Gender & Women's Studies, BALAS

for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Major in Gender & Women's Studies

for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Major in Gender & Women's Studies

A Major Plan of Study Form must be completed and submitted to the LAS Student Affairs Office before the end of the fifth semester (60-75 hours). Please see your advisor.

Departmental distinction: To be eligible for graduation with distinction, a student must have a cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of 3.5 and a 3.5 GPA within the major.

High distinction. To be eligible for graduation with high distinction, a student must have a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5, a GPA of 3.7 within the major, and complete a thesis or project in a 400-level GWS course that is approved by the department.

Advising: The Department of Gender and Women’s Studies provides advising for students to help plan a coherent program of study.

Graduation Requirements

Minimum hours required for graduation: 120 hours.

Minimum hours required major and supporting course work: normally equates to 33 hours. Twelve hours of 300- and 400-level courses in the major must be taken on this campus.

University Requirements

The university and residency requirements can be found in the Student Code (§ 3-801) and in the Academic Catalog.

General Education Requirements

Follows the campus General Education (Gen Ed) requirements. Some Gen Ed requirements may be met by courses required and/or electives in the program.

Composition I4-6
Advanced Composition3
fulfilled by GWS 498
Humanities & the Arts (6 hours)6
Natural Sciences & Technology (6 hours)6
Social & Behavioral Sciences (6 hours)6
Cultural Studies: Non-Western Cultures (1 course)3
Cultural Studies: US Minority Cultures (1 course)3
Cultural Studies: Western/Comparative Cultures (1 course) 3
fulfilled by GWS 201 and GWS 202
Quantitative Reasoning (2 courses, at least one course must be Quantitative Reasoning I)6-10
Language Requirement (Completion of the fourth semester or equivalent of a language other than English, or completion of the third semester in two different languages other than English is required)0-20

Major Requirements

Required Courses
GWS 201Race, Gender & Power3
GWS 202Sexualities3
GWS 498Senior Seminar3
GWS 350Feminist & Gender Theory3
or GWS 370 Queer Theory
Additional Coursework 1
At least 15 additional hours of coursework offered by the Gender & Women’s Studies Department, with no more than 3 hours at the 100 or 200 level. Required courses are offered by the Department of Gender & Women’s Studies and are on an approved list maintained in the department office and with the GWS advisor.15
Area Electives
Two courses in Gender and Women's Studies. No more than one may be counted from the 100 or 200 level. For a list of approved courses contact the GWS department or the GWS advisor.6
Of the 33 hours in the major, students must take at least one course focused on transnational or non-U.S. issues. For a list of approved courses contact the GWS department or the GWS advisor.
Total Hours33
1

Topics courses (GWS 199, GWS 295, GWS 395, GWS 495) may count up to 3 hours toward the additional coursework with consent of the GWS advisor. GWS 390 or GWS 490 may count up to 3 hours toward additional coursework with consent of the GWS advisor.

for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Major in Gender & Women's Studies

Sample Sequence

This sample sequence is intended to be used only as a guide for degree completion. All students should work individually with their academic advisors to decide the actual course selection and sequence that works best for them based on their academic preparation and goals. Enrichment programming such as study abroad, minors, internships, and so on may impact the structure of this four-year plan. Course availability is not guaranteed during the semester indicated in the sample sequence.

Students must fulfill their Language Other Than English requirement by successfully completing a fourth level of a language other than English. For more information, see the corresponding section on the Degree General and Education Requirements page. 

First Year
First SemesterHoursSecond SemesterHours
Free elective course1GWS 2023
GWS 2013General Education course3
Comp. I or General Education course4General Education course or Comp. I3
Language Other Than English (3rd level)4Language Other Than English (4th level)4
GWS course3GWS course3
 15 16
Second Year
First SemesterHoursSecond SemesterHours
General Education course3General Education course3
General Education course3GWS 300-400 level course3
GWS course3GWS 300-400 level area elective course3
GWS area elective course3Free elective course3
Free elective course3Free elective course3
 15 15
Third Year
First SemesterHoursSecond SemesterHours
GWS 350 or 3703General Education course3
GWS 300-400 level course3General Education course3
General Education course3Free elective course3
General Education course3Free elective course3
Free elective course3Free elective course3
 15 15
Fourth Year
First SemesterHoursSecond SemesterHours
GWS 4983General Education course3
Free elective course3Free elective course3
Free elective course3Free elective course3
Free elective course3Free elective course3
Free elective course3Free elective course2
 15 14
Total Hours 120

for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Major in Gender & Women's Studies

  1. Intellectual Reasoning and Knowledge: Students will acquire a level of proficiency in Gender and Women’s Studies, which can include but is not limited to broad and deep knowledge about feminist movements, intersectionality, queer and trans studies, imperialism and coloniality, and feminist and queer theories and methods across academic disciplines and fields. Students will learn that feminisms are both historical movements as well as bodies of critical inquiry, encompassing a wide range of actors and objects of study, including forms of information retrieval and knowledge production.
  2. Critical Inquiry and Creative Literacy: Students will apply feminist and queer theories in developing their own capacities for critical inquiry and creative literacy. Students will also exercise their skills in oral and written communication, expressing new ideas in scholarly compositions and also generating multidisciplinary projects.
  3. Social Awareness and Understanding Power: Students will recognize the gendered dimensions of social, philosophical, aesthetic, cultural, and political claims about national and global movements and events. Students will become familiar with feminist and queer theories and movements that consider together indigeneity, race, religion, nation, disability, gender, and sexuality to understand historical and contemporary formations of power.
  4. Self-Reflexivity and Community Engagement: Students will demonstrate self-reflexivity about their ideas and social and political positions in their classrooms and communities, learning how to build and sustain relationships in striving for both immediate harm reduction and long-term social justice.
  5. Global Consciousness: Students will understand how complex and interdependent forces –environmental, social, cultural, economic, and political— shape a range of possibilities and foreclosures for individuals and populations unevenly across the world, learning to apply indigenous, postcolonial, and transnational feminist and queer critiques to those forces.

for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Major in Gender & Women's Studies

department website: https://www.gws.illinois.edu/
department faculty: Gender & Women's Studies Faculty
email: gws-email@illinois.edu

overview of college admissions & requirements: Liberal Arts & Sciences
college website: https://las.illinois.edu/