Women and men are invited to participate in this interdisciplinary program that studies women, gender relations, and sexuality. Since its inception in the 1970s, women’s studies scholarship has significantly revised every major discipline in the liberal arts curriculum, from history and literature to art and political science. Feminist scholarship has also been the catalyst for new directions in research within other established academic fields such as science and business.

Women’s and Gender Studies courses offer students a rigorous education in feminist theory, diverse gender roles and sexual identities, the history of gender relations, economic and social policies affecting women, and in the creative work of women. Courses offered in the Certificate Program focus on issues of equality between women and men either nationally or globally, with particular emphasis on the U.S.-Mexico border. The Women’s Studies Program understands that knowledge is created both inside and outside the university; therefore, many courses integrate the insights and experiences of community activists, community organizations, and people in the El Paso-Juárez and the greater border region.

Although the Women’s Studies Program was created in 1981, UTEP has offered undergraduate courses in women’s studies since the early 1970s. The Graduate Certificate in Women’s and Gender Studies, created in 2002, is available to both degree-seeking UTEP graduate students and to non-degree-seeking professionals in the surrounding border area. To date, the program offers one interdisciplinary graduate course in women’s studies; other courses applicable for the certificate are cross-listed with other departments and deal with the impact of gender within specific disciplines, such as History, Public Administration, and Sociology, to name a few. Because of its interdisciplinary nature, the certificate complements any field of study or profession, and it fosters the development of gender equality in scholarship and in the workplace.

Admission Requirements

The admission requirements for the graduate certificate are as follows:

1. Bachelor’s degree with a minimum 3.0 GPA*.
2. Acceptance into the Graduate School.
3. Completed application form for the Certificate Program from the Women’s Studies Program.
4. An appointment with the advisor of the Certificate Program.

*

 Note: The advisor can extend conditional admission to students with less than a 3.0 GPA.

To complete a certificate in Women's or Gender Studies, students must complete at least 12 hours of courses from at least two different disciplines. One core course must be taken as part of the total 12 hours: WS 5300 - Interdisc Feminist Theory/Meth.

Liberal Arts Building, Room 233 
915.747.5200
womenstudies@utep.edu
www.utep.edu/womens-studies/