Gender & Women's Studies
Degree Overview: Four Years
Gender and Women's Studies is an interdisciplinary field of study that explores relations of power in the lives of individuals, groups and cultures in multiple settings and sites locally and transnationally. Our innovative courses on women and gender analyze constructions and intersections of gender, race, class, age, ability and sexuality in popular culture, everyday life, the arts, the sciences, politics, societies, and the economy. We encourage students to engage individually and collectively in the transformative processes of feminist scholarship, practices, and politics. Gender and women's studies students develop the practical, theoretical, communications and organizational skills to think, write, conduct research and act critically and creatively.
Students will gain the skills necessary to conduct research and transform the knowledge gained into any future career they may choose, including an ongoing career as a graduate student.
The School of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies unites academic resources at York University in gender and women's and sexuality studies, bringing together the undergraduate and graduate programs, the non-credit Bridging Program for Women, and the Centre for Feminist Research.
A feature which distinguishes the Gender and Women's Studies program offered at Glendon from the program offered in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies is its bilingual focus. Courses may be taken in English or in French at the Glendon Campus and in English in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies.
Quick Links
Your first year will introduce you to the university environment, provide you with your mandatory course in GWST, offer you general education course choices, and expose you to the general topics of the Program.
GWST 1501 9.00 A (Y)/Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies (Core)
GWST 1501 9.00 B (Y)/ Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies (ONLN) (Core)
GWST 1502 6.00 (Y)/Introduction aux études des femmes et de genre (Core, Glendon campus)
SXST 1600 9.00 (Y)/Introduction to Sexuality Studies (Major Credit)
SXST 1601 6.00 (Y)/Introduction to Sexuality Studies (Major Credit, Glendon campus)
SXST 1601 6.00 (Y)/Introduction à l’étude de la sexualité (Major Credit, Glendon campus)
General Education Requirements:
9.0 credit from Humanities or Social Science
6.0 credit from Humanities or Social Science (whichever is not taken in 1)
6.0 credit from Natural Science
In your second year, you will deepen your critical engagement with key topics in the field of Gender & Women’s Studies through Major Credit GWST and SXST (cross-listed to GWST) courses.
SXST 2601 6.00 (Y)/Family Interruptus: Critical Sexualities, Critical Families (Major Credit)
GWST 2512 6.00 (Y)/Race, Gender and Sexuality (ONLN) (Major Credit)
GWST 2513 6.00 (Y)/Mothering and Motherhood (ONLN) (Major Credit)
GWST 2517 6.00 (Y)/Activisms in Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies (Major Credit)
In the third year, you will explore the Program’s specialized fields while focusing more on your particular interests through Major Credit GWST and SXST (cross-listed to GWST) courses.
GWST 3510 6.00 (Y)/ Women and Work: Production and Reproduction (Major Credit)
GWST 3524 3.00 (F)/Colonialism, Gender, and Society in Black Africa (Glendon campus) (Major Credit)
GWST 3533 3.00 (W)/Black Women’s Activism (Major Credit)
GWST 3555 6.00 (Y)/Genealogies of Feminist Theorizing (Core)
GWST 3566 6.00 (Y)/Les femmes et les droits humains (Glendon campus) (Major Credit)
GWST 3571 6.00 (Y)/Gender, Race, Detention and Internment (Major Credit)
SXST 3602 3.00 (F)/Transnational Sexualities (Major Credit)
In the fourth year, your classes will be smaller, and you will have several Major Credit GWST and SXST (cross-listed to GWST) course options.
GWST 4502 6.00 (Y)/Violence Against Women (Major Credit)
GWST 4509 3.00 (F)/Anti-Racist Feminism (Major Credit)
GWST 4513 3.00 (F)/Feminism and Food (Major Credit)
GWST 4524 6.00 (Y)/Easy Reads: Feminist Graphic Narratives (BLEN) (Major Credit)
GWST 4555 6.00 (Y)/Feminist Methodologies and Methods (Core)
SXST 4600 6.00 (Y)/Advanced Seminar in Sexualities (Major Credit)
Students may pursue a BA major, Honours Major BA, Honours Major/Minor BA, Honours Double Major BA, Specialized Honours BA, Honours Minor BA, or a Cross-Disciplinary Certificate in Sexuality Studies in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies. For specific program and certificate requirements, please consult the relevant Programs of Study section. Please also book an advising appointment to review your progress through your chosen program option.
For more information, please visit the Courses website and LA&PS Academic Advising.