Ph.D. in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
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Program Overview
Ph.D. Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. program in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies provides an interdisciplinary foundation for scholarship, combining coursework, teaching experience, and independent research. Students complement seminar-style courses in WGSS with additional electives of their choice. With careful planning, the Ph.D. may be completed in five years.
Course Requirements
- WGSS Core Courses (12 credit hours)
- WGSS 800: History of Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies (3)
- WGSS 801: Feminist Theory (3)
- WGSS 802: Feminist Methods (3)
- WGSS 803: Feminist Pedagogy (1.5)
- WGSS 804: Topics in Professional Development (1.5)
- WGSS Elective Courses (15 credit hours) Students must take a total of 15 credit hours of graduate-level courses within WGSS.
- Outside Coursework (18 credit hours)
Students are permitted and encouraged to take coursework in departments other than WGSS up to 18 credit hours.
- Theory course (3)
- Methods course (3)
- Four elective courses (12) Students often take coursework in: African & African American Studies, American Studies, Anthropology, English, Film & Media Studies, History, History of Art, Indigenous Studies, Museum Studies, Political Science, Psychology, Public Administration, Sociology, & Theatre.
Qualifying Exam
Students will take a qualifying examination (master’s exam) once they have passed or registered for 30 hours of coursework (typically in the fourth semester of the program). The qualifying exam consists of questions related to the content of WGSS 800, WGSS 801, and WGSS 802. Students must pass this exam to earn an MA.
PHD Oral Comprehensive Examination
After completing all course requirements listed above, students will take an oral comprehensive exam. The exam consists of three annotated bibliographies, an oral defense, and a defense of the dissertation prospectus.
Dissertation
The dissertation must be an original work of research that advances the interdisciplinary field of Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. The student must submit a brief prospectus of the dissertation project, including a detailed plan of work. All members of the dissertation committee must endorse the prospectus in order for the project to go forward. Upon completion of the dissertation research, the student must defend the dissertation before all committee members in the “final oral examination,” or dissertation defense. The student satisfies the dissertation requirement with a majority vote of “satisfactory” by the dissertation committee. The committee may also recommend the student for Honors, which is a designation conferred by the department at graduation.