On-Ground/On-line
Graduate Certificate
in Women's Studies
at Southern Connecticut State University
Please note: this program is in the process of being developed. Please
contact the Women's Studies office for the most up-to-date information.
Overview
Students may earn a 12-credit Advanced Graduate Certificate in Women's
Studies through a hybrid on-ground/on-line program. The first three credits are
earned during a required two-week long summer residency on the SCSU campus,
during which time students take a course in Women's Studies Foundations and
build relationships with faculty and other Women's Studies students. The other
nine credits are earned by taking three on-line courses offered during the
academic year. Each individual student shall choose among the course offerings
according to intellectual and/or professional interests. This program will
primarily serve students who are unable to reside and study in the
As in the traditional on-ground graduate degree and certificate programs, we
will continue with the "cohort" model, that is, with each entering
class taking the introductory summer residency course together. This is to
ensure a feminist pedagogical approach, underscoring the importance of
community. The plan of study integrates scholarly inquiry, critical problem-solving
methods, professional training, and the development of cooperative leadership
skills.
Graduate students may pursue the certificate as an elective option in a
graduate degree program or as a free-standing interdisciplinary certificate for
individuals holding bachelor's degrees.
In the near future, the following departments and programs will be offering
on-line interdisciplinary graduate courses in Women's Studies:
· Anthropology
· Art
· Business
· Educational Foundations
· English
· Geography
· History
· Library
· Mathematics
· Media Studies
· Psychology
· Social Work
· Sociology
· Women's Studies
Requirements
The Hybrid On-Ground/On-Line Advanced Graduate Certificate in Women's Studies
requires 12 credits of course work, consisting of the required on-ground summer
course in Women's Studies Foundations and the choice of three other courses. To
encourage interdisciplinary scholarship and learning, the Women's Studies
Program requires its certificate students to take no more than two courses in a
single academic department. Students matriculated for a master's degree who are
pursuing the hybrid on-ground/on-line certificate as an elective option in
their graduate degree program must take the three other courses outside their primary
discipline. Students select these elective courses with advisors from the
Women's Studies Program and the student's home department. All courses are at
the graduate level unless the student obtains special permission.
Please contact the Women's Studies Office to request a graduate program
admissions packet which contains all of the information and required forms
necessary for admission.
The Women's Studies
Program at
SCSU
A 35-year-old program, the Women's Studies Program is among the
longest-running women's studies programs in the country. It offers an
undergraduate women's studies minor (since 1971), a master's degree in women's
studies (since 1998), a graduate certificate in women's studies (since 1998),
and a new on-ground/on-line graduate certificate in women's studies.
Students in the Women's Studies Program at SCSU have the opportunity to
participate in a variety of activities with other students, faculty members,
community-based organizations, and professional and academic associations.
Summer institutes allow graduate students to accelerate their
degree/certificate completion.
Women's Studies' extracurricular programming includes "64 Days of
Nonviolence" in the spring semester, of which the Women's History Month
celebration and the annual Women's Studies graduate student conference are a
part. Every fall, the Women's Studies Program hosts an annual conference (since
1991), which draws hundreds of scholars, activists, and students from around
the country and the world to the Southern campus. The purpose of the annual
conference is to promote intellectual and activist exchanges among academics,
community leaders, activists, professionals, and others interested in women's
studies issues.
Why Pursue a WMS
On-Ground/On-Line Graduate Certificate?
The hybrid on-ground/on-line Graduate Certificate in Women's Studies
provides a compelling gender, race, and class analysis which can be applied
effectively in the workplace. The on-ground component of this new certificate
program provides what is often missing in a distance-learning environment and
helps the cohort forge a sense of community, an important element in women's
studies classroom. The on-line component affords students the facility to do
graduate work with little commute hassle and flexibility of doing course work
at times convenient to their schedules. It complements the student's master's
degree and offers sophisticated, interdisciplinary, cross-cultural academic
training with practical applications for those who choose to seek professional
credentialing such as a terminal degree in law and/or intend to pursue a
doctorate leading to teaching and advanced research. The certificate program
also serves those who have achieved competence in their field as educators,
administrators, human resource and health professionals, entrepreneurs,
business owners, and all those who wish to integrate the theory and practice of
women's studies into their profession. It is also suitable for students seeking
personal enrichment.
The women's studies classroom is a unique environment, on-ground and
on-line, encouraging active student participation in the learning process. The
goal of women's studies pedagogy is to generate knowledge from the shared
resources of the students under the guidance of the instructor.
We invite you to explore the options offered by the hybrid on-ground/on-line
Graduate Certificate in Women's Studies at Southern Connecticut State
University and hope that you will visit us and see for yourself the vibrant,
intellectual women's studies community at SCSU!
Contact Us
The On-Ground/On-Line Women's Studies Graduate Certificate Program
Coordinators:
Yi-Chun Tricia Lin,
Director/Associate Professor of Women's Studies
liny4@southernct.edu
Virginia Metaxas,
Professor of History and Women's Studies
metaxasv1@southernct.edu
The Women's Studies Program
(203) 392-6133
Cerella Griffin,
Administrative Assistant
GriffinC1@southernct.edu
