Gender, Sexuality, & Women's Studies, BA: General

The Penn Program for Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies provides exciting intellectual opportunities for students to explore a wide variety of issues concerning gender, race, and sexuality in society, culture, history, science, and language. The primary mission of the Program is to provide students with the tools to critically examine societal issues from different, yet intersecting, disciplinary approaches.

The Program offers a major and a minor. Reflecting the interdisciplinary mission of our program, the undergraduate major and minor are intended to provide a broad array of options to students interested in understanding the way that gender, sexuality, and race have developed and changed over time in their meaning, practice, and treatment. The conceptual frameworks to come out of the field - for example, intersectionality, queer theory, and transformative justice - help students make sense of our current moment and, more importantly, equip them with the analytical skills to work towards a more just and equitable future.

The minimum total course units for graduation in this major is 33. Double majors may entail more course units.

For more information: https://gsws.sas.upenn.edu/

For information about the General Education requirements, please visit the College of Arts & Sciences Curriculum page.

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You may count no more than one course toward both a Major and a Sector requirement. For Exceptions, check the Policy Statement.

Honors

Students with an overall GPA of 3.4 and 3.6 or better in the major are eligible for honors. Honors students must take a total of 2 credit units of Thesis Seminar.

The degree and major requirements displayed are intended as a guide for students entering in the Fall of 2026 and later. Students should consult with their academic program regarding final certifications and requirements for graduation.

Sample Plan of Study