Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

The Program in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (FGSS) develops gender/sexuality literacy—the ability to understand and analyze how ideas of sex and gender impact societies, institutions, technologies, and power. FGSS helps students analyze how gender roles, relations, and identities have intertwined with social, political, and cultural factors such as race, nationality, religion and belief, class, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, medicine and health, technology, and age. Through interdisciplinary curricula and practical experience, our students explore varied perspectives in gender and sexuality studies methodologies and theories to learn, ask questions, carry out research, and chart their own career and intellectual paths, in areas such as law, medicine, health, public policy, education, the arts, and more. 

Academic Programs and Interdisciplinary Training

The Program in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies offers flexible, individualized study plans.

• Undergraduate Programs (Major, Secondary Major, and Minor): Enabling students to build a program of study around a specialized subplan—such as Humanities and Arts, Queer and Transgender Studies, Technology, Science and Medicine, or The Law and Social Sciences—which are printed on the diploma. Students may also choose an individually designed subplan.

• Interdisciplinary Honors Program: Open to undergraduate students across all majors at Stanford.

• Graduate Program (Ph.D. Minor): Open to doctoral students currently enrolled in any Ph.D. program at Stanford. This minor provides broad interdisciplinary knowledge in the field, prepares students to teach and do research in the broad cross-disciplinary areas of gender, feminism, and sexuality studies.

Our Undergraduate subplans include:

• The Law and Social Sciences

• Humanities and Arts

• Queer and Transgender Studies

• Technology, Science, and Medicine