MA in Critical Gender Studies

Earn a valuable degree

This program is designed for applicants with a three-year bachelor’s degree or with limited background in gender studies. You can choose from two tracks: the research track with an extended research component or the applied track with focused training in critical policy studies and an internship.

QUICK FACTS

Full-time duration:

2 years

Starting in:

September

Tuition fee:

€12,000 per year  

Location:

Vienna, Austria

Degree:

Dual Austrian and the U.S. degree

The program aims at developing independent and critical thinkers with a broad basic knowledge of gender studies. It is designed to educate and train future generations of gender specialists in a variety of fields and professions that address the many gendered political, cultural and social challenges of contemporary society. These fields include education, academic research, social services, non-governmental organizations, policy, social change advocacy, government advising and applied research, journalism, as well as jobs that entail various kinds of artistic production. 

You will be trained to critically analyze established ideas, systems, and inequalities that decrease the possibilities for women and men to fully reach their human potential. The program offers rigorous training in critical gender analysis, writing, research skills, oral presentations, and internship experience. It also allows you to develop additional skills and knowledge in one of the two special tracks:  

1. The specialization in research prepares students to enter a PhD program or any number of relevant professions. Students in the Research Track do substantial research on theses in a wide range of disciplinary approaches to gender studies. 

2. The specialization in applied gender studies involves similar coursework in theory and method but requires focused training in critical policy studies from a gender perspective and a thesis that is based on a guided internship in a field and institution within the student’s area of interest. Graduates of the Applied Track are prepared to enter careers as gender professionals in a variety of governmental and non-governmental institutions where policy is made, analyzed, and/or challenged.

Study your passion

Courses include:

1. Foundations of Gender Studies  

2. Bodies Across Borders: Global Migration in Historical Perspective

3. Communism and Gender: Historical and Global Perspectives

4. Critical Race Theory: Race and Law from the United States to Europe

5. Economic Inequality: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

6. Gender in/and War

7. Gender, Labor Markets, Neoliberalisms

8. Gender, Sexuality, and Religion: Embracing, Questioning and/or Refusing the God(dess)

9. Intersectionality & Interdisciplinarity in Gender Studies Research

10. Feminist Qualitative Methods

11. Feminist Research the of Media and Popular Culture

12. Nationalism, Gender, and Sexuality

13. The Law and Politics of Combating Violence Against Women

Apply

Admissions requirements:

1. Completed online application form

2. Proof of English proficiency

3. Letters of recommendation

4. CV

5. Bachelor’s degree

6. Academic records

7. Statement of purpose

8. Some knowledge of gender or feminist scholarship