Overview

Gender/Cultural Studies

The innovative Gender/Cultural Studies (GCS) program extends beyond women’s studies to offer the nation’s only master’s degree that is dedicated to examining the way race, class, gender, and orientation are constructed within the United States and in international contexts. Simmons’s GCS program is interdisciplinary, drawing from the humanities and social sciences. An emphasis on cutting-edge theory — including feminism, poststructuralism, cultural studies, and postcolonialism — attracts students from across the country.

In fall 2004, Simmons became a part of the Graduate Consortium of Women's Studies (GCWS), joining six other Boston-area universities to offer team-taught graduate seminars at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. These interdisciplinary courses not only examine existing feminist scholarship, but also support the creation of new knowledge. There is no additional fee for GCWS seminars, and students are granted credit by Simmons.