Bachelor of Arts in Feminist Studies

at Shorelight Group - Southwestern University USA

As an academic discipline, religious studies prepares students to better understand, compare, interpret, and analyze the diverse array of human expression known as “religious.” A guiding assumption in religious studies is that religion can and should be subjected to the types of critical analyses that are applied to other areas of the human social world. Religious studies is an inherently interdisciplinary field that utilizes the critical theories and tools from many other academic fields, such as: philosophy, art, history, sociology, anthropology, psychology, language studies, literature, politics, economics, cultural studies, gender studies and ethnic studies.

Studying political science is crucial to understanding one of the most powerful institutions shaping our lives: government. By comparing how different ideologies and forms of government have developed and evolved, analyzing how power and resources are distributed throughout a society and the world, and examining the impact of political events and public policies throughout history and across countries, students of the discipline become more informed, engaged participants within the local, national, and global communities.

At Southwestern, majoring or minoring in political science will broaden your understanding of a range of fascinating topics:

• Campaigns and elections
• Domestic and foreign policy
• International politics
• Civil discourse
• The relationship between media and politics
• The relationship between politics and gender
• Models of political leadership
• Theories of revolution, conflict, and peace
• Ideologies and political philosophies

You’ll cultivate the analytical tools, creative thinking, and communication skills that will prepare you for effective critical engagement with many different kinds of power structures. Those skills will also help you develop a sound foundation for future study in  a wide variety of professions as well as graduate programs. Recent Southwestern political science alumni are currently pursuing careers in law, government, K–12 and higher education, nonprofits, urban planning, business, and international affairs.

Students majoring in Latin are encouraged to study for a semester or year at the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies or at College Year at Athens.

The Capstone consists of a semester-long research project, which encompasses a wide range within the area of Latin studies. The project culminates with a formal paper and an oral presentation to an interdepartmental committee, chosen by the student and the faculty project advisor.

Students who major in Latin, and who place out of the foreign language requirement as entering first-year students, may take a Latin exam for credit. Students may earn up to six semester hours of lower level credit upon successful completion of the exam.

In addition to Latin courses, Latin majors are strongly urged to take interdisciplinary courses on ancient civilization, philosophy, literature, mythology, and art and archaeology.

Majoring or minoring in psychology will help you understand the workings of the brain in its complex control of behavior, emotion, and cognition

You’ll also apply the knowledge you develop in coursework to high-impact learning experiences. For example, our students conduct novel, high-quality scientific research. They engage in internships with local schools, hospitals, police departments, and nonprofits. And based on these experiences, they’ve presented their research at national and international scientific conferences and coauthored scientific publications with faculty on such topics as the neural development of reproductive physiology and behavior, sexuality and relationships, and evolutionary psychology. By majoring or minoring in psychology, you’ll be prepared not only for top-ranked graduate programs but also for a wide range of careers, from medicine and veterinary science to marketing and business.

The department is accredited by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and offers an option for students to pursue an ACS-certified BS degree in chemistry. For students who wish to enter graduate school in chemistry or a related field upon completion of their degree, the ACS-certified chemistry major offers a strong foundation in all fields within the chemical sciences. 

The flexibility of the chemistry degree program allows students to prepare for a number of career options including graduate or professional school, or obtaining a position in government or industry. Students should consult with their academic advisers to determine the best course choices within their individual degree plan. 

In addition to their regular course work, chemistry majors are strongly encouraged to become involved in laboratory research during their junior and/or senior years. Members of the department’s faculty are available to consult with chemistry students about research programs available at Southwestern and other universities. All chemistry majors are required to complete a capstone experience based on a laboratory research project. In addition, all chemistry majors must participate in a literature seminar course to prepare them for their capstone experience.

The studio art curriculum offers art, design, and architecture courses as expressive media: the primary art media are ceramics, painting, and sculpture, combined with courses in drawing, printmaking, and digital arts (photography, 3D modeling and cybersculpture). The art major is inherently interdisciplinary, so studio art is offered as a pre-professional program within a liberal arts context. It intends that each student should produce artworks with technical proficiency in a principal medium, supported by knowledge of a variety of media processes, as well as liberal arts breadth in critical thinking and verbal skills. In advanced classes, students focus on a body of personally selected creative works, locating their ideas and artworks within a contemporary cultural and theoretical context.

