Women and Gender Studies (WGS) uses the concepts of gender, race/ethnicity, and class to analyze all dimensions of human experience. WGS is an interdisciplinary minor that complements any major and is excellent preparation for today’s diverse workplace. Recent Elizabethtown graduates minoring in the program have gone on to careers in occupational therapy, banking, and science or have pursued advanced degrees.
Students in WGS classes consider questions such as the following: How do women and men differ, and how do we explain the differences (nature, nurture, or both)? Why was winning the vote so important for women, African Americans, and Native Americans, and has everyone in the United States achieved equal rights and opportunities today? Who earns more, men or women, and why? Are Barbie, Superman, Cinderella, and the Incredible Hulk good role models for small girls and boys?
The WGS minor requires a minimum of 20 credit hours, comprised of five courses: WGS 105 , WGS 315 , and three elective courses from the Humanities and Social Sciences lists. No more than two courses may be taken from the same list. Students may double-count a research project in their major for WGS 495 /WGS 496 , if that project deals with gender or multicultural issues and if they obtain permission from their major department and the WGS Director. Note that several WGS courses also satisfy Core requirements, and other courses may fulfill requirements for a student’s major.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- Discuss the history, evolution, theoretical bases, and methods of inquiry of this interdisciplinary field;
- Discuss the statuses of women within and across various societies, and current and historical struggles to achieve social justice through individual and collective action;
- Explain the impact of perspectives on gender from various disciplines;
- Critically analyze the inequities, root causes, and reinforcing structures of categories of difference, which include, but are not limited to, gender and its intersections with class, race and ethnicity, sexuality, and religion;
- Critically reflect on their own identity, the social forces that impact it, and the ways that it informs their own worldview
For further information, contact the Women and Gender Studies Program Director, Dr. Kimberly Adams, Department of English.
Return to: