Minors

Minor in Women and Gender Studies

The minor in Disabilities Studies provides students with fifteen units from courses in a wide range of disciplines that are connected to each other through their attention to disabilities. Students will acquire knowledge about critical theories, historical and contemporary events, and accessible principles. They will apply their knowledge to identify and resist structural and interpersonal ableism, while simultaneously contributing to a more just and inclusive society.

A minor in Women and Gender Studies can be useful in conjunction with many majors (e.g. Journalism, Human Sexuality, Counseling, Anthropology, Health Education, Nursing, Sociology).

  1. Students will be able to define and describe contesting theories, methods, histories, and representations of women, gender, and feminism.
  2. Students will identify the politics of knowledge production across multiple disciplines in relation to Women and Gender Studies.
  3. Students will be able to examine women and gender in relation of race, class, sexuality, colonialism, multiculturalism, and/or globalization.
  4. Students will be able to conceptualize and analyze gender and feminism in a transnational framework and from an interdisciplinary perspective, using a range of methodological tools while also demonstrating writing proficiency.

    Students wishing to declare Women and Gender Studies as their minor need to: 

    It is recommended that students also check in with the WGS advisor once per semester for academic advising.

    A minimum of 6 upper-division units are required to complete the minor.

    All coursework used to satisfy the requirements of the minor must be completed with a minimum grade point average of 2.0.

    Core (6 Units)

    Select One (3)

    • WGS 300GW: Gender, Race, and Nation 
    • WGS 200: Introduction to Women and Gender Studies 
    • WGS 210: Introduction to Feminism and the State 
    • WGS 220: Introduction to Feminist Disability Studies 
    • WGS 280: Introduction to Feminist Science Studies 

    WGS 300GW: Gender, Race, and Nation (3)

    Electives (9 units)

    Select one course from any three of the following areas for a total of three courses. Students may not select multiple courses in the same area.

    Praxis

    • WGS 105: Feminism and Self-Care: Perspectives and Practices (1)
    • WGS 303: Women as Creative Agents (3)
    • WGS 305: Women and Gender Studies Lecture Series (3)
    • WGS 400: That's Not What I Said: Feminism, Oral History, and Research Methods in Women and Gender Studies (3)
    • WGS 602: Feminist Cultural Activism (3)
    • WGS 698: Feminist Praxis and the Non-Profit Industrial Complex (3)

    Body Politics  

    • WGS 554: Gender and Global Migration (3)
    • WGS 563: Gender, Sexuality, and the Politics of Disability (3)
    • WGS 591: Critical Approaches to Transgender Health, Science, and Medicine (3)
    • WGS 593: Gender, Health, and the Environment (3)
    • WGS 612: Queer Theories (3)

    Power and Violence

    • WGS 160: Gender, Politics, and Citizenship (3)
    • WGS 511: Women and Violence (3)
    • WGS 513: Gender, War, and Militarism (3)
    • WGS 514: Women and the Prison Industrial Complex (3)
    • WGS 536: Gender, Globalization, and Women's Human Rights (3)

    Culture, Media, and Art

    • WGS 304: Gender and Popular Culture (3)
    • WGS 542: Gender and Popular Music (3)
    • WGS/SXS 551: Queer Literatures and Media (3)
    • WGS 580: Feminism and the Speculative: Another World is Possible (3)

    Social Movements

    • WGS 515: Gender, Race, and Reproductive Justice (3)
    • WGS 541: Women Writers and Social Change (3)
    • WGS 561: Women, Ethnicity, and Social Movements (3)
    • WGS 562: History of African American Women (3)
    • WGS 565: Muslim Feminisms (3)
    • WGS 578: Women, Globalization, and Ecology (3)
    • WGS 621: Feminist Theories (3)

    Minor in Disability Studies

    The minor in Disabilities Studies provides students with twelve units from courses in a wide range of disciplines that are connected to each other through their attention to disabilities. Students will acquire knowledge about critical theories, historical and contemporary events, and accessible principles. They will apply their knowledge to identify and resist structural and interpersonal ableism, while simultaneously contributing to a more just and inclusive society.

    Disability intersects with all aspects of life, and that translates into all academic fields: architecture, technology, engineering, economics, art, recreation, history, literature, philosophy, social work, public health, intersections with race, gender, nation, language, and many others.  The Minor in Disability Studies will produce mindful learners who can increase accessibility for everyone, disabled and non, while also uprooting the institutions and ideologies that disempower disabled people. Students in the minor identify how ableism is entrenched within American society, and at the same time, they have opportunities to celebrate disabled joy and community while promoting social justice.

    Disability intersects with all aspects of life, and that translates into all academic fields: architecture, technology, engineering, economics, art, recreation, history, literature, philosophy, social work, public health, intersections with race, gender, nation, language, and many others.

    The Minor in Disability Studies will produce mindful learners who can increase accessibility for everyone, disabled and non, while also uprooting the institutions and ideologies that disempower disabled people. Students in the minor identify how ableism is entrenched within American society, and at the same time, they have opportunities to celebrate disabled joy and community while promoting social justice.

    Program Learning Outcomes

    • Use critical theories in the history of disabilities and the field of Disabilities Studies to identify and resist ableism.
    • Learn principles of accessibility and other skills to build leadership, advocacy, and social engagement in creating a more just and inclusive society.
    • Examine ways in which systems inhibit and promote full participation of people with disabilities.
    • Gain knowledge and skills necessary to promote change among individuals, communities, and organizations.

