Objectives
The mission of Women’s and Gender 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 and Gender Studies invites students to participate in a vibrant interdisciplinary program of study that places women at the center of traditional disciplines. It encourages the critical examination of academic fields such as the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and the arts, as well as the gendered assumptions that underwrite them. Further, Women’s and Gender 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 and Gender 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 and Gender 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.
Major Requirements
Course List
Code |
Title |
Semester Hours |
WGST 1000 | Gender and Social Movements | 4 |
WGST 1100 | Gender, Race, and Sexuality in Contemporary Society | 4 |
| |
| Women in Global Communities | |
| Women's Bodies, Health, and Sexuality | |
| Introduction to LGBT Studies | |
| 8 |
WGST 4000 | Feminist Theories | 4 |
or WGST 4001 | Queer Theories |
WGST 3100 | Feminist & Queer Research Methods | 4 |
WGST 4900 | Senior Seminar in Women's and Gender Studies | 4 |
| 12 |
1 | 8 |
| Gender, Race, and Environmental Justice | |
| Gender, Race, and the Graphic Novel | |
| Literature by Women of Color | |
| Gender and Urban Geographies | |
| Gender, Race, and Disability | |
| Sex, Trade, Trafficking | |
| Queer Migration and Diaspora | |
WGST 4500 | Feminisms in Action | 4 |
| 4 |
| 16 |
Total Semester Hours | 36 |
Women’s and Gender Studies majors should have a minimum of a C (2.0) in all Women’s and Gender Studies classes.
Please note that cross-listed courses may have departmental prerequisites; consult departments for details.
Women’s and Gender Studies Model Four-Year Plan
The normal course load is 16 semester hours (4 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.
Plan of Study Grid
First Year |
Fall |
WGST 1000 |
Gender and Social Movements |
4 |
FFYS 1000 |
First Year Seminar |
4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 14-16 |
Spring |
WGST 1100 |
Gender, Race, and Sexuality in Contemporary Society |
4 |
RHET 1000 |
Rhetorical Arts |
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 13-16 |
Sophomore Year |
Fall |
|
|
|
Women in Global Communities |
|
|
Women's Bodies, Health, and Sexuality |
|
|
Introduction to LGBT Studies |
|
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 6-8 |
Spring |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 12-16 |
Junior Year |
Fall |
|
4 |
|
4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 14-16 |
Spring |
|
4 |
|
Sex, Trade, Trafficking |
|
|
|
|
4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 14-16 |
Senior Year |
Fall |
WGST 3100 |
Feminist & Queer Research Methods |
4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 13-16 |
Spring |
WGST 4900 |
Senior Seminar in Women's and Gender Studies |
4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
|
3-4 |
| Semester Hours | 13-16 |
| Minimum Semester Hours | 99-120 |