About

The Women’s and Gender Studies program at Drake University offers multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary courses that focus on gender as a category of analysis.

As a WGS concentrator, you will engage in courses that ask you to reflect critically on gendered constructions of the world and your place in and experience of that world. In both our introductory and core classes, you will encounter interactive practices in which you can, in Adrienne Rich’s words, “claim your education” by collaborating with other students and with your instructors in directing the activities and outcomes of your courses.

Although the WGS program exhibits considerable diversity in disciplines, methodologies, and approaches, one goal of every WGS course is to provide you with the opportunities and resources to become a lifelong learner, as well as a peer educator. We aspire to create environments in which we can discuss race, class, gender, sexuality, and issues of power and privilege in thoughtful, informed, and productive ways, so that we are all better prepared to live in a multicultural, globally interdependent world.

The WGS program also emphasizes the importance of service-learning, and as a concentrator, you can explore your interests further through an independent study or internship. You can also work with any of several student organizations affiliated with the WGS program to explore the practical applications of your learning.

Please talk with your academic advisor and with the Director of the WGS program to discuss ways to connect the concentration with your major field of study and your career goals.