PhD in Global Gender Studies
GGSs students touring the Albright Knox Art Gallery
UB's Department of Global Gender and Sexuality Studies is one of only 12 doctoral degree-granting Women/Gender Studies departments in the U.S., and offered the first doctoral program in women's studies in the SUNY system. We build collaborations among faculty and students by exploring the intersections of gender, race, class, and disability to produce innovative scholarship.
About the PhD Program
Global Gender and Sexuality Studies attracts a wide range of PhD students into a welcoming and diverse community. Students work on their dissertations in close collaboration with hands-on faculty mentors who represent a diverse array of disciplines, and take advantage of opportunities outside the classroom such as conferences, community activism, and writing workshops.
PhD students experience a competitive doctoral program with particular strengths in the areas of literary analysis, gender and global citizenship, gender and public policy, art and cultural production, sexuality studies, and feminist and queer theories. Our department has successfully placed PhDs in Global Gender Studies in academic careers as well as jobs in public policy, the non-profit sector, government, and more.
Student Voices
The faculty at GGS took incredible time to mentor me. I took classes in research methods and ultimately conducted my own study that was later published.
Degree Requirements
Coursework
A total of 72 credits are required for the PhD degree in Global Gender Studies, out of which at least 36 credits must be taken in the Department of Global Gender and Sexuality Studies. Students usually take between five and seven years to complete the doctoral program.
Core Requirements
All doctoral students are required to complete the following:
- One 3-credit theory course such as GGS 518 – Readings in Feminist Theory
- One 3-credit quantitative methods (Quantitative Research Methods) or one 3-credit qualitative methods (Ethnographic Methods)
- An additional six seminars in Global Gender Studies
- Comprehensive exams, a dissertation prospectus, and an oral defense of the written dissertation
Major Concentration
The PhD program requires a student to design, in consultation with their academic advisor(s), a coherent interdisciplinary program. Students can take courses from a wide range of other UB departments and schools.
For additional guidelines and specific information regarding academic planning, doctoral students should consult the GGSs Graduate Student Handbook and their academic advisors.
Meet Our Students
Contact Us
With questions about the PhD program, please contact:
The goal of this exam is that the student demonstrates a comprehensive, broad knowledge of the field(s) on which their dissertation will focus. As this degree program is interdisciplinary in nature, the student should also demonstrate the ability to make interconnections with other fields of study. All doctoral students must successfully complete a comprehensive examination involving both written and oral components.
For more information regarding comprehensive examinations, doctoral students should consult the Graduate Handbook and their academic advisors.
The following forms are required:
The Dissertation Committee is composed of at minimum three members of the UB graduate faculty. Students may add additional non-UB faculty members. Students work closely with their Dissertation Committee in the fulfillment of all major degree requirements.
For specific information regarding academic planning, dissertation preparation, and defense, doctoral students should consult the graduate handbook and their academic advisors.
The following forms are required: