Women's and Gender Studies | Office | Website

The Women's and Gender Studies Program critically examines the place of women and gender in culture and society. Feminist and gender theory is applied to traditional disciplines to analyze the origins and effects of power, dominance, and gender roles and relations. Since women's issues and gender issues encompass and modify all areas of knowledge, and since such issues as race, class, and sexuality are crucial aspects of such experiences, the Women's and Gender Studies Program is interdisciplinary and multicultural. Course offerings also provide students with opportunities to integrate experiences from a variety of different fields of study. The Women's and Gender Studies minor provides an expertise in gender issues that responds to an increasing demand for such expertise in many professions and offers strong preparation for further study in a variety of postgraduate fields. In addition, Women's and Gender Studies courses often combine practice with theory, supplying students with a strong foundation for involvement in social justice issues. The Women's and Gender Studies minor is open to all undergraduates enrolled at the University.

Women's and Gender Studies Minor Requirements

2. 15 Additional credits (5 courses) WGS cross-listed elective courses.
No more than 6 elective credits (2 courses) in any one Department can be counted toward the minor. At least nine credits (3 courses) within the minor must be upper division courses (3000 or 4000 level). No course required for the minor can be taken pass/fail.

3. A Women's and Gender Studies Minor Portfolio
No later than the 8th week of his or her final semester, each student must submit a Women's and Gender Studies Minor Portfolio to his/her WGS advisor for evaluation by the Women's and Gender Studies Steering Committee. The minor Portfolio consists of:

a. Cover Page
This must include the student's name, date of portfolio submission, date of expected graduation, titles of essays included in the portfolio, and the instructor and course for which each essay was written.

b. Submitted Work
Four to six essays, written for at least three different Women's and Gender Studies classes. Essays should be chosen to reflect the student's intellectual exploration and achievements as a Women's and Gender Studies minor. Substantial essays of more than three pages or research papers are appropriate. Each essay should include prompts (essay directions) for the assignment, any comments the professor might have made, and the grade for the paper. Reprinted copies of the essays without comments and grades are not acceptable.

c. Self-Reflection Essay (4-5 pages)
Along with selected essays, students must write a self-reflection essay in which they discuss: 1) their reasons for considering the essays they have chosen to be reflective of their intellectual exploration and achievements as Women's and Gender Studies minors, and 2) the ways in which they see their completed studies as relevant and/or not relevant in their own academic, personal, and professional lives, and in their communities.

Completed portfolios are required for graduation with a Women's and Gender Studies Minor. However, they are graded on a pass/fail basis. Contents of the portfolios will not be used to evaluate individual student's competence; rather, they will be used by WGS faculty to assess the Minor program as a whole.

Contact Information:

• Heather Hill-Vasquez, Director
• Women's and Gender Studies Program
• hillvahe@udmercy.edu or 313-578-0572

or,

• Rosemary Weatherston, Chair
• Women's and Gender Studies Program Curriculum Sub-Committee
• weatherr@udmercy.edu or 313-993-1083