Graduate Courses
This course information is given for your reference only and does not substitute for the official MSU catalog or consultation with your academic advisor.
For degree advising, please contact your home department. Students interested in one of the gender-related specializations can contact the GenCen academic advisor at gjec@msu.edu. These courses contain 25% or more gender and development focus:
‡ Signifies gender content varies with instructor - students need to contact department.
* Contact department for information on the frequency of this course.
College of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (355-4478)
FW 811: Fisheries and Wildlife Laws and Regulation
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of odd years
Description: Legal and regulatory systems related to fisheries and wildlife management. State, federal, and international laws, policies, and agencies. Nongovernmental organizations. Conservation of biodiversity and endangered species.
FW 858: Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change: Issues and Concepts
Interdepartmental with Anthropology; Community, Agriculture, Recreation, and Resource Studies; Forestry; Geography; Sociology
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of odd years
Description: Issues and concepts related to gender, ecology, and environmental studies. Key debates and theoretical approaches to addressing environmental issues from a gender and social justice perspective. Gender and environment issues and processes from a global perspective.
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Department of Community, Agriculture, Recreation, and Resource Studies (353-5190)
RD 876: International Rural Community Development
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: This seminar is for graduate students concerned with rural community development as practiced through such activities as agricultural extension and research, production credit for rural women, watershed management projects, community forestry, farming systems research-extension, integrated rural development, pond aquaculture, farmer cooperatives, irrigation schemes, food security programs, etc. Analyses utilize comparative interdisciplinary systems approaches to sustainable, gender-sensitive policies, strategies, programs, and projects currently found in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America. It is designed for students who have had or seek practical field experience in domestic or international development activities.
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College of Arts and Letters
(355-4597)
AL 834: The African Atlantic: Women and Religion
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: Foundational and recent research literature on issues of women, religion, and the African Atlantic Diaspora.
‡ AL 891: Special Topics in Arts and Humanities
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Special topics supplementing regular course offerings, proposed by faculty on a group study basis. Past topics related to gender include African American and African Studies, 'Sistas and the City.'
‡ AL 892: Seminar
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Directed original research and its presentation. Past topics in Arts and Letters related to gender include Concepts of Self and Other in the Medieval and Early Modern Periods.
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Department of French, Classics, and Italian (432-8305)
*‡ FRN 810: Studies in Medieval French Literature
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Works of major writers of the French Middle Ages.
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Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages (353-0740)
* GRM 865: German Studies, Culture in Context
Credits: 1-9
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: Society and the dissemination of cultural knowledge, practices, and values in selected historical periods. Educational and political institutions and cultural politics. Literary and cultural marketplace. Past topics related to gender include Gender, Sexuality and Changing Love Paradigms.
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Department of Philosophy (355-4490)
PHL 850: Seminar in Political Philosophy: Feminism, Equality, and Impartiality
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of even years
Description: The course offers an examination of feminist and philosophical debate over the normative ideals of equality and impartiality. Readings include work by liberal equality theorists, such as Ronald Dworkin and John Rawls, as well as material drawn from a variety of feminists.
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Department of Spanish and Portuguese (355-8350)
SPN 876: Seminar in Gender Studies in the Hispanic World
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of even years
Description: Gender studies, including feminism and masculine identities.
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College of Communication Arts and Sciences
(355-3410)
‡ CAS 892: Special Topics
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Varied topics pertaining to advanced study of communication processes. Special topics include gender.
College of Human Medicine
(353-4998)
HM 528: Metabolic and Endocrine and Reproductive Domain
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Basic sciences applied to clinically relevant situations. Problem-based small group experiences.
HM 537: Topics in Reproductive Health
Credits: 1
Offered: 3
Description: Pre-clinical focus on topics of reproductive health.
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College of Law
(432-6800)
LAW 541A: Child Advocacy
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: This course is designed to acquaint future attorneys & social workers with their roles and responsibilities in representing and advocating for children and family as they interact with state government.
