Any Women's Studies Majors/Graduates?

[kangaroo_mom]

I am finishing up my Associates of Arts and will be transferring to another school to finish my Bachelor's. Originally I was going to do something basic like English but I'm feeling very drawn to Women's Studies. It seems there are a lot of things I could do with it even though it may be considered an "offbeat" major. Of course that's probably why it appeals to me, lol. I am curious to hear from others who may have graduated or are currently studying Women's Studies. Thank you!

[Ianthe]

Hey.. I'm in UT, where are you going to be going? SUU? I'm at USU.. which just came out with a women"s studies major! However, I am not majoring in it, but thinking about doing a double minor with WS as one of them. I love it too.

[kangaroo_mom]

I'm currently at Dixie College and I want to transfer to UNR in Reno where they also offer a Master's in Women's Studies. I'd really love to be a professor one day, but one step at a time. I have considered U of U but I want to get closer to my family which are all in NV and Oregon. That's neat that Utah State just got a WS degree.

[annethcz]

I know several people with women's studies degrees. None of them really use their degrees in their careers. Most of them have masters degrees in other disciplines.

What is your reason for attending college? Are you there to simply study things that are interesting or you hoping that the degree you earn will help you to attain a career?

[litanyagainstfear]

I'm not much help, but I am completing an Ed. Science/Engl degree with both an English and a Women's Studies minor (that's all my university offers). I have found the WMST classes have very much enriched studies in other areas. Subbing this thread.

[kangaroo_mom]

My ultimate long-term goal is to be a Professor and Writer. Immediately post-graduation I may need to put graduate school on hold for a bit until my children get a little older. I may go into journalism or non-profit work after graduation. I've read on college websites that some graduates have gone into journalism, market research, human resource management and various non-profit work. I just would like to hear if anyone has any firsthand experience. Currently I am a Massage Therapist and doing quite well with that. However, I've always been an academic at heart and wanted to return to school to pursue that dream.

[lolar2]

If I were interested in that, I might do something like econ and study feminist economic theory or something like that. The academic job market for econ Ph.Ds is better than for humanities Ph.Ds.

[MidwifeErika]

I will be finishing my BA in Women's Studies this next year. I have 17 credits left to take. I love my classes! I am not planning a career change with this degree, it was just a way to wrap up all the college credits I had and it is something that works very well with my current career.

[lovesdaffodils]

I'm minoring in Women's Studies (my school doesn't offer it as a major).

[One_Girl]

My mother got her bachelors in social science with an emphasis in Women's Studies. It isn't a degree you get unless you are going to grad school (all of her professors questioned her when she told them her major), she always planned on doing grad school for a more lucrative field right after graduating so it wasn't a big deal. A lot of programs look like they have jobs available afterwards, but those jobs are often hard to come by and they pay very little. It can also be very hard to get a job as a professor, it took my step-brother's wife a few years before she got an adjunct position in New Orleans. If you need a career that is going to pay off student loans and get you a job quickly then I suggest looking into another field. If you are doing this for enjoyment and don't mind the waiting and dissapointment that comes with a long job search then I think you should go for it.

[mama2rey]

I did a psychology major with a concentration in Women's Studies. I am now a psychotherapist and one of my specialties is women who have experienced abuse and trauma. Right after college, I worked in a battered women's shelter and then I worked at a rape crisis center. I think you can make it work. I do think though that it works best if you combine the degree with something. I was very interested in social services so I figured out a way to do that and use my interest in Women's studies.

I think you can use this degree in lots of ways. It does require creativity though. I also feel that these days having a degree is very important (it doesn't matter in what)-but you also need to create skills that make you marketable. So figuring out what skill set you want to develop and finding a focus with women. For example, I know an attorney who does work with women in prison, I also know of an investment broker who teaches classes to women who want to invest etc.......

I do know that I graduated from college years ago, when we weren't in a recession-so people graduating from college now are trying even harder to think of ways to just get a job after college-however, I think that if you pursue something you like you will find the motivation to do more to make yourself more marketable.

Good Luck!

[provocativa]

my degree is in English, minor in Women's Studies. Totally useless on the job market in my conservative state. I always intended to go the phD route, but my undergrad college wouldn't release my transcript until I paid off all loans- and how do you pay off loans waitressing with yer ENG / WS degree? As a pp said, right out of undergrad, get to volunteering in the field. It's the only way to get a job without an advanced degree. I had a hard time volunteering with my waitressing schedule, and so couldn't work my way in, and now, over a decade later am too bogged down with kids and impending separation to volunteer. I loved what I learned in the courses, though.

[bobandjess99]

It's fun to study(i have a WS minor), but isn't something you go into for a job. My boss had her masters in WS and ended up having to go back and get a second masters in order to get a decent job.

It's the kind of thing you study when you're young and carefree and full of sparkly happy thoughts and dreams and the world is your oyster because you can "be whatever you want". It's really almost useless in the real world.

As long as you under no circumstances take out loans/go into debt for it, I think it's fine to spend your time studying things that interest you.
If there is a possibility you will ever want to or need to support yourself or family, you should make a much more sensible choice.

[LauraN]

I disagree with everyone who says it's useless. It's an awesome cross-disciplinary major. I majored in Women's Studies with a minor in French. I then became a journalist, no grad school necessary. I did eventually go to grad school, but only because I wanted to. I feel blessed that I've had a great career and I owe a lot of it to the amazing women I met in college and the time I spent studying so many different disciplines and thinking about things from a different perspective. Now granted, I will admit that I spent some months after college temping and casting around trying to figure out what to do. But when I figured out what I wanted, my degree was not a hindrance.
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[EFmom]

I work at a university, and I'd have to say, it's right up there in terms of degrees that aren't going to lead to particularly gainful employment. If you want to become a professor, those jobs in WS are few and far between. As a pp mentioned a degree in economics with an interest in feminist economics would make it easier to find a job.

[shapiro-strano]

I am a Women's Studies / Chicano Studies major here in Denver. I am also a doula and hope to work towards my CPM over the next 5 years. I feel that Women's Studies is definitely helpful in my journey towards midwifery. I want to service low income and Spanish speaking women and make a home birth affordable with a sliding scale and grants for mothers. I definitely think my studies are rounding out my education and knowledge!