Women's and Gender Studies

Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Michigan Dearborn is a vibrant interdisciplinary community of faculty, students and alumni dedicated to excellence in scholarship, teaching, learning and activism.

Through this major, you will examine the ways that gender — through its connection with other forms of power such as race, class, sexuality, and nationality — shapes lives, bodies, institutions, and worlds. The community-building focus of the program will contribute to both your intellectual growth and post-graduate employment opportunities in today’s ever-changing labor market. Women’s and Gender Studies majors work in a variety of fields, including business and industry, education, health care, politics, law, and social work.

What Will I Learn?

Degree requirements and coursework for the WGST major and minor

Dearborn Discovery Core requirements fulfilled by taking WGST courses

Women's and Gender Studies program goals:

  • Analyze the ways gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, nationality, and class intersect to construct our social, cultural, and lived experiences.
  • Apply the fundamental concepts, theories, and methods of women’s and gender studies scholarship, including the ways they challenge and/or enrich prevailing disciplinary approaches.
  • Gain skills to recognize and understand the relationship between theory and practice as it relates to social and personal change.

Make the Most of Your Major

Get Involved

Get Real World Experience

Plan for Life After Graduation

A Women’s and Gender Studies degree can be applied to a multitude of careers. It signals to employers that you are well-rounded, having studied across the disciplines instead of in one narrow skill area. Career Services offers assistance with job searching, resumes, interviews, and graduate school applications.

We recommend the book Transforming Scholarship for students who are thinking about how to frame and apply their WGST degree.

Learn About Our Faculty

Women’s and Gender Studies faculty teach and do research in diverse fields. Click the link below to read more about us and our work.

Other Programs Under the WGST Umbrella

Scholarships related to WGST and LGBTQ+ Studies (don’t miss out on these!)