Objectives

The mission of Women’s Studies at Loyola Marymount University is to engage students in a critical understanding of the complex ways gender shapes the world around them, particularly in relation to race, sexuality, class, and other social factors. Women’s Studies invites all students to participate in a vibrant interdisciplinary program of study that places women at the center of traditional disciplines in which they have been historically marginalized. It encourages the critical examination of academic fields such as the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and the arts, together with the gendered assumptions that underwrite them. Further, Women’s Studies proposes not only that we ask different questions of academic disciplines from the perspective of women, but also that we transform those fields and ways of knowing through the innovative theoretical tools and new methodologies that have been developed by feminist scholars and activists over the past thirty years. As a department committed to transformation through education, the mission of Women’s Studies is to call attention to the androcentric nature of society, propose alternatives and strategies that honor women’s human rights, and promote a vision of society where gender hierarchy, as well as other forms of social injustice, are eliminated. Grounded in feminist pedagogy, Women’s Studies courses provide students with a broad understanding of the asymmetry of gender relations within diverse historical and cultural contexts. Our mission is to foster a vigorous intellectual environment where students can develop their analytical thinking skills and conceptual tools for social change.

Women’s Studies Student Learning Outcomes

After completing their program in Women’s Studies, students will have:

• Acquired a critical understanding of the complex ways gender shapes the world, particularly in relation to race, sexuality, class, and other social factors
• Acquired a strong commitment to social justice for women of all ethnicities
• Learned new methodologies and theoretical tools
• Learned to express themselves well both orally and in writing.

Major Requirements

Women’s Studies Model Four-Year Plan

The normal course load is 15 semester hours (5 classes). By following the model below, a student will complete all lower division core requirements by the end of the sophomore year as well as most major prerequisites. Note that core areas are suggested to provide a distribution of various disciplines every semester. Please be flexible implementing these suggestions, given your own interests and course availability. In four years, this plan meets all common graduation requirements.