    The minor require 12 units, with a minimum of 6 upper-division units are required to complete the minor.

    All coursework used to satisfy the requirements of the minor must be completed with a minimum grade point average of 2.0.

    Lower-Division Courses (6 units)

    • Select Two:

      • ENG 256: Disability and Literature (3 units)
      • RRS 220: Race and Dis/Ability (3 units)
      • WGS 220: Introduction to Feminist Disability Studies (3 units)

    Upper-Division Courses (6 units)

    • Select Two:

      • CMX 504: From Superman to the Supercrip: Comics and Disability (3 units)
      • HIST 484: Disability and Culture in the U.S. (3 units)
      • KIN 537: Movement for Individuals with Severe Disabilities (3 units)
      • PHIL 383: Ethics in Medicine (3 units)
      • RPT 410: Therapeutic and Inclusive Recreation (3 units)
      • SPED 630: Inclusive Education: Empowerment and Equity in Diverse Schools (3 units)
      • SPED 662: Education of Deaf/Hard of Hearing Children (3 units)
      • SPED 675: Working with Families of Young Children with Disabilities (3 units)
      • WGS 563: Gender, Sexuality, and the Politics of Disability (3 units)

    Minor in Feminist Health Justice

    The 15-unit Minor in Feminist Health Justice is a complement to a variety of campus undergraduate majors such as public health, women & gender studies, sexuality studies, nursing, ethnic studies, biology, geography, social work, political science, counseling, psychology, or other health sciences, social sciences or policy-driven majors.

    Within the Minor in Feminist Health Justice, the program offers three areas of focus:

    1. Social determinants feminist theory and implications for health
    2. Health equity and social justice praxis
    3. Politics and policy – analysis, and strategies for changing policies relevant to health, gender, and equity.

    Students take a core course in each of these areas, then choose two electives. Electives from related fields will be considered on advisement as related to student's needs and interests. Advisor approval is required for courses not listed below.

    All coursework used to satisfy the requirements of the minor must be completed with a minimum grade point average of 2.0.

    Program Learning Outcomes

    • Analyze the effects of power inequities by engaging and synthesizing feminist theory and theories of health and health equity.
    • Identify and analyze how oppression and marginalization take shape within health outcomes, health care organizations, and public health, and how social movements approach and confront these dynamics.
    • Discuss the implications of gender, race, sexuality, ability, and other forms of difference to public health policy and praxis.
    • Demonstrate the ability to integrate knowledge about power and social difference to research projects across disciplines.

    The minor require 15 units, with a minimum of 6 upper-division units are required to complete the minor.

    All coursework used to satisfy the requirements of the minor must be completed with a minimum grade point average of 2.0.

    Core Courses (9 units)

    Select one course from each category.

    Social Determinants and Feminist Theories

    Class Number Title Units
    PH 210 Personal and Social Determinants of Health 3
    WGS 200 Introduction to Women and Gender Studies 3
    WGS 220 Introduction to Feminist Disability Studies 3
    WGS 280 Introduction to Feminist Science Studies 3

    Health Equity and Social Justice

    Class Number Title Units
    ETHS 500 Introduction to Race, Ethnicity, and Health 3
    PH 414 Women's Health 3
    PH 520 Structural Oppression and Social Foundations of Health 3
    WGS 593 Gender, Health, and the Environment 3

    Politics and Policy

    Class Number Title Units
    PH 450 Public Health Policy 3
    RRS 571 Women, Race, and Class 3
    WGS 511 Women and Violence 3
    WGS 515 Gender, Race, and Reproductive Justice 3

    Electives (6 units)

    Select two courses in consultation with an advisor. Courses listed above not used to fulfill core requirements can be used as electives.

    Class Number Title Units
    AA S 591 Asian American Community Health Issues 3
    AFRS 370 Health, Medicine, and Nutrition in the Black Community 3
    AIS/WGS 420 Native Genders and Feminism 3
    GEOG/PH 434 Geographies of Health and Health Care 3
    LTNS 210 Latina/o/x Health Care Perspectives 3
    LTNS 500 Latina/o Community Mental Health 3
    PH 210 Personal and Social Determinants of Health 3
    PH 410 Public Health Systems 3
    PH 520 Structural Oppression and Social Foundations of Health 3
    PHIL 383 Ethics in Medicine 3
    PLSI/SXS/WGS 470 The Politics of Sex and Reproduction 4
    PLSI/USP 480 Introduction to Urban Policy and Analysis 4
    PLSI 614 Seminar: Politics of Abortion in the United States 3
    RRS 304 Decolonize Your Diet: Food Justice and Gendered Labor in Communities of Color 3
    RRS 460/COUN 450/SXS 460 HIV and AIDS Impacts and Resistance Among Communities of Color 3
    SOC 469 Gender and Society 4
    SOC 476 Medical Sociology 3
    SXS/SOC 601 Sexuality, Ethnicity, and Health 3
    USP/LABR/PLSI 570 Urban Health Policy 3
    WGS 300GW Gender, Race, and Nation - GWAR 3
    WGS 514 Women and the Prison Industrial Complex 3
    WGS 578 Feminist Environmental and Climate Justice 3