Mount Saint Vincent University is unique for its commitment to the education of women. It was the first Canadian university to establish a department of women’s studies. There is a wide range of courses in women’s studies. Some courses are taught in the department of women’s studies by department faculty and some are taught, as women-emphasis courses, in cooperation with other university departments. Students can declare a minor, major, or honours in the undergraduate women’s studies program. In collaboration with St. Mary’s University and Dalhousie University, the Mount also offers a Master of Arts degree in women’s studies.
Women’s studies places women’s experiences and knowledge at the centre of critical inquiry. Students in women’s studies courses learn about the ways in which women’s societal position can be transformed. Women’s studies is inclusive of the range of women’s experiences. In examining the accomplishments and struggles of women, it considers the complexities of race, class, sexual orientation, and ability, from cross-cultural and interdisciplinary perspectives.
The Mount Advantage
The university-wide commitment to women’s education, resources, and the large number of women students, faculty, and administrators makes studying women’s studies at Mount Saint Vincent University a unique experience. The department of women’s studies includes Nancy’s Chair, an endowed Chair that brings distinguished scholars and persons in public life that have contributed to the advancement of women, to the university. Holders of the Nancy’s Chair in Women’s Studies teach undergraduate courses. The Women's Studies Student Society has an active presence on campus. Women’s studies classes at the Mount are typically small and students get to know their professors and their classmates. The university also has an excellent women’s studies library collection.
Career OpportunitiesStudents who have completed an undergraduate women's studies degree at Mount Saint Vincent University have gone on to use the knowledge and skills acquired to work in some of these areas:
- international development work
- not-for-profit organizations that work with women and children, specifically services for abused women and children, homeless women and children, and women with addictions
- government organizations
- graduate studies in the areas of law, social work, public administration, and education
Some students study women's studies on a part-time basis and apply the knowledge and skills to areas in which they are already employed, including:
- nursing
- education
- addictions
- student government
Books that describe the type of work graduates engage in are:
Luebke, B., & Reilly, M. E. (1997). Women's Studies graduates: The first generation. NY: Teacher's College. (HQ 1181 U5 L84 1995)
Griffin, G. (Ed.). (2005). Doing women's studies: Employment opportunities, personal impacts and social consequences. London: Zed Books. (HD 6134 D65 2005)