Department of Women's Studies

About the Graduate Program

The Department of Women's Studies at Penn State University offers dual-title Ph.D. and Masters Degrees, as well as graduate minors, across numerous disciplines and colleges. A dual-title degree offers students the opportunity to gain interdisciplinary experience while becoming grounded in a particular area of academic study. The program was designed to encourage students to connect with faculty and students across the university and to conduct innovative scholarship in a wide range of areas. In required core courses on feminist theory and methodologies, in topical courses, and in their own research, students focus closely and critically on the intersections of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, nation, and citizenship.

The dual-title degree is available in Art Education, English, History, Political Science, Psychology, Curriculum and Instruction, Philosophy, Geography, French, and Rural Sociology (Click here to view specific program requirements).

Our faculty are renowned scholars of women's and gender studies and our graduates hold excellent jobs in academia and the non-profit sector. The Women's Studies Graduate Student Organization offers opportunities for students to engage in intellectual exchanges and professional development with students throughout the University. The Department of Women's Studies at Penn State was ranked second in the nation in 2007.