Gender Studies

Gender Studies, with its motivating force of women's studies, is just as needed now as it ever was-perhaps in some respects more so-with the increasingly sophisticated and pervasive attempts to persuade the consumer / reader / user that all is equal and, finally, merely a matter of choice. One of the tasks of this major will be to address and redress this notion. It is an area of intense public debate and we seek to equip our students not only to enter into this debate but at some future time perhaps, to lead it.

The major is made up of subjects from the Faculties of Arts, Commerce, Education, Law and Science. It is an interdisciplinary major which recognises that students come from a range of backgrounds and may want to study over a range of areas. There are no core subjects. A number of the subjects in the major deal not only with the impact of being gendered as female, but also with definitions of masculinity and with queer theory, an area of study more commonly associated with sexuality than gender.

Major Study

A major in Gender Studies consists of at least 54 credit points chosen from the following range of subjects (at least 24 credit points must be at 300 level). Students will choose at least five subjects from the list of Specialist Electives, and no more than two from the list of General Electives. Normal pre-requisites apply for the following subjects unless these are waived by the Head of Unit. This applies, in particular, to LAW subjects, for which LAW100 Law in Society is a necessary pre-requisite and will not be waived. Please note: not all subjects will be available in any one year.

Study Program