The Junior Tutorial (WOMGEN 98) is required of all thesis track students and is overseen each spring semester by one of the WGS core faculty in conjunction with members of the WGS Graduate Tutorial Board.

This semester-long course combines a small group seminar which gives students in-depth exposure to interdisciplinary feminist methodologies and the opportunity to work closely with a member of the WGS Graduate Tutorial Board to develop and write their own research projects.

The weekly seminar is organized around readings that consider how different research approaches inform the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences, and provides a collaborative space for students to develop their own research agenda which culminates in an 18- to 20-page junior essay.

After indicating their research interests in the application to the thesis track during the fall semester of their junior year, students will be sorted into small groups overseen by experienced members of the WGS Graduate Tutorial Board. Students will meet with their Tutors weekly to design a collaborative reading list around their areas of interest, discuss readings, and develop their research projects. While the topic of the junior essay need not have any relation to the student’s anticipated senior thesis project, the research should provide practice with the methods they anticipate using in their theses. 

For detailed information on seminar meeting times and structure, please see the WOMGEN 98 course website.