Explore New Opportunities with Gender Studies

Education in India is undergoing a big time change, with newer subjects and courses defining the shape of the vast gamut of opportunities, waiting to broaden the horizon of career choices the generation of today may have in future. Among some of the many new and different courses one sees, is the recently launched course on Gender Studies.

A course in ‘Gender Studies’ gives students an opportunity to learn about key issues like sexual differences, gender equity, queer politics and sexuality from a whole range of perspectives. It gives them a chance to develop a broad range of research skills from Humanities and Social Sciences. The course addresses wide-ranging issues including globalization and the impact of gender and sexuality on a whole array of discourses embedded within diverse cultures and histories. Since gender always interacts with categories like age, class, and race, it is never studied in isolation.

Gender Studies covers subjects like Concepts and Theories in Gender and Women’s Studies, Gender and Power, Construction Gender through literature, Films, Visual Arts, Gendered Bodies and Sexualities, Women and Social Institutions, International Policies and Programs, Advocacy and Research Epistimology. Other related subjects taught could include anthropology, art history, criminology, language, history, linguistics and applied linguistics, political science, sociology, philosophy and social theory.

The Indira Gandhi National Open University, IGNOU has launched a Post-Graduate diploma in Women’s and Gender Studies in distance education. The 34 credit program will comprise four core courses; theories and concepts, art and media, and gendered bodies.

According to Anu Aneja, Program co-coordinator at IGNOU:

“Gender is a critical subject, both nationally and internationally and this course will give the students a conceptual and theoretical base and enable them to understand the subject historically. The four core subjects will adopt an inter-disciplinary approach to deal with issues”

Aneja further added:

“the program focuses on developing analytical and critical perspectives by examining given knowledge discourses across disciplines from a gender perspective. Since the course adopts an inter-disciplinary approach, students will be aware of issues and will be able to apply what they learn in practice”.

The course is designed to accept the social responsibility to transform and influence other disciplines to include a feminist perspective and empower women to increase their visibility in teaching, research and management in colleges and universities by enhancing their competence and academic strength.

On graduating from this course, students will possess skill-sets including creative and critical thinking, ability to analyze texts and visuals, and writing and communicative skills. Aneja added that students can pursue a career in NGOs, public sector, counseling, media, mass communication, writing, editing, teaching, or journalism wherein a basic understanding of gender issues is required.

A course on gender studies is currently taught in Masters Level; Post-Graduate level, MPhil or Diploma. Some of the Universities offering this course are; Bharat Ratna Dr B R Ambedkar University, Delhi, Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth development, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule Women’s Studies centre, Pune and School of Gender and Development Studies –SOGDS, a part of IGNOU.