Enhance Your Education

Distinctive Programs in Gender and Women's Studies

There are ample opportunities to enhance your studies in gender and women's studies through independent research, off-campus study, and internships. These programs are integral to a Knox education, teaching you how to apply your skills in "real world" situations.

Student Research and Creative Projects
Knox is a leader in promoting top-notch undergraduate research. In fact, more than 90% of all Knox students complete an independent research or creative project by the time they graduate. Many students' projects are supported by an unusually rich array of Knox College funding programs that together provide students more than $200,000 each year in support of their work. These sources include: College Honors Program, Richter Memorial Scholars Program, Ford Foundation Research Fellows Program, Ronald E. McNair Fellows Program and departmentally supported independent studies. In addition, special fellowships awarded to Knox through national competitions and through the research grants of Knox faculty make Knox a leader in promoting top-notch undergraduate research.

Much of the advanced work in Gender and Women's studies takes the form of independent study and research, sometimes linked to an internship. For example, one student recently studied comparable-worth legislation in cooperation with a women's lobbying group, and another organized volunteer activities for a local coalition against domestic violence. An example of research recently undertaken by a gender and women's studies major is:

• "Women in Jordan and Palestine," Katrin Masharqa, '06, gender & women's studies and international relations major.

College Honors
Outstanding students may elect to undertake College Honors in their senior year, carrying out an advanced research project presented and defended to a faculty committee that includes a distinguished outside examiner. Examples of recent Honors projects include:

• "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf: A Functional Analysis of the Stranger-in-a-Dark-Alley-Rape Image," Rachael E. Goodman-Williams, '09.
• "The Internet as a Site of Identity and Community Formation for Gender-Variant Individuals," Abigail Kuhn, '04.
• "Re-envisioning Mythology in Christa Wolf's Medea: A Modern Retelling and Cassandra," Frances Hackler, '03.
• Anthropology & Sociology and Gender & Women's Studies: "'White Trash' and the Deserving Poor: Re-visioning Cultural Mythologies in the Literature of Tillie Olsen and Dorothy Allison," Danielle Docka, '02.

Off-campus Study
Knox offers you plenty of opportunities to begin exploring the world while still a student. Almost 50% of Knox students participate in off-campus study and consider their studies abroad to be the highlight of their college experiences. Off-campus programs throughout the U.S. and overseas provide a wide variety of settings in which issues related to Gender and Women's Studies can be examined, including several programs that focus entirely on women or gender.

Internships
Few experiences can prepare you better for life after Knox than conducting an internship. As a Knox gender & women's studies student, you can conduct an internship for course credit either during the academic year or the summer, working closely with a faculty supervisor while engaging in fieldwork and completing an academic paper. A few recent internships by gender and women's studies students include:

• Fundraising Intern with Dialogue Direct, Chicago, Illinois. Megan Gamble, '06, gender & women studies and political science major.
• Union Organizer Internship at SEIU Local 880, Chicago, Illinois. Megan Gamble '06, gender and women studies and political science major.