Declaring the GWS Major
Welcome to the Undergraduate Program in Gender and Women’s Studies, where we teach and do research on gender and sexuality in an intersectional and transnational context. In GWS, you learn about the world, and you learn to think about changing it as well. Our classes emphasize theoretical analysis, creative work, and original writing. Our students go on to pursue an array of careers and interests after graduation, in research, social justice, social work, education, and beyond! Please reach out to our Student Services Advisor for more information.
Gender and Women’s Studies students get significant personalized attention. Our students have a unique opportunity to interact with an amazing cadre of GWS faculty. Our department is known for its investment in the well-being of our students, and its smaller size allows us to cultivate a community among undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff.
Please visit the Undergraduate Student Learning Initiative for full details on the GWS learning goals.
View the GWS Major Map (PDF). To learn more about the Major Maps project, click here (link is external).
Full list of GWS courses (link is external)
GWS majors are also eligible to apply for stipends to help with GWS related research and travel (see research opportunities).
Major Requirements
To declare the Gender and Women’s Studies major, students must have completed GWS 10 with at least a C grade. To complete the major, students must take two of the three gateway courses (GWS 10, GWS 14, LGBT 20AC), as well as the four upper division core courses (GWS 101, GWS 102, GWS 104, and GWS 195 and/or GWS H195A/B). Students should take GWS 101 in the Spring of junior year and GWS 195 and/or H195A/B during senior year. In addition, the student must complete four upper division electives, at least three of which must be drawn from GWS / LGBT electives, and one of which may be taken in other departments as long as the courses appear on the course list on Gender and Women’s Studies. All courses taken for the GWS major must be taken for a letter grade.
Senior year structure:
The department will offer an intensive, substantive , 4-unit capstone class, run by one of the GWS faculty in an advanced area of research, open to all GWS majors and required of any major not enrolled in the Honors Thesis Writing seminar (see below). This seminar will be available to all majors, minors and by permission of the instructor. Students in the Honors program who want to take this class in addition to writing a thesis may add this class as an advanced elective.
Honors Program:
Eligibility
Students who wish to write an honors thesis must have an overall 3.3 GPA, and a 3.5 GPA in the major. On or before the first day of class, eligible students must submit a 2-5 page proposal to the faculty member teaching the thesis writing seminar (GWS H195A) in order to be admitted to the class and the senior year honors program overall.
Fall: The department will offer a 4-unit honors seminar staffed by one of the GWS Senate faculty as a regular class, in which eligible and interested students start work on their honors projects, developing the projects, finding advisors etc. Honors thesis writers will be admitted to the (full year) honors program on the basis of GPA eligibility and upon the presentation of a thesis project proposal. The proposal need not be polished, but submitting some proposal is required as an indication of interest and commitment. The presumption is that all students who enroll in this class will do an honors project, but at the end of fall term, if either the students themselves or the professor teaching the class believe they do not have a viable project, they can split the expected sequence and receive a final grade upon submitting an extended lit review or a similar piece of work deemed acceptable by the seminar professor. The faculty member running this seminar will help students to find an advisor who can advise the thesis in the spring.
Spring: The department will offer a 4-unit honors seminar (GWS H195B) for all thesis writers. In this class, thesis writers will meet weekly with each other; this meeting will be primarily student-run, but facilitated and supported by the GWS department Chair. Students will enroll in this as a regular class, but the primary thesis writing work in spring will be independent, as thesis writers work individually with advisors to complete their theses.
- To receive honors in GWS, the student must receive a minimum of an A- in GWS H195A and H195B. Honors levels (honors, high honors, or highest honors) will be awarded at the discretion of the GWS chair convening GWS H195B, in consultation with honors thesis writers’ advisors.
- Funding: Honors thesis writers are eligible to apply to GWS for up to $300 to fund thesis research. Applications should include a 1-2-page description of the activities to be funded and a budget and will be accepted on a rolling basis.
Student Funding Opportunities and Awards (link)
Student Awards
2024 GWS Departmental Citation: Hilal Aqra
2024 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Cynthia Salazar
2024 Honor’s Thesis Prize: Sierra Barter
2024 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Qianlin Wang
2023 GWS Departmental Citation: Grace Kowalevsky
2023 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Celia Serrato
2023 Honor’s Thesis Prize: Yaas Farzanefar
2023 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Crystal Htwe and Jenny Lee
2022 GWS Departmental Citation: Jude Strzemp
2022 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Tessa Stapp
2022 Honor’s Thesis Prize: Allyza Quintanilla
2022 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Nathalie Grogan and Angel Valdez Ordonez
2021 GWS Departmental Citation: Shayna Mabanag
2021 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Anthony Ayala, Sofia Cruz, Tasmia Hussain, Ana Rodriguez, and Claire Sonne
2021 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Aurin Roy
2020 GWS Departmental Citation: Kajol Gupta
2020 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Alexander Gonzalez
2020 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Eleanor McSpirit and Eleanor Skladman
2019 GWS Departmental Citation: Pan Narez
2019 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Madeline Aragon
2019 Honor’s Thesis Prize: Edie Sussman
2018 GWS Departmental Citation: Camilah Hamideh
2018 GWS Excellence in Action Award: Istifaa Ahmed
2018 Honor’s Thesis Prize: Juli Adhikari and Annika Anderson
2018 David Getman Memorial Award in Global Women’s Studies: Midori Chen