Women's Studies

8th floor, Anderson Hall
www.temple.edu/womenstu

Joyce Joyce, Chair
811 Anderson Hall
215-204-1644
jjoyce@temple.edu

Gayle Schooley, Administrator
215-204-7210
gaylehs@temple.edu

Stephanie Morawski, Coordinator
814 Anderson Hall
215-204-6954
smorawski@temple.edu

Women's Studies offers a cohesive framework of inquiry for the examination of women, gender, and sexuality in the U.S. and around the world, as they relate to other social categories, such as race, class, disability, nationality, and ethnicity.  As an interdisciplinary field, Women's Studies takes into account social, historical, and cultural variables in its study of women's material and cultural experiences as a social group; the examination of the workings of gender as an analytical category, identity, and social force; and the social, political, and cultural functioning of sexuality.  Women's Studies also seeks to transform traditional fields of study by incorporating new methodologies, data, theories, and frameworks developed by feminist scholars.

Temple University's Women's Studies Program is part of the College of Liberal Arts.  It offers an undergraduate major and minor, as well as a certificate for students outside the College of Liberal Arts.  In preparation for graduate school, Women's Studies majors have the opportunity to graduate with distinction in the major after completing an honors thesis.

The Women's Studies Program offers students the opportunity to study women, gender, and sexuality through an interdisciplinary curriculum taught by faculty from various departments across the university.  Students learn to apply the methods and theories of social scientists, historians, philosophers, literary critics, etc., to the study of women's experiences, as well as gender and sexual identities.  They explore a growing body of feminist theories that revise our understanding of gender, society, and culture.  We encourage students not only to understand intellectually the importance of class, race, sexuality, physical ability, and gender to people's lives but also to learn actively through fieldwork (community internship).  After graduation, Women's Studies students enter professional schools in law, medicine and business; take graduate degrees in the humanities and social sciences; and pursue careers in health, counseling, teaching, and public advocacy.

Summary of Degree Requirements

1. University Requirements

• Mathematics 0701 (4 s.h.) and/or English 0701 (4 s.h.), if required by placement testing.
• All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses as part of the major. See below for a list of the specific courses required for your major.
• Students must complete requirements of the General Education (GenEd) Program. See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for more details.

2. College of Liberal Arts Requirements

• Completion of a minimum of 123 credits, including: 90 credits in CLA/CST courses, 45 credits of which must be at the upper level (numbered 2000-4999). For Social Science majors, 6 upper level credits must be taken in the Humanities Departments (English, French, German, Greek and Roman Classics, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese (only available at our Japan campus), Philosophy, Religion, Russian, and Spanish), Art History, or any department in the College of Science and Technology.
• A minimum GPA of 2.0, cumulatively, in CLA/CST coursework, and in the major.
• Only courses in which a student receives a grade of at least C- can satisfy GenEd, major, minor, or CLA Foreign Language and Global Studies requirements.

3. Foreign Language/Global Studies Requirements

1) All students must complete the second level of a foreign language;

2) All students must complete at least one course from the GenEd Global/World Society category; and

3) All students must complete one of the following options:

• Third level of a foreign language;
• Demonstrated proficiency in a foreign language;
• A second General Education Global/World Society course;
• Study Abroad at an approved program; or
• Take one Global Studies course from the list on the CLA College Graduation Requirements page.

4. Major Requirements (36 s.h.)

• Specifically Required courses:
  • Women's Studies 1301
  • Women's Studies 4389
  • Women's Studies 4396
• Other Requirements:
  • One Women's Studies 1000-level course
• Electives in Major
  • Eight Women's Studies electives, of which at least six must be upper-level, and one must be Writing Intensive

5. General electives vary according to a student's individual program of study. Consult your academic advisor for more information.

Major Requirements

*Majors will be permitted to take two of these eight courses outside Women's Studies (courses that are not cross listed) with the written permission of the advising coordinator. These courses must support the student's academic or professional growth in conjunction with the major (e.g. a research methods course in another discipline for which the student will write on a subject related to gender or courses taken in a study abroad program).

**The final requirement for the major is a two-course sequence.  This sequence should be taken during the major's last three semesters of enrollment. Students will select a field assignment (internship) with the assistance of the advising coordinator. This sequence is designed for students to learn how to write a research paper.

Distinction in Major

Women's Studies students may graduate with a distinction in the major if they have a GPA of 3.5 or better in the major, a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, and successfully complete an honors thesis (minimum 3 credits) under the supervision of a faculty member from Women's Studies.

Minor Requirements

Certificate in Women's Studies

Designed for students whose major is outside the College of Liberal Arts who want to pursue a Women's Studies-oriented career.

Suggested Semester-by-Semester Plan