HAVE YOU CONSIDERED COMBINING YOUR GRADUATE WORK IN COUNSELING WITH A CERTIFICATE IN WOMEN'S STUDIES?

A graduate degree in counseling with a certificate in Women's Studies is a great combination for students interested in a variety of career options. Counseling students typically go on to careers in education, mental health agencies, business or governmental organizations, or private practice. In each of these areas, the skills and knowledge acquired in Women's Studies courses can provide students an edge in finding a job and excelling in it. Women's Studies courses emphasize the analytical and communication skills that employers seek. The interdisciplinary nature of Women's Studies prepares students to understand the complex interrelationships of gender with psychological and interpersonal issues. The ability to identify and analyze such complex connections is a key quality required in each of the settings listed above.

A graduate certificate in Women's Studies provides students with substantive knowledge that complements their counseling skills. In recent years, those who study and work in counseling have been paying increased attention to the significance of gender. Coursework in Women's Studies also provides in-depth understanding of the ways that the social construction of gender influences the norms, values, and goals of clients, employers, and public policy makers. Graduate students report that enrolling in the Women's Studies certificate offers them support, a sense of community, and a renewed commitment to understanding the importance of women in their primary field.

To earn a graduate certificate in Women's Studies, students should take at least twelve hours of approved courses, including two core classes--WOMS 520, Feminist Theory, and WOMS 530, Research in Women's Studies. In WOMS 520, students examine the relevance and importance of feminist scholarship across disciplines; in WOMS 530, they have an opportunity to design a project in their own discipline that accounts for sex and/or gender as variables. Many students find that this research design is a useful starting point for a thesis or other major project. Independent study and internship options are available as well as occasional graduate assistantships.

Additional courses from a list of approved electives that may be of interest to counseling students include:

Two of the following (6)

CAHC 592 Special Topics in Counseling: Counseling Women (3)
CAHC 595 Women and Careers (3)
CAHC 666 Human Sexuality Counseling (3)
COMS 540 Seminar in Communication and Gender (3)
EPFE 603 Foundations of Feminist Educational Thought (3)
FCNS 516 Nutritional Factors in Obesity and Eating Disorders (3)
HIST 413 Family, Sexuality, and Society Since 1400 (3)
ILAS 550 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies (3)
MGMT 528 Equal Opportunity and Employment (3)
SOCI 454 Racial and Ethnic Minority Family Systems (3)
SOCI 563 Women's Health Issues (3)
WOMS 430 Special Topics in Women's Studies
(e.g., Women’s Health Issues Across the Life Span) (3)
WOMS 434 Women, Men & Language (3)
WOMS 502 Internship in Women's Studies
WOMS 510 Topics in Women’s Studies
WOMS 539 Independent Study in Women's Studies (3)

A complete list of electives is available in the graduate catalogue.
For additional information about the graduate certificate in Women's Studies, please call 753-1038.