Women's Studies

Welcome to CSUDH's Women's Studies Department!

Welcome to the Women's Studies Program, where students are encouraged to claim their education in an active pursuit of knowledge, empathy, and social justice. As the academic arm of the feminist movement, women's studies has been a recognized discipline for nearly fifty years, exploring the experiences and representations of women in cultures around the world. Students taking courses in CSUDH's Women's Studies Program acquire the knowledge and skills to understand the history, structures, and expressions of gender inequality and how to advocate for women's rights and freedoms.

The Women's Studies Department offers a 39-unit BA and a 15-credit minor. Women’s Studies courses use feminist theories and interdisciplinary methods to teach, conduct research, and expand existing bodies of knowledge, preparing students to pursue careers and advanced degrees in multiple fields, sectors, and industries. As a richly diverse urban campus with a strong history of activism and commitment to social justice, CSUDH lends itself to Women’s Studies and its focus on examining how gender relates to and intersects with ethnicity, race, social class, religion, sexuality, nationality, globalization and other factors that shape women’s and men’s lives. It also aligns with the University vision for a campus where “diversity in all its forms is explored, understood, and transformed into knowledge and practice.”

Our graduates have gone on to successful careers in education, counseling, media arts, law, and the non-profit sector.