Since 1987 in the United States, March has been celebrated as Women’s History Month, recognizing women’s historical contributions that shape the world today.

On the Duluth, Morris and Twin Cities campuses, University of Minnesota students can explore this and so much more with a degree in women, gender and sexuality studies (GWSS). More specifically, they’ll deepen their understanding of how gender and sexuality shape society, culture, politics and history.

More than women's studies

Contrary to a stereotype, a GWSS degree doesn’t solely focus on women.

"GWSS has evolved from being solely a women's studies major to understanding and analyzing critically how systems work that create the current events we are in right now,” says Kari Smalkoski, director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies on the Twin Cities campus, which in 1973, was first in the nation to offer a major in women’s studies.

Depending on the campus, students may take classes such as Pop Culture Women; Masculinities in the Margins: Representations of Women's Anger from Medea and Medusa to the MeToo Movement; Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Social Movements in the United States; and Gender, Globalization and Food.

"Many GWSS majors double major because they find the coursework invaluable together to achieve their goals as students and alumni,” says Smalkoski.

Students pursuing another major also find GWSS classes valuable.

“A popular course of ours is Blood, Bodies, and Science — which covers the intersections of science and technology with the politics of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and disability — and a lot of students who take it are actually STEM majors,” says Smalkoski. "We often get STEM majors who want to minor in GWSS because GWSS classes help them think critically about STEM."

A plethora of potential professions

Another misperception that comes with a GWSS degree is that students will have a hard time finding a job after graduation.

“Almost all of our GWSS alumni are employed shortly after graduation and/or are accepted into graduate/professional programs within two years,” explains Smalkoski.

“Since the degree is interdisciplinary, intersectional and transnational, students are equipped with skills such as critical thinking, empathy, multiple perspectives, lobbying, debating, public speaking, collaboration and questioning the world that is given to us, among others,” says Njoki Kamau, associate professor in the Department of Studies in Justice, Culture, & Social Change on the Duluth campus.

These valuable skills demonstrate that GWSS faculty are committed to preparing students to be fully engaged in the world, a core element of the University’s strategic roadmap, especially in the critical jobs they fill in society.

“Our recent graduates are in these really vital occupations that are driven by the same kinds of concerns that cause them to be in GWSS in the first place,” says Emily Bruce, associate professor in the Division of Social Sciences on the Morris campus. “They become nurses, victim advocates, lawyers, social workers, teachers, therapists, journalists and more.”

Above all, by providing a space for critical inquiry and historical connection, the GWSS departments and programs across three University campuses empower students to not only understand the complexities of the past, but to actively lead and transform the future.

“Our aim is to graduate students who appreciate multiple perspectives, are engaged in their communities, are globally ready and have a passion for justice in theory and practice,” says Kamau.