The Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Interdisciplinary Graduate Program sponsors student engagement on issues central to feminism, promotes equality for all people regardless of the way they express their gender or sexuality, and nurtures academic research and scholarly inquiry that supports these core values.
The Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Concentration empowers students to critically assess the historical and social context and meanings attached to the categories of “man” and “woman” as well as the importance of gender identities that exist outside and beyond that dichotomy. Additionally, students will have the opportunity to examine systematically the role and politics of sexuality and interrogate the discriminatory practices disadvantaging those who reject or fall outside of compulsory heteronormativity.
The following departments and programs offer an Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies concentration:
- American Studies, MA & American Studies, PhD
- Anthropology, MA & Anthropology, PhD : Additional Requirements
- Communication, MA, Communication, MS, & Communication, MS (OL)
- Curriculum and Instruction, MSED or MS & Curriculum and Instruction, Phd
- English, MS, English: Literature, Theory, Cultural Studies Concentration, Phd, & English: Rhetoric and Composition Concentration, PhD
- History, MA & History, PhD : Additional Requirements
- Languages and Cultures, MA & Languages and Cultures, PhD
- Linguistics, MA & Lingustics, PhD
- Philosophy and Literature, PhD
- Philosophy, MA & Philosophy, PhD
- Political Science, MA & Political Science, PhD
- Sociology, MS, Sociology, PhD & Sociology/Gerontology, PhD
- Technology, PhD
(If your area is not shown, please email wgss@purdue.edu expressing your interest in obtaining a WGSS concentration.)
Required WGSS Courses - 9.0 Credit Hours
- WGG 68000: Feminist Theory (Credits: 3.0)
- WGSS 68100: Contemporary Issues In Feminist Scholarship (Credits: 3.0)
- WGSS 68200: Issues In Feminist Research and Methodology (Credits: 3.)
Electives - 3.0 Credit Hours
- WGSS 59900: Selected Topics In Women's Gender And Sexuality Studies (Credits: 3.00)*
*May be substituted by emailing for the WGSS director for approval of a course that has 50% women/gender/sexuality content or in which the student completes a significant project or research on related topics.
Additional Requirements- Anthropology
Courses in Anthropology pre-approved for this concentration are listed below. Choose one course if an M.S./M.A. student, or two if a Ph.D. student. Alternatively, students can complete graduate-level courses that have been cross-listed under both Anthropology and WGSS rubrics. For courses that do not fall in either of these two categories, student may submit syllabi to the WGSS director (either pre- or post-enrollment) to confirm their content satisfies the criteria for this concentration. The courses may also count toward the major in ANTH as well as toward fulfilling the requirements in the concentration.
- ANTH 50500: Culture And Society (Credits: 3.00)
- ANTH 56500: Sociolinguistics (Credits: 3.00)
- ANTH 59200: Selected Topics In Anthropology (Credits: 1.00 to 3.00) (Must be approved by Anthropology faculty affiliated with WGSS.)
- ANTH 62000: Special Topics In Cultural Anthropology (Credits: 3.00) (Must be approved by Anthropology faculty affiliated with WGSS.)
Additional Requirements- History
Courses in History pre-approved for this concentration are listed below. Choose one course if an M.S./M.A. student, or two if a Ph.D. student. Alternatively, students can complete graduate-level courses that have been cross-listed under both History and WGSS rubrics.For courses that do not fall in either of these two categories, student may submit syllabi to the WGSS director (either pre- or post-enrollment) to confirm their content satisfies the criteria for this concentration. The courses may also count toward the major in History as well as toward fulfilling the requirements in the concentration.
- HIST 59000: Directed Reading In History (Credits: 1.00 to 3.00)
- HIST 64100: Reading Seminar In Global History (Credits: 3.00) Title: Gender
- HIST 64200: Seminar In Global History (Credits: 3.00) Title: Gender
- HIST 65100: Reading Seminar In American History (Credits: 1.00 to 3.00) Title: U.S. Women’s History after 1860