Gender Studies Minor

The Gender Studies Minor is open to all majors. Gender Studies is a multidisciplinary field dedicated to studying the historical, cultural, literary, and societal role of women and gender in global cultures. Part of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (FHSS), the Gender Studies minor encourages you to engage in critical thought, challenge stereotypes, and contribute to social change and an understanding of social justice and personal wholeness. TWU’s Gender studies minor has strengths in areas such as women’s and gender history; gender, literature, and literary theory; gender and globalization; gender and international studies; and gender and religion.

The minor is recommended for all students wishing to explore issues related to gender, as it intersects with race, ethnicity, class, culture, religion, sexuality, and dis/ability across traditional academic boundaries. The objective of the program is to explore gendered experiences from historical, cultural, and multi-disciplinary perspectives as a part of the Gender Studies Institute initiative. Our program pays particular attention to existing and emerging gender-based debates in relation to the Christian faith as is evident in our Program Learning Outcomes:

  1. critically study and understand current thought on gender relations in a variety of fields;
  2. analyze issues of gender, including from Christian perspectives;
  3. apply a sophisticated gender awareness in life and career.

Requirements

The minor requires 24 semester hours with a minimum of 12 semester hours at the 300 or 400 level, and no more than 12 semester hours from any one discipline.

All the courses in the minor contain at least 50 percent Gender Studies content.

For a full course listing, visit twu.ca/multidisciplinary-programs or email robynne.healey@twu.ca

Program

Gender issues cross the boundaries of many academic disciplines, including Education, English, History, Linguistics and Communication, Philosophy, Psychology, Religious Studies, and Sociology. In this way, the Gender Studies minor course list represents its multi-disciplinary focus, specifically its objectives of studying and understanding current thought of gender relations in and through a variety of fields, and analyzing a wide variety of gender issues in an assortment of contexts for the purpose of applying a sophisticated gender awareness in both one’s personal life and career.

Upon the completion of the Gender Studies minor, students will be able to:

  • engage critically current thought on gender relations in a variety of fields;
  • apply sophisticated gender awareness in both academic and non-academic contexts; and
  • analyze issues of gender from a range of ideological perspectives and textual frameworks, paying particular attention to the distinct way in which Christian perspectives inform and contribute to the field of Gender Studies

This multidisciplinary minor will be applicable to the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Business Administration, and Bachelor of Human Kinetics degree programs.

Potential Careers

Many employers are looking for people with a strong understanding of diversity and equity who are skilled in working with diverse groups of people. Gender studies students gain strong critical thinking skills and understanding of complex concepts, confidence in oral presentations, public speaking, and group facilitation, persuasive writing skills, and robust research skills, making gender studies minor graduates an asset to any workplace.

Gender studies graduates work in various sectors of the job market including government, education, health, law, social services, arts, communications and media, marketing and non-profit and social justice organizations.

Students with knowledge of gender studies can find careers in:

  • Social services
  • Communications
  • Counselling
  • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work
  • Education
  • Family services
  • Government
  • Health professions
  • Human Resources
  • Human Rights organizations
  • Journalism
  • Missions
  • Non-profit organizations