LAW 541B: Domestic Violence
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: A historical background of domestic violence. Focus will be placed on understanding the nature of domestic violence, the prevention of domestic violence, and the survivor and batterer behavior.
LAW 541D: Family Dissolution Law Reform
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: This course explores the discourse of no-fault divorce law and the need to reform. Several proposals will be explored.
LAW 541E: Family Law I: Marriage & Divorce
Credits: 1-4
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: The study of the substantive requirements of marriage, divorce, allocation of property, alimony, child custody, ante-nuptial agreements, and separation agreements.
LAW 541F: Family Law II: Child, Family, and the State
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: This course explores the legal issues confronting families. Topics will include marriage, parenthood, balancing work, domestic violence, adoption, and artificial insemination.
LAW 541M: Matrimonial Practice
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: This course focuses on practical skills necessary to develop expertise in handling matrimonial matters from initial client contact through each step of the process.
LAW 541N: Law and Gender
Credits: 2-4
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: This course covers the theoretical and legal issues associated with gender.
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College of Osteopathic Medicine
(353-7740)
OST 527: Systems Biology, Female Reproductive
Credits: 4
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: Multidisciplinary approach to the female reproductive system. Normal structure and function, and pathologies. Integration of basic science and clinical information in obstetrics and gynecology.
Department of Internal Medicine (353-0616)
IM 618: Clinical Tropical Medicine
Credits: 2
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: An introductory course to the practice of medicine in tropical settings. Specific diseases such as malaria and schistosomiasis are covered, as well as disease syndromes (fever, diarrhea, anemia, AIDS).
IM 621: Clinical Tropical Medicine Clerkship
Credits: 6-12
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: The International Health Elective Clerkship provides an introduction for medical students to the practice of medicine in a resource-poor setting. The base hospital is Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, one of two hospitals serving Malawi, which receives patients from all of the southern region of the country.
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Department of Osteopathic Surgical Specialties (353-8470)
OSS 651: Obstetrics and Gynecology Clerkship
Credits: 1-9
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Obstetric patient evaluation and management: motor skills, aptitudes, evaluation of postpartum patient, and management of gynecologic problems.
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College of Social Science
Department of Anthropology (353-2950)
ANP 831: Seminar in Cultural Ecology
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of even years
Description: Anthropological theories for understanding culture as a system of mediation between humans and environment. Cultural ecological approaches applied to sociocultural change and stability.
ANP 832: Class and Ethnicity in Social Differentiation
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of odd years
Description: Anthropological theories on nature and sources of social differentiation and inequality within cultures and ethnic communities. Class and ethnic identity in cultural contexts.
‡ ANP 834: Medical Anthropology I: Overview
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: Anthropological approaches to the study of sickness, disease, and healing. Medical anthropology as a subdiscipline.
‡ ANP 835: Medical Anthropology II: Theoretical and Applied Issues
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Seminar in the description and analysis of themes in medical anthropology.
ANP 836: Theories of Sociocultural Change
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of odd years
Description: Theoretical and methodological issues. Major theorists and models.
* ANP 839: Age and Gender
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of odd years
Description: This graduate seminar engages the geroanthropology gender debate by exploring the relationship between age and gender, similarities and differences between men and women at selected stages in the life course, and cross-cultural perspective, through the examination of global literature.
*‡ ANP 843: Nutritional Anthropology
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of odd years
Description: This course examines food, foodways, and nutrition in different cultural systems; production, storage, processing, and consumption; the social significance of eating, foods, and body image; and research methods.
ANP 859: Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change: Methods and Applications
Interdepartmental with Community, Agriculture, Recreation, and Resource Studies; Fisheries and Wildlife; Forestry; Geography; Sociology
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of even years
Description: Methods and case studies related to gender, ecology, and environmental studies. Methodological and fieldwork issues from a feminist perspective and in international/intercultural contexts. Qualitative and quantitative methods for integrating social and environmental data. For more information about this course, contact the Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change office at 353-5040.
