Studies?
Gender studies is a field that analyzes gender identity and representations of gender in social, cultural, political, academic and personal contexts. Informed by various theoretical perspectives, including feminist theory, queer theory and critical race studies, gender studies offers you opportunities to better understand how gender intersects with your own life and the lives of other people in your local and global communities.
Explore Our Courses and Degrees
What Can You Do With a Degree in Gender & Women's Studies?
As you pursue a major or minor in gender and women's studies, you're developing analytical thinking and writing skills that are highly valued across a wide range of fields. You're also establishing context to view and analyze the evolving gender norms in our private and public lives. Our alumni have entered careers and graduate programs in activist and nonprofit organizations, social work, education, politics, law and other fields. Many students also seek further study in gender and women's studies programs.
Our Program
In Gender & Women's Studies, our mission is to explore gender as a primary category of analysis for the understanding of individuals and human societies in historical and cultural contexts.
Our program strives to meet the following goals:
To deepen our understanding of how the construction of gender and sexualities relate to the oppression of women and minorities, and to structures of privilege
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To critically examine the intersection of gender with race, ethnicity, class, age, sexualities, abilities, as well as with other categories of difference
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To promote the inclusion of gender and women's issues throughout DU's pedagogy and curriculum, through offering a major and a minor as well as other campus connections, activities and special events
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To promote civic engagement within DU and the wider community
To continue the tradition of studying women's intellectual, material, artistic and spiritual contributions throughout history and in today's world
