Gender Studies
Gender Studies is a dynamic interdisciplinary field of academic study and research. Drawing on continuing scholarly developments in the Natural and Social Sciences and in the Humanities, Gender Studies invites us to consider and to question the assumptions and values that shape our individual self-image and our interactions with others in society. Some students approach Gender Studies from the angle of Environmental Studies, others with the cross-cultural concerns of anthropology, or with an interest in how gender inflects the field of ethics; what joins them in conversation is a will to examine how human understandings of gender and sexual identity have changed over time and how they continue to shape our experience of the world. Broadly defined at New College, Gender Studies encompasses work that could also be called women’s studies, masculinity studies, lesbian and gay studies, queer studies, or feminist studies; it also intersects with the issues raised in the various fields of ethnic studies.
Here at New College, students combine their work in Gender Studies with work in another established discipline, completing what we call a "joint disciplinary" Area of Concentration. Students thus enhance their interdisciplinary work in Gender Studies with a solid grounding in a complementary discipline (such as biology, literature, or sociology). In addition to the requirements, students are encouraged to take foundational courses in several different disciplines, so that they can build on that grounding as they develop their own Gender Studies curriculum in consultation with their sponsors. Much Gender Studies course work takes the form of group Tutorials or Independent Research Projects. Internships and activist and service-learning opportunities are strongly encouraged. Students interested in considering a Gender Studies Area of Concentration should download the “Gender Studies Worksheet” early in their academic career and use it to track their progress toward fulfilling the requirements in consultation with an affiliated faculty member.
