Undergraduate Concentration in Gender and Sexuality Studies
The Concentration
In Fall 2006 the Gender Studies program merged with the concentration in Sexuality and Society to form the Gender and Sexuality Studies Program.
Gender and Sexuality Studies is an interdisciplinary concentration that examines the construction of gender and sexuality in social, cultural, political, economic, or scientific contexts. Each concentrator will focus on a well-defined topic or question and work closely with a concentration advisor to develop a program that investigates this focus area rigorously and supplements it with foundational courses in the relevant disciplines. Typical areas of focus might include the acculturation of gender, sexuality and race in American politics or activism; the construction of sexual and gendered identities in educational institutions or in various forms of visual media; a contrast between different cultural understandings of sexual identity, a particular national literature and history. Such topics will frequently bring questions of gender and sexuality together; however students may also organize their concentrations to emphasize questions specifically related to gender or to sexuality if they wish. Introductory and methodology courses in the disciplines appropriate to students' focus will help them understand the principles grounding such practices as historical research, literary interpretation, and sociological analysis.
For a list of courses approved to count toward the focus each year, please see the website's course link.
For further information, contact the concentration advisor:
Suzanne Stewart-Steinberg
401-863-1561
Suzanne_Stewart-Steinberg@brown.edu
Concentration Overview
The concentration consists of 10 courses, 11 for honors concentrators. Requirements:
- GNSS0120: Introduction to Gender and Sexuality Studies
- Four-course focus on some thematic, theoretical or historical aspect of gender and sexuality
- Two introductory or methodology courses in disciplines pertinent to the focus
- One course in gender history, women's history, or history of sexuality.
- One course in feminist theory or theory of sexuality
- One capstone course, which may include
- an appropriate upper-level seminar from another department, to be approved by the concentration advisor
- an independent study with a faculty member; this project may incorporate a community work component, if appropriate to the student's focus
- for honors, a two-semester honors thesis supervised by a faculty member and reader
Honors
Candidates for honors must apply to the program's director in their sixth semester. Honors concentrators fulfill the regular requirements, completing a two-semester thesis as their capstone project.