/College of Arts and Sciences
Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

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Major Specializations

 

Major Specializations Overview

 

As a WGSS Major you  have the option of choosing a specializations that focuses on Public Health or Social Change. These specializations are not in addition to your current major requirements but would overlap them. 

Requirements and Application

  • 18 credits of coursework / 6 courses
  • No more than 3 of the 18 credits may be lower-division (100-200 level courses)
  • All A through F graded courses must be passed with a C or higher

  • 12 Credits within your Major Electives
  • 3 Credits in a Focused Studies Course (WST 399)
  • 3 Credit Approved Internship
  • Other requirement substitutions would need to be approved by the Undergraduate Program Director

It is recommended to speak with the Undergraduate Program Director (lisa.diedrich@stonybrook.edu) so they can discuss the specialization prior to any enrollment decisions. 

 

Gender, Sexuality, and Public Health 

 

Students choosing to pursue the specialization in Gender, Sexuality, and Public health receive additional preparation for a career in public health. Depending on the student’s choice of courses, this specialization can be useful for students planning careers in midwifery, medicine, nursing, or counseling and education related to sexuality and/or reproduction.

Elective Courses for Gender, Sexuality, and Public Health 

  • This is not an exhaustive list and courses can always be approved by the Undergraduate Program Director
  • WST 111: Introduction to Queer Studies in the Humanities 3 credits
  • WST 112: Introduction to Queer Studies in the Social Sciences 3 credits
  • WST 391: Special Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies in the Humanities 3 credits
  • WST 392: Special Topics in Women and Science 3 credits (see department for approved topics)
  • WST 394: Special Topics in Medicine, Reproduction, and Gender 3 credits (see department for approved topics)
  • WST 399: Topics in Gender and Sexuality (see department for approved topics)
  • WST 401: Seminar in Women’s and Gender Studies 3 credits (see department for approved topics)
  • WST 340: Sociology of Human Reproduction 3 credits
  • SOC 340: Sociology of Human Reproduction 3 credits
  • WST 381: AIDS, Race, and Gender in the Black Community 3 credits
  • AFS 381: AIDS, Race, and Gender in the Black Community 3 credits
  • HIS 374: Surveillance State: A History of U.S. Domestic Spying 3 credits
  • WST 374: Historical Perspectives on Gender Orientation 3 credits
  • HIS 394: AIDS and Social History
  • PSY 349: Special Topics in Social Psychology 3 credits

 

Specialization in Gender and Social Change

 

Students choosing to pursue the specialization in Gender and Social Change receive additional preparation for a career in social change creating professions, such as law, social work, public policy, or the media. Depending on the student’s choice of courses, this specialization can be useful for students planning careers in civil rights work, community organizing, work with abused women and children, politics, or visual media, to give only a few examples.

Elective Courses for Gender and Social Change

  • This is not an exhaustive list and courses can always be approved by the Undergraduate Program Director
  • WST 310: Contemporary Feminist Issues 3 credits
  • WST 377: Psychology of Women 3 credits
  • PSY 347: Psychology of Women 3 credits
  • WST 391: Special Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies in the Humanities 3 credits
  • WST 392: Special Topics in Women and Science 3 credits
  • WST 394: Special Topics in Medicine, Reproduction, and Gender 3 credits
  • WST 395: Topics in Global Feminism 3 credits
  • WST 396: Special Topics in the History of American Women 3 credits
  • WST 397: Social Sciences Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies 3 credits
  • WST 398: Topics in Gender, Race, and Ethnicity 3 credits
  • WST 247: Sociology of Gender 3 credits
  • SOC 247: Sociology of Gender 3 credits
  • LHD 301: Human Sexual and Gender Development Issues
  • LHD 401: Advanced Seminar in Human Sexual and Gender Development
  • WST 247: Sociology of Gender Credits: 3 credits
  • SOC 247: Sociology of Gender Credits: 3 credits
  • WST 330: Gender Issues in the Law 3 credits
  • POL 330: Gender Issues in the Law 3 credits
  • WST 347: Women and Politics 3 credits
  • POL 347: Women and Politics 3 credits
  • WST 340: Sociology of Human Reproduction 3 credits
  • SOC 340: Sociology of Human Reproduction 3 credits
  • WST 350: Black Women and Social Change: A Cross-Cultural Perspective 3 credits
  • AFS 350: Black Women and Social Change: A Cross-Cultural Perspective 3 credits
  • WST 371: Gender and Work 3 credits
  • SOC 371: Gender and Work 3 credits
  • AAS 392: Social Science Topics in Asian and Asian American Studies 3 credits
  • AFS 345: Culture and Gender: Women in Africa and the Caribbean 3 credits
  • CCS 401: Senior Seminar in Cinema & Cultural Studies 3 credits
  • CFS 308: Violence in the Family
  • HIS 300: Topics in Global History 3 credits
  • SOC 390: Special Topics 3 credits (see department for approved topics)