There are two studio art degree options: the Bachelor of Arts, and the Bachelor of Fine Arts. The B.A. encourages a broad based education across the curriculum and the B.F.A. is more focused within studio art.  The latter requires departmental admittance into the program.

The major is preparation both for students intending to apply to Master of Fine Arts programs and work as professional artists; and for students who wish to acquire a liberal arts degree which can lead to work in a wide variety of fields in graduate school both inside and outside the world of art (such as art history, architecture, digital arts, commercial art, design, arts administration, teaching art in elementary and secondary schools, etc.).

The Feminist Studies curriculum exposes students to the large and ever-growing body of knowledge that makes up the broad category of feminist and gender studies, combining feminist theory with analyses of feminist activism, identifications, and practices.

Our program provides a critical exploration of how prominent categories of difference—gender, race, class, sexuality, disability, age, religion and nation—are constituted, challenged, and altered across time and place.

Part of this project involves revising the findings of traditional disciplines to include knowledge generated through a variety of feminist methodologies.

Students with an academic focus in feminist theories and methodologies are well prepared to succeed in a variety of fields, including non-profit and social services, law, journalism, theology, public policy, health care, cultural studies, education, and numerous other traditional disciplines within the academy.

The Classics major exposes students to both languages of the Graeco-Roman world, plus a range of courses in ancient history, philosophy, culture, art, and archaeology.

The major and minor in Latin enable students to study the literature and culture of the Roman world, from the formative years of the Republic to the expansion and power of the Empire.

At the head of Greek literature stand the Homeric epics, followed by equally fascinating literature of the archaic, classical, and Hellenistic periods.

The Classics Program has broad goals, embracing cultural and social issues, critical thinking, language skills, and advanced research skills. Classics majors also have the opportunity to conduct advanced research at the side of a professor. For example, one recent graduate, working in collaboration with Dr. Haskell, produced a paper on the topic of the arrival of Greeks on Crete (published in Athens the following year). Another student “read” and classified a sequence of pottery sherds at an archaeological site in Turkey.

An increasingly global society calls for an increasingly global citizenry. Technological advances have allowed commerce, information, and ideas to transcend traditional borders and barriers. The world’s economies, cultures, and populations, in turn, have become more interconnected and interdependent. Consequently, the ability to understand and interact comfortably within multiple worldviews and global systems—economic, social, religious, intellectual, political, aesthetic, and environmental—is increasingly necessary.

Through Southwestern University’s program in international studies, you’ll develop the knowledge and skills for becoming an informed global citizen through coursework, foreign-language study, and study abroad. Although the major and minor are deeply interdisciplinary, you’ll explore a range of international issues through the lens of a specific major, such as art history, history, political science, or anthropology. You’ll have the opportunity to focus on a particular geographical region in depth, such as East Asia, Europe, or Latin America, or study the interrelationship of nations across the globe. You’ll gain proficiency in the language used in that region through immersive study. And you’ll even get to experience firsthand what it’s like to live and engage in your selected region through a semester or more of study abroad. 

Southwestern students who have majored or minored in international studies have gone on to pursue careers in law, government, nonprofit organizations, business, and international agencies. International studies also provides a strong foundation for those interested in graduate study in the humanities and social sciences.

French majors and minors tie their language studies to in-depth analysis of literature, culture and film. Our curriculum integrates speaking, writing and culture into all courses, enhanced by faculty mentoring and interdisciplinary opportunities. French students are strongly encouraged to study abroad. Several graduates have won scholarships to teach in France, through the French Embassy’s Teaching Assistant Program.

The French Program also builds diverse perspectives through course materials tailored to students’ needs.

The Capstone provides majors with training in independent research and prepares them for work in many fields. Alumni pursue Master’s and PhD degrees and careers in art, business, international affairs, law, management, public health, and teaching.