Major Requirements
To all SWAG majors,
We are delighted to announce that SWAG has recently completed a thorough revision, streamlining and
updating of our curriculum. This revised curriculum was officially approved by Arts & Sciences on
March 10, 2008. What this means for you: if you’re currently a SWAG major or minor, it means nothing!
You’re “grandmothered” in (!), and you will continue to be governed by the old set of requirements that
were in place when you first signed up to be a major or minor. For anyone declaring the Major or Minor
AFTER March 10, 2008—you will be covered under the NEW requirements, as below.
As always, if you have any questions, see your faculty advisor.
Major Requirements Prior to March 10, 2008
A Major in Studies in Women and Gender (SWAG) requires that you complete 11 courses or 33 credit hours from at least 3 departments .
At least 9 courses must be at the 300 or 400 level. 2 courses may be at the 100 or 200 level (this includes SWAG 210).
These courses must include the following:
1. SWAG 210: Women's Lives in Myth and Reality: Introduction to Women and Gender Studies
2. SWAG 381: Feminist Theory
3. SWAG 405: Senior Seminar
4. One SWAG course designated as concentrating on Global Perspectives .
5. At least 3 SWAG courses (9 hours) drawn from the Humanities (Philosophy, English, Religious Studies, Art, Music, Drama, Architecture, Foreign Languages).
6. At least 3 SWAG courses (9 hours) drawn from the Social Sciences (History, Government, Psychology, Sociology, Economics, Anthropology, Linguistics, Afro-American and African Studies).
7. Your final transcript must show the completion of 6 courses concentrated in a single department. These courses may include SWAG courses as well as non-SWAG courses. SWAG courses fulfilling this requirement may also count toward the 11 courses required for the major.
Courses counting toward your SWAG major may include 2 adjunct courses and 2 independent readings courses. An adjunct course is one whose central focus is not on women or gender, but is listed as a SWAG course because gender is a significant focus. Adjunct courses are indicated as such in the course booklet.
Major Requirements After March 10, 2008
All students must complete SWAG 210 “Women’s Lives in Myth and Reality: Introduction to Studies in Women
and Gender” prior to declaring the Major. Students must receive a grade of “C” or better in the course to
declare the Major.
A Major in Studies in Women and Gender (SWAG) requires the completion of 10 courses (30 credits).
At least five of these courses must carry a SWAG mnemonic (to include cross-listed SWAG courses).
At least eight courses must be at the 300 level or above. Note that as a prerequisite to the Major,
SWAG 210 will NOT count towards the 30 credits required to complete the Major.
All SWAG Majors must complete the following required courses:
1. SWAG 381: Feminist Theory
2. SWAG 382: Feminist Methodologies
3. SWAG 405 or 406: Senior Seminar
4. One SWAG course designated as concentrating on Global Perspectives .
The completion of SWAG 381 and SWAG 382 is a prerequisite for admission to SWAG 405 or 406 (Senior Seminar).
A minimum grade of C must be earned in any course counted toward the Major. Courses counting toward the
SWAG Major may include up to two courses designated as adjunct courses and up to two Independent Study
courses. An adjunct course is one in which gender is a significant focus, but whose central focus is not
on women or gender. SWAG courses may be “double-counted” toward a major in another department; that is,
SWAG courses taken for another Major can also count toward the SWAG Major.
