About PhD Program,

The PhD in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies prepares students for advanced professional careers in academia as well as non-profit, private, or public sector careers in fields such as law and public policy.

Graduate coursework prepares students for the intellectual capacity to read for their tailored candidacy exams and design and implement dissertations projects. The PhD program is subdivided into the regular PhD track and the direct-to-PhD track. The regular PhD track is for students already holding Master’s degrees and takes an estimated five years to complete, while the direct-to-PhD program is for students without a previous Master’s degree and takes an estimated six years to complete. Students in either PhD track who do not already hold and MA in WGSS can obtain the MA by successfully completing 30 credits and passing the MA written exam or by successfully completing the PhD candidacy exam. Obtaining the MA will not interfere with progress toward the PhD.

PhD Program Degree Eligibility with GPA,

Applicants should meet or exceed all OSU Graduate School admissions requirements. While the official minimum GPA is 3.0 scale, successful Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies applicants generally have undergraduate GPAs of 3.6 or higher and graduate GPAs of 3.9 or higher.

The PhD program accepts students with a Master’s degree as well as students coming directly from a Bachelor’s program. Applicants should have a BA or MA in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies or a closely related field and a strong grounding in feminist theory. Successful applicants to the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies PhD program have had undergraduate GPAs of 3.6 or higher and graduate GPAs of 3.9 or higher. Applicants are reviewed holistically on the basis of letters of recommendation, statement of purpose, GPA, writing sample, and TOEFL scores (for international applicants). The GRE is NOT required for PhD applicants.

Applicants for the PhD program need to demonstrate rigorous preparation, commitment to serious intellectual study, and extraordinary scholarly ability. Applicants to the direct-to-PhD program who are deemed highly competitive but not yet ready for doctoral work will be considered for the MA program. Applicants to the PhD program who are currently enrolled in our MA program are evaluated on the same criteria as those applying from other schools.

Admission to the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies PhD program is very competitive. The department admits approximately 5-10% of applicants. The number of PhD spots open for admission varies year to year. Experience has shown that the best predictors of success in the program are a rigorous scholarly background in feminist theory and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. It is highly recommended that students who do not have this background acquire it before applying. However, Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies is an interdisciplinary program and students with different academic backgrounds are still welcome to apply.

PhD Funding Coverage,

With rare exceptions, the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies offers full funding during Autumn and Spring semesters of the academic year for all admitted PhD students, including international students, through a Graduate Associateship or a fellowship. Most Graduate Associates will serve as Graduate Teaching Associates (GTAs). GTAs are expected to teach one class during autumn semester and one class during spring semester in exchange for tuition and fee waivers (~$12,000/year for residents of Ohio and ~$32,000/year for non-residents), a health insurance subsidy ($~2,300/year), and a nine month stipend (currently at $2,364/month equaling $21,280/year). There’s no additional application needed for this opportunity as all admitted WGSS graduate students receive funding. PhD students generally receive five years of funding while direct-to-PhD students receive six.

At present, we cannot guarantee summer funding for every student. Our base funding package is a nine-month stipend that covers September through April, along with half of May and half of August. Summer funding opportunities are limited to a handful of GTA positions, with priority granted to advanced PhD candidates.

Application Requirement,

These materials are required by the Department and the Department determines the specifications of each item (e.g. page length, details included, etc.). Questions about these materials should be directed to Program Coordinator Rebekah Sims.

Statement of Purpose: A brief intellectual statement of purpose (up to three pages, double spaced) that explains why the applicant wants to pursue a graduate degree in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. The statement of purpose should emphasize the applicant’s scholarly interests, future career plans, and detail how a graduate degree in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies is the logical next step in the applicant’s professional and intellectual development.

All applicants must communicate their interest with their potential advisor before submitting their application. Prospective students should contact the core WGSS faculty member they wish to work with via email in order to determine research fit and advisor capacity. Email contacts for our faculty members can be found on the people page. Applicants should list the potential faculty advisors they have contacted and confirmed availability from in their statement of purpose. Applicants who have not communicated with their potential faculty advisor will not be considered. Applicants may also indicate which WGSS affiliated faculty they wish to work with during their course of study.

Applicants to the master’s degree should discuss the fields of study that most interest them. What themes within these fields strike them as compelling for further study? MA applicants should detail why WGSS at Ohio State can support them in their pursuit of their studies.

Applicants to the doctoral degree should have clearly delineated fields of study, along with a well defined dissertation topic.

Curriculum Vitae: The CV is where the applicant should provide information on their educational achievements; relevant employment/internship experiences; relevant volunteer and public service experiences; publications; presentations; awards and honors (including grants and scholarships); relevant travel experience such as study abroad; involvement in extracurricular activities; etc. If the applicant has received awards for scholarship or academic leadership or service, a brief explanation of the awards should be included for reviewers unfamiliar with their purpose.

Writing Sample: The writing sample must be in English. It should be on a subject matter relevant to Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies scholarship. It can be a paper prepared for a class, a publication (article, chapter) or a paper presented at a meeting, a chapter or section of a longer work such as a book or thesis, etc. The idea is to show the level of intellectual work that the applicant has achieved. It is recommended that the writing sample be between 10 and 20 pages in length. Samples over 20 pages will not be read in full. If the sample is a chapter or section from a longer work, a cover page should be included as well as an outline of the longer document, indicating where the chapter or section fits in. Do not submit an entire thesis or a book.

Letters of Recommendation: Applicants are required to submit three letters of recommendation. Unless the applicant has significant compelling reason (e.g., having been removed from formal academics for an extended period of time), all letters should come from faculty who can speak to the applicant’s skills as a student and capacity for graduate education. The central application guides applicants through how to request electronic letters of recommendation from recommenders. Do not send hard copies of recommendation letters to the department. Applicants will need to provide their recommenders’ names, institutions, and email addresses. Your recommenders will receive an email from the university 1-3 days after you submit your application and they should follow the instructions in that email for uploading their letters. Please contact the Office of Graduate and Professional Admissions for assistance with any issues related to submitting letters of recommendation.

 Materials Required by the University

These materials are required by the University and the Department has no ability to alter or waive them. Questions about these materials should be directed to the Office of Graduate and Professional Admissions.

English Proficiency Test Scores: International applicants are required to submit proof of English proficiency. Ohio State accepts official TOEFL, IELTS and MELAB scores sent directly from the testing agency. Please see below and consult the English proficiency requirements at Ohio State for additional information.

Transcripts: Applicants are required to submit one academic transcript from all institutions where college credit was received.  Applicants may upload scanned images of official paper transcripts issued by the institution’s Registrar via the document uploader. Make sure to mark out all U.S. social security numbers before scanning. See “Admission Process” -> “How do I attach my transcript to the application?” on the Graduate and Professional Admissions FAQ page for additional information. If the applicant needs to order electronic transcripts, they can be sent via email to gpadocs@osu.edu. Ohio State will not accept web reports, advising reports, self-reported scores, or transfer credit on another school’s transcript. Official transcripts are only required after admission to the program.

 Materials Not Required

GRE: The Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality does DOES NOT require the GRE for admission. Please DO NOT submit GRE scores with your application.

Additional Advice

For insight into how to compile a WGSS graduate application, please review this help guide on applying to WGSS programs from NWSA:

Application Deadline,

Dec 01, 2024

Application Fee,

A nonrefundable $60 fee for U.S. students and $70 for international students is charged for each regular or supplemental application you submit to Ohio State for graduate study. Your application is not processed until you pay your application fee and the fee is authorized. Ohio State accepts American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa.