SOAS University of London

MA Gender Studies

The SOAS MA in Gender Studies will appeal to students with a variety of backgrounds and objectives:

• Those coming from Women's Studies or Gender Studies who wish to engage more deeply with gender theory about regional specialisation, especially, but not exclusively, the societies of Asia, Africa and the Middle East;
• Those coming from Asian, African or Middle Eastern Studies who wish to incorporate the study of gender into their areas of expertise; and
• Those having previously trained in particular disciplines, such as Cultural and Media Studies, Religious Studies, Comparative Literature, History, Anthropology, Politics, etc. who wish to deepen their training in feminist knowledge production.

The MA in Gender Studies consists of one calendar year (full-time), or two or three years (part-time, daytime only).

Students must take 180 credits comprised of 120 taught credits (including core and option modules) and a 60-credit dissertation.

Middle East Pathway Core

• Gender theory and the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East
• Dissertation in gender studies
• Queer Politics in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
• Dissertation Methods for Gender Studies

Standard Pathway Core

• Gender theory and the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East
• Dissertation in gender studies
• Dissertation Methods for Gender Studies

Middle East Pathway Compulsory

• Gender, Protest, and Revolution in the Middle East

Standard Pathway Guided options

• Gender, Protest, and Revolution in the Middle East
• Queering Migrations and Diasporas
• Queer Politics in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
• Transnationalism Queer, Trans and Disability Studies

Middle East Pathway Guided Options List B

• 750B Ethnographic Locations: East Asia
• 750A Ethnographic Locations: Sub-Saharan Africa
• Gender and Development
• Gender, Protest, and Revolution in the Middle East
• Queering Migrations and Diasporas
• Gender and the Law of War
• Queer Politics in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
• Law and Natural Resources
• Law, Religion, and the State in South Asia
• International Human Rights Clinic
• Human Rights and Islamic Law
• International Commercial Arbitration
• Law and Development in Africa
• Intellectual Property Law (PG)
• International laws on the use of force
• Foundations of International Law
• The Law of Armed Conflict
• Colonialism, Empire and International Law
• Water Justice: Rights, Access and Movements
• Comparative Constitutional Law
• Law and Society in Southeast Asia
• Law and Postcolonial Theory
• International Criminal Law
• Gender, Law and Society in The Middle East and North Africa
• Gender, Sexuality and Law: Selected Topics
• Gender, Sexuality and Law: Theories and Methodologies
• International Investment Law
• Law, Rights & Social Change
• Law, Environment and Social Justice
• International Migration Law
• International Refugee Law
• Law, Environment, and the Global Commons: Ice, Sea, Space and Beyond
• International Environmental Law
• Law and the Biodiversity Crisis
• The Prohibition of Torture in International Law
• Water and Development: Commodification, Ecology and Globalisation
• Multinational Enterprises and the Law I
• Multinational Enterprises and the Law II
• Business and Human Rights in the Global Economy
• Comparative Company Law
• Israel, Palestine, and International Law
• Palestine, Resistance, and the Law
• Alternative Dispute Resolution I
• Law and the Climate Crisis
• Qualitative Research Methods
• Mediated Culture in the Middle East: Politics and Communications
• Transnational Communities and Diasporic Media, Connectivity, Identity
• International Political Communication
• Podcasting
• Theoretical and Contemporary Issues in Global Media and Digital Communication
• Topics in Global Media and Digital Communication
• Prejudice, Conspiracy and Misinformation: Understanding the Debate around '(Post)-Truth'
• Palestine, History, Culture, Politics
• Violence, Justice and the Politics of Memory
• Genders and Sexualities in South East Asian Film

Middle East Pathway Guided Options List A

• Queering Migrations and Diasporas
• Gender and the Law of War
• Gender, Sexuality and Law: Theories and Methodologies

Teaching and Learning

Students must take 180 credits comprised of 120 taught credits (including core and option modules) and a 60-credit dissertation.

Gender Theory and the Study of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, are both compulsory courses for all students, in addition to Dissertation Methods in Gender Studies.

The MA in Gender Studies also offers a wide range of gender and gender-related courses from a comprehensive list offered by the Faculties of Languages and Cultures and Arts and Humanities.

The 12,000-word dissertation will be based on either the compulsory course or one of the component courses.

Graduates leave SOAS with an enhanced knowledge of gender and sexuality across cultures, as well as a wide range of transferable skills. Gender Studies is highly regarded by employers across many sectors, as increasingly, policymakers, businesses and governing structures understand the need to engage with gender and sexuality.

Recent Gender Studies graduates have been hired by:

• ActionAid
• Amnesty International
• Association for Women’s Rights in Development
• Commission for Gender Equality
• Euromet Feminist Initiative
• International Organization for Migration
• International Rescue Committee
• Raising Films
• The Children’s Society
• The Guardian