Gender Studies

The minor Gender Studies offers you a critical perspective on social, cultural and power relations within contemporary society. We do so by providing essential gender studies concepts and methodologies as employed in the Humanities

Summary

“I think of feminism as poetry; we hear histories in words; we reassemble histories by putting them into words.”
- Sara Ahmed, Living a Feminist Life (2017)

Come and join one of the largest gender studies groups in Europe!

Content
Gender studies, a contemporary interdisciplinary field that draws and expands on feminist theory, critically examines ways in which gender, ethnicity/race, sexuality, religion, ability, and class intersect and are constructed within cultural artefacts, political discourse, popular culture, art, literature and digital media. This important minor offers the chance to learn about historical and contemporary feminist movements and about the forces both gender and ethnicity/race currently exert in society.
The minor Gender Studies is also a kernpakket for students TCS and LAS.

Goal
The minor aims to:

• familiarize students with traditions of modern feminist thought and point out issues that are central to feminist theory;
• train students to practice a new, critical way of looking at cultural practices that contest and reconstruct new and old representations and cultural formations;
• provide students with a map of contemporary feminist approaches to issues of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, race and religious practices;
• teach students to mobilize gender and intersectionality as key concepts while looking at various cultural practices in the visual and technological field: film, photography, the Internet, mass media, art, as well as social performances of memory, citizenship and nationalism.

Knowledge and theoretical skills gained equip students with valuable tools for future professions in – for example, yet not limited to – education, campaigning and activism, journalism, NGO’s, policy-making, and the creative & cultural sectors.

Curriculum

The minor Gender Studies consists of 4 compulsory courses (30 EC). The courses include lectures, seminars readings, film and documentary screenings, museum visits, individual and group presentations and assignments include essays. The courses aim to be interactive and students are encouraged to raise questions, promote debate, offer criticisms and contribute to the course contents, particularly given that we cater to students from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds.

Students in the Bachelor Media and Culture and TCS/LAS students following  Hoofdrichting Gender and Postcolonial Studies

If you are a student in the BA Media en cultuur/Media and Culture, or TCS/LAS student following the Hoofdrichting Gender and Postcolonial Studies and you would like to write your thesis in Gender Studies or Postcolonial Studies, you are expected to take the following courses:

• Onderzoeksseminar Gender en Postcolonial Studies VR3V16001 (instead of Onderzoeksseminar Media en Cultuur MC3V14001 / Research Seminar Media and Culture MC3V20001)
• Eindwerkstuk Gender & Postcolonial VR3V16002 (instead of Eindwerkstuk Media en Cultuur ME3V15026 / Bachelor Thesis Media and Culture ME3V20001) 

Preparation

Gender Studies is an advanced level minor. Three out of the four courses are at level 3 and require some previous study in the basic methods of academic research in your own field of study. 

You can prepare for this minor by following one of the following courses.

• Introduction to Gender Studies (VR2V14002)
• Gender, etniciteit en cultuurkritiek (MC2V18001)
• Gender, Ethnicity and Cultural Critique (MC2V19001)

This is recommended, not obligatory, except for TCS/LAS students doing the Hoofdrichting Gender and Postcolonial Studies.

Application and registration

How to register for this minor and its course modules, depends on whether you are a student of Utrecht University or not.

More information

If you wish to know more, or have questions about this minor, please contact the Student Desk Humanities.