Frequently Asked Questions

What did I learn from my GWST Minor?

Featured GWST Alums, Rachel Wick, Carol Morris, and Lisa Schmid share their stories.

Rachel Wick, Class of 2000
Systems Assistant, Minnesota Women's Press

1. What did I learn from minoring in GWST that helped foster my own personal development?

I learned to think critically about the images and expectations for women and men in our culture, and I realized that a lot of them were unrealistic and unfair.  Then I started to choose for myself which of those images I wanted to embrace and which I wanted to throw out.  The GWST minor really helped me create my own identity, one that was not based on prescribed notions of gender.

2. What did the GWST minor contribute to my academic development?

I loved that the GWST minor was interdisciplinary.  I studied history, literature, and philosophy, while learning about the significant contributions women made to these different areas of study.  The GWST minor was also a nice complement to my philosophy major.  I had the opportunity to study feminist ethics, which was really unique for a traditionally male dominated discipline like philosophy.

3. What did you learn from the GWST minor that has been useful for you in your job or career?

I work at the Minnesota Women’s Press as a systems analyst.  Basically, I am a communication and information hub between advertising, production, and billing.  The tasks themselves are not always interesting and fulfilling, but working with other feminists has been really positive.  I know that the GWST minor really led me to where I am now - doing good work for a worthwhile organization and continuing to think about gender issues daily.

Carol Morris, Class of 1999
Office Coordinator.  Office of Academic Advising, College of Saint Benedict.

1. What did I learn from GWST courses that helped foster my own personal development?

Taking GWST courses challenged me to rethink my values and beliefs and reflect on personal choices.  Learning about relationship dynamics helped me continue developing my interpersonal and coping skills with more confidence.  Many of the GWST courses were enlightening and helped me understand why I do what I do sometimes.  Through the process of rediscovering myself, I also learned how I really feel about many things, not just believing a certain way because that is how I was socialized.  I find myself making healthier choices for myself after taking many of these courses. 

2. What did the GWST minor contribute to my academic development? 

Gaining an understanding of the social construction of gender has helped me develop my communication skills (I am a Communication major) in ways I wouldn’t have considered possible without the minor.  For example:  Learning about ways muted groups communicate helped me learn that there are ways to express oneself that may fall outside the “norm”, but still be effective.

As far as my academic development, learning to ask the question, “Who benefits?” whenever I am presented with a scenario to analyze, is something I learned from taking various GWST courses.  

Learning about women’s roles and gendered social constructions in history enabled me to develop a worldview much different than from when I first entered college.  When I apply this “other” view to just about any subject, the subject takes on a much more challenging slant.  When carried over to various subject areas, it is easy to see how my educational experience was enhanced.  From a communication perspective, this helps me to always be aware that how I see something may not be the same as how someone else sees it.  I am constantly challenged to be more creative in how I communicate with others, as a result.

3. What did I learn from the GWST minor that has been useful for me in my job or career?

Courses in the GWST minor helped me discover and develop my personal leadership style.

They also helped me have the insight, knowledge, and confidence to move ahead and face challenges I may not have otherwise been willing to take on.  I feel more empowered and centered on a personal level, which carries over to my job.   

Lisa Schmid, Class of 1999

1. What did I learn from GWST courses that helped foster my own personal development?

I always joke that I became a feminist the day my t-ball coach told me that girls couldn’t play shortstop and stuck me out in right field. All jokes aside, I believe it’s probably true. I went through all of grade school and high school doing my best to advocate for equality between the sexes, knowing deep down that women were getting a raw deal and also realizing on some level that things were not that great for men either.

However, I never really had a chance to completely develop these thoughts/arguments until I took Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies my sophomore year at CSB. That class truly opened my eyes, and suddenly, I started seeing everything differently-from something as simple as a movie to something as complex as the relationship between sexism, racism, classism, and heterosexism. I finally had a place to flesh out all of the things I had been pondering for years. I learned to think critically, develop arguments, and to express my thoughts clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing.  These skills most definitely carried over into all aspects of my life.

Because of the minor, I became the woman I am today-a strong leader, a powerful advocate for women and social justice issues in general, and someone who will follow my heart and conscience, no matter where it takes me. I finally realized that what I had always believed about girls and women-that we are strong, unique, intelligent beings capable of doing anything we put our minds to, no matter what society says-is true. 

2. What did the GWST minor contribute to my academic development?

As I said above, the GWST minor further developed my leadership, critical thinking, and communication skills. The GWST minor classes also enabled me to examine all sorts of disciplines with a different kind of magnifying glass. History isn’t only about great white men and the great things they did, and great books aren’t only written by dead white men. I learned to question what I had previously believed was academic truth and discovered that the picture I had been given, while accurate, also left out a great deal. This discovery greatly enhanced my liberal arts education.

Additionally, because of my involvement in the minor, I approached the courses in my major, Political Science, a male dominated field, quite differently. I started challenging the norms and the traditional ways of thinking, particularly in my law and public policy courses. My degree in Political Science was only strengthened by my minor in GWST, and in some ways, I believe it was more complete. 

3. What did I learn from the GWST minor that has been useful for me in my job or career?  

I use my strong leadership, communication, and critical thinking skills daily in my job as a legislative assistant to a state senator. For example, I supervise our committee page, communicate with senators, constituents, other staff members, other government officials, and lobbyists, and make decisions that affect our office and the way we do things. I also believe that the GWST minor has given me the tools I need to stand up and argue for public policy that benefits women and promotes equality and social justice. I would not hesitate to tell my boss what I think about a particular piece of legislation and the way it will impact women. Fortunately, I work for a senator that needs very little reminding of such things! Ultimately, I know that the things I learned and the skills I developed through my experience in the GWST minor definitely contributed to my being able to have the job I love so much now.