Course Outline



Core Curriculum (EC)

Teaching is organized around half-year or yearly ECs. Each EC class includes three hours of class work per week. Occasionally, classes will consist of day-long intensive work, occurring a few days a week for 3 or 4 weeks.


Some M1 and M2 classes will be divided into teaching and tutoring sessions to help students devise and write their respective projects.

Grading is based on written and oral work, organized within the EC framework. It is cumulative over the course of the semester or year and will require the regular presence of the matriculated students.



Types of Seminars :

Seminars are distinguished, not just by their object of study and research, but also by their aim and type of approach :


1 - Introduction to Theory Seminars (M1)

These mandatory seminars explain the current state of affairs and questions within the theoretical domain of the study of gender(s), sex relations, sexuality, social constructions and cultural symbolism in sexual differences across disciplines. They introduce the students to the history of the formation of the epistemological field, and the fundamental questions, texts, concepts, and terms which drive research in this field. They make up the "theoretical framework" for the M1 and M2.


2 - Interdisciplinary Thematic Seminars (M1-M2)

Any seminar that includes more than one discipline in its methods, body of texts, documents and materials studied, is considered interdisciplinary. Any seminar that is organized at the juncture of literature and history, or even sociology, anthropology, and psychoanalysis, for example. Some of these courses may be taught jointly. This type of courses emphasizes the burgeoning field of cross-disciplinary research and approaches.


3 - Specialty Seminars (M1-M2)

These are single-discipline seminars and they explore questions on gender and/or the differences between the sexes in each field and according to the particular approach : historical, literary, philosophical, political, sociological, etc.


4 - Methodological Courses (Research Methods)

These classes are taken either in our program or in an approved department (see above). They introduce students to the tools and research methods of their specialized fields. They help the student articulate a project and understand how to write a full-length dissertation.


5 - Free Seminars (M1-M2)

These courses are taken outside of the Master's program "Gender(s), theories of difference and the social relations of sex". There are two possible options :

a) The student may choose to deepen their specialty by taking a course in their particular field of interest offered by a different Master's course at Paris VIII or another institution with the permission of the student's research director (i.e. EHESS, Paris 1, Institut du Monde Arabe).

The choice of a major or minor will help during the transition from the M1 to M2, or between the Master's degree and the Ph.D.

b) the student may choose to study a subject, field or discipline which is under represented in the program (for example, philosophy, theatre, visual arts). He or she will then focus on emphasizing the interdisciplinary nature of his/her approach.


6 - Language classes (M1 or M2)

The Master's candidate must become competent in a language other than his or her mother tongue or language of habitual use. To this end, all students are required to take a course offered by the foreign languages and cultures department. However, students who can demonstrate written and oral competence in a language other than French, may be exempt. After an interview with a relevant committee, the student will be given a language course exemption. These students can then choose to take an additional "free" seminar in place of a language course.


Nota bene : For non-francophone students who have insufficient written and/or oral French skills, it is strongly recommended to take a refresher course of their own choosing.


The Inter-Department Options

The Master's degree "Gender(s), theories of difference and the social relations of sex" is already multi-disciplinary, if not trans-disciplinary. This is one of its particularities and its attractions.

Our Master's program and several other programs (History and Civilization Master's degree, the Humanities Master's degree, the Political Science Master's degree, the Sociology Master's degree, and the Private Law and Legal Careers specialty "Family Law", for example) have established a link via the free seminars or minors. This was done with the aim of reinforcing the student's specialty in the case of option A or by emphasizing the multidisciplinary nature of the project in the case of option B. In the former case, the specialty will be explicitly mentioned on the diploma.

In either case, seminars in other departments that address gender issues and sexual differences can be selectively given double credit for the degree "Gender(s), theories of difference and the social relations of sex", if the professors involved expressly state it.

Students who choose option A may take Research Method classes in other departments related to their specialty, if these courses are not offered within our program. The research director will help the students to find and choose the appropriate course.




Course Credits and Research Work


EC classes are recognized according to the credit system used by the European union, called ECTS (European Credit Transfer System). One EC class = 6 ECTS. The M1 dissertation is equal to 24 ECTS. The M2 dissertation is equal to 42 credits.


The student must receive a grade equal to or higher than the average after factoring in the dissertation and EC grades, in order for the course credits to be recognized. He or she must have a total of 120 ECTS.




Summary table of the master's outline, classes and credits
Year ECTS
Master's Year 1 Total : 60
2 Introduction to Theory EC 12
1 Methodology EC 6
1 Specialty EC 6
1 Multidisciplinary EC Seminar 6
1 Language EC 6
M1 Dissertation 24
Master's Year 2 Total : 60
Option A
2 Specialty EC 12
1 Multidisciplinary EC Seminars 6
M2 Dissertation 42
Option B
2 Multidisciplinary EC Seminars 12
1 Free EC 6
M2 Dissertation 42
Total Course Credits : 120