* ANP 867: Social Impact Analysis
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of odd years
Description: Sociocultural consequences of development programs on populations, communities, and regions in developing and industrial societies. Theory, purposes, methods, outcomes, and uses of social impact analysis.
‡ ANP 880 (also offered as ANP 892): Contemporary Issues in Archaeology: Gender and Archaeology
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of odd years
Description: Theories, issues, problems, and methodological innovations affecting the conduct of research in archaeology. The course explores how a feminist-inspired critique of archaeological practice has increased awareness of the biases of earlier work and contributed to a critical understanding of how knowledge about the past is generated.
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Department of Family and Child Ecology (355-7680)
FCE 842: African American Families
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters
Description: Historical and contemporary approaches to the study of African and African American families. Major theoretical frameworks.
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Department of History (355-7500)
‡ HST 830: Seminar in African History
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Political, social, and economic history of Africa. Major interpretations and research methods. Periods and topics vary.
‡ HST 850: Seminar in Comparative History
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Comparative themes or problems from different cultures and countries. Major interpretations and research methods.
‡ HST 860: Seminar in Women's History
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Political, social, and economic history of women. Major interpretations and research findings. Topics vary.
‡ HST 880: Seminar in Comparative Black History
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Methods and concepts that inform comparative history. The slave trade as a definitive link between Africa and the two Americas and the Caribbean, creating the black diaspora. Rise and fall of the slave trade and of disparate slave systems. Periods and topics vary.
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School of Labor and Industrial Relations (355-1801)
LIR 891: Special Topics in Labor Relations and Human Resources
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall and Spring semesters
Description: Special topics in collective bargaining, human resources, employment, and training. Topics related to gender include Women at Work; Women in Work Organizations; and Globalization, Worklife, and Diversity.
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Department of Sociology (355-6640)
SOC 833: Gender and Power
Credits: 3
Offered: Spring semesters of even years
Description: Theory and research on gender and sexual inequality in socially-based systems of production and reproduction. Global and national gender inequalities in selected institutional settings.
SOC 839: Structural Inequalities and Families
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of odd years
Description: Macrostructural forces and family life. Role of class, race, and gender.
SOC 850: Population, Food and Rural Development
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: The course looks at the interactions among economic development, mortality decline, fertility decline, and international migration. The approach is historical and global. Special attention is paid to differences by gender in longevity and in motivations for childbearing. The effects of malnutrition on fecundity are discussed.
SOC 864: Social Ecology
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters of even years
Description: Interaction of technology, environment, social organization, population, and culture in processes of social evolution. Role of organization and structure in determining sustainability of both developing and industrialized societies. Co-evolution of significant components of society and biophysical environment.
‡ SOC 931: Topics in Structural Inequality
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: This graduate course focuses on current research on socioeconomic class, gender inequality, racial and ethnic inequality, power structures, social conflict, urban dynamics, and social change. One topic offered is Gender/Development/Globalization, which discusses women and post-colonial regimes of production and reproduction. Through readings and discussions, the course explores how capital, culture, and politics are linked to women's lives and communities and to their organization. The goal throughout the course is to interrogate the way historical transformations are implicated in unequal relations among and between people and nations and to interrogate the possibility of feminist and international politics of solidarity.
‡ SOC 970: Topics in Well-Being and Health
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall semesters
Description: This course focuses on topics such as family work and stress, risk and uncertainty, social epidemiology, and life course. For instance, the section entitled Political Economy of Women's Health addresses the social determinants of women's health and well-being. Through readings and discussions, students explore how interlocking political, economic, and medical systems are linked to women's bodies (the site where sickness and health are played out) and to women's experience of their corporeality. The goal throughout the course is to interrogate the way power is implicated in women's well-being and how health and sickness are socially and historically located and constructed.
