Why Women’s and Gender Studies?

In 1999, the National Women’s Studies Association described the growing scope of opportunities for women’s studies graduates in their report “Defining Women’s Studies Scholarship.” Following are ways to apply women’s studies theory and scholarship to everyday life and social structure:

  • Developing global or international perspectives that prepare students for both governmental and non-governmental organization work
  • Applying feminist theory to create new models for organization and for processes of dialogue with community and non-profit organizations
  • Working in conjunction with community groups to develop better understandings of the relationship between gender and race structures and law enforcement and the criminal justice system
  • In conjunction with feminist scholars in law, working to develop models for critical race law
  • Bringing feminist theory to social and public policy analysis