Gender and Society

MA Gender and Society
School of Politics, International Studies & Philosophy, Queen’s University Belfast

The MA in Gender and Society is a new addition to the range of Masters programmes in the School of Politics, International Studies and Philosophy. It responds to undergraduate students who wished to pursue an interest in gender studies to postgraduate level. It is designed as a multidisciplinary course so as to enable students from a range of subject areas to study gender in a cross-cutting manner.
There are very few opportunities for studying gender in a multidisciplinary context: most courses of this kind are firmly situated in a social science or humanities discipline. This course offers applicants the possibility of taking gender modules in politics, law, literature, sociology and history. It also gives students considerable scope for pursuing their own independent study of gender issues.
For applicants with an interest in gender and politics, the module Gender, Politics and Democracy offers insights into the world of political parties, legislatures and policy-making from a gender perspective. It asks how far modern democracies go to include gender as a relevant aspect of policy and politics. This core course offers students a rare opportunity to study comparative gender politics at postgraduate level. It is taught by the international scholar, Dr. Yvonne Galligan, whose book Sharing Power: Women, Parliament, Democracy (with Professor Manon Tremblay) is a core text in gender politics. Optional courses include Women’s Rights as Human Rights (Law); Religion, Gender and Power in Ireland (Sociology); Topics in Contemporary Political Theory (Politics), Women in Modern Ireland 1760-1960 (History) and Mythologies of the Feminine in Hispanic Art and Literature (Spanish Studies). These courses are taught by academics with national and international reputations: Professor Mary O’Dowd (History) has written extensively on women in Irish history for which she has received international acclaim; Dr. Myrtle Hill (Sociology) is a sociological historian widely known for her studies on women and religion in Ireland, Ms Eileen Fegan (Law) is an expert on feminist legal theory and human rights and Dr. Roberta Quance (Spanish Studies) enjoys international recognition as a feminist literary critic.

Students on the MA in Gender and Society will become affiliated to the Centre for Advancement of Women and Politics (CAWP). This dynamic initiative, led by Dr. Yvonne Galligan, is the only centre of its kind in the UK and Ireland. It has a programme of activities that includes conferences and workshops with women decision-makers, and a development programme for women policy-makers and public officials. CAWP provides a database on women in politics that is widely consulted by researchers, journalists, and the interested public. It also has a very active research programme that currently focuses on gender and politics in the new EU member states, the civic participation of women and men, and issues of gender and democracy in the EU. In sum, CAWP provides an intellectually stimulating and welcoming environment for applicants