Academic Program. The M.A. in Applied Women’s Studies combines feminist theory and epistemology with the substantive knowledge and practical skills required to respond to the needs of an increasingly complex global society. The program prepares students for careers in community organizations, government agencies, and the private sector.

To meet the needs of students this program cuts across a wide range of humanities, social sciences, education, and management disciplines in a rigorous program that examines the connections between feminist theory and social changes in the real world. Students enroll in courses in CGU’s schools of politics and economics, organizational and behavioral sciences, humanities, education, religion, and management with women’s studies faculty in each of these disciplines, creating a rich opportunity for interdisciplinary study in both academic and professional programs.

The centerpiece of the Applied Women’s Studies Program is the requirement that students complete an internship or policy clinic. The metropolitan areas across the United States, including Los Angeles; Washington, D.C.; Houston; New York City; and Miami, offer a wide range of internship possibilities focusing on women’s issues—in educational settings; federal, state, and local government; advocacy work; legal counseling; community service organizations; homeless shelters; and homes for battered women.

Upon completion of the M.A. the student should demonstrate:

• Knowledge of a variety of qualitative and quantitative research methods for giving voice to women’s experience and making visible the frequently invisible and undercounted aspects of women’s lives.
• The ability to design and conduct interviews, use the Internet and electronic databases in research, critically interpret numerical data from secondary sources, give an oral presentation of research results working in a collaborative team, use PowerPoint, and write a research proposal.
• Familiarity with feminist epistemology, including feminist critiques of science and the development of feminist empiricist, standpoint, and postmodernist epistemologies.
• Knowledge in a specific area of concentration.

Course Requirements

Students accepted into the M.A. in Applied Women’s Studies program are required to complete nine courses totaling 36 units. The program can be completed in three semesters of full-time coursework or on a part-time basis.

Required Courses (16 units)

• Feminist Theory
• Feminist Research Applications. An introduction to basic skills requested by employers such as grant writing, use of databases, press relations, and electronic research.
• Analytic Tools. Any course in research methods, such as quantitative research, legal research, and field research.
• An Internship or Policy Clinic