B.A. in Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies

Majors in Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies analyze how gender and sexuality shape personal experiences and interlocking systems of power. By examining how gender and sexuality intersect with race, class, legal status and ability, students cultivate a deeper understanding of individual, social and political inequalities as well as movements for change. They ask urgent, critical questions and break down conventional academic assumptions, developing innovative methods for examining and addressing current issues in diverse local and global contexts. They apply their findings and gain real-world experience through a required internship and capstone project, and can pursue their interests further through a Departmental Honors program.

Graduates of the program use their skills and experiences to find success and advocate for social justice in a variety of fields, including business, creative arts and humanities, education, health care, law, media and communication, nonprofit administration, psychology and public policy.

Admissions, Advising & Student Resources

Please see our Undergraduate Programs section for information about applying to the program, career paths, scholarships and other student resources.

Degree Requirements

A cumulative UW GPA of 2.0 in courses applied to the major is required for entrance to the major. A minimum of 58 credits required, 25 of which must be taken in residence at UW.

GWSS 200: Intro to Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies

  • 5 credits
  • GWSS 200 is a prerequisite for many other GWSS courses
  • Or transfer equivalent

GWSS 302: Feminist Theories and Methods

  • 5 credits
  • Prerequisite: either GWSS 200 or GWSS 206. GWSS 302 is a prerequisite for the Senior Capstone and variable credit courses (494, 495, 497, and 499).

Upper-division course focusing on transnational perspective

  • 5 credits
  • See adviser for list of eligible courses

GWSS 497: Fieldwork in GWSS

  • Part of the internship requirement
  • A minimum of 3 credits is required
  • One may take up to 12 additional credits for a total of 15 credits. Only ten of these additional credits can be applied to the elective upper-division GWSS credits. 

One class in at least 3 of these 4 overlapping focus points

  • 15 credits
  • Global Identity Formations
  • Decolonizing Empire
  • Feminist Knowledge Production & Radical Critique
  • Building Social, Cultural, and Political Movements for Change
  • See adviser for a list of courses in each category.

Additional GWSS upper-division credits

  • 20 credits
  • 10 credits must be graded and only 10 credits from variable credit courses (GWSS 495, GWSS 496, GWSS 497, GWSS 499) can be applied toward this requirement.

GWSS 494 Senior Capstone

  • 5 credits

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