For Students
Explore Gender & Women's Studies Heading link
A Message for Students Heading link
Over the past generation, gender has emerged as one of the most vital areas of research and teaching in higher education. Most professional associations in the liberal arts and sciences now have special divisions or sections devoted to the study of women, gender, and sexuality. In fields such as history, literature, psychology, and sociology, to name just a few, scholarship on gender has experienced explosive growth, and the curriculum in liberal arts and sciences departments has expanded to include courses on gender at every level of study.
Firmly rooted in the Liberal Arts & Sciences, a GWS major has as its central objective to provide students with an interdisciplinary perspective on the role of gender in society and culture. A GWS major will offer undergraduates an understanding of the many economic and policy implications of gender roles and sexual behavior both in the United States and across the globe. As an interdisciplinary major, it especially offers the opportunity to look at a critical contemporary issue through the multiple perspectives of the arts, humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.
The GWS Program at UIC has both wide and deep connections within a range of departments in Liberal Arts and Sciences. Many departments and programs have undergraduate courses cross-listed with GWS. As a result, students who major or minor in Gender & Women’s Studies get their first introduction to another discipline, like history, through the GWS Program. As existing departments update their curricula, the growth of gender studies is reflected in their revised programs of study.
These ties also exist at the level of graduate education, since GWS offers a graduate concentration to students in graduate programs. Currently, over 13 departments in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, as well as programs in Education, Social Work, and Nursing, offer their students the option of a GWS graduate concentration; individual students from an additional seven programs – Urban Planning, Disability Studies, and Kinesiology among them – have successfully petitioned to do the concentration.
The many joint appointments that characterize the GWS faculty lines have created particularly strong links with departments such as history, English, psychology, anthropology, political science, and Latin American and Latino Studies. In addition to cooperative ventures in curriculum with them, these ties often lead to jointly-planned and sponsored non-curricular programming. Moreover, the growth of gender studies as an area of research is reflected in many recent hires across the university; a strong GWS Program is an inducement to these faculty to come to UIC. GWS contributes to the work of many departments in Liberal Arts and Sciences and to the work of many of UIC’s professional schools.
Important Links Heading link
Important Resources:
Centers for Cultural Understanding/Social Change
Part of the Office of the Vice Provost for Diversity, The Centers for Cultural Understanding and Social Change are a group or centers focused on student success, dynamic community engagement, and creating welcoming environments for the UIC community.
Wellness Center
From the UIC Wellness Center: We support student learning, academic success, and retention by providing wellness services that promote healthy attitudes and behaviors, empower students to make informed choices and enhance holistic well-being.
Counseling Center
From the UIC Counseling Center: We provide diverse services to help students deal with stress, handle a crisis or trauma, cope with the transition to college, gain strength from gender and cultural identity, or manage serious mental illness and many other issues.
UIC Counseling Center
1200 W Harrison, Suite 2010
312-996-3490
The Counseling Center is a primary resource providing comprehensive mental health services to foster personal, interpersonal, academic, and professional thriving for UIC students. We provide students with accessible and culturally sensitive mental health services to promote overall wellness and to help them make the most of their learning experiences. Staff includes psychologists, psychiatrist, doctoral psychology trainees, and social worker.
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:00pm; evening hours by appointment only.
Counseling Center is supported by the Health Service Fee; therefore all fee paying, enrolled students are eligible.
Counseling Center After-Hours Crisis Counselor
312.996.3490, press “2”
Telephone crisis intervention, support, and referrals.
UIC Department of Psychiatry’s Neuropsychiatric Institute
912 S Wood Street
312-996-2200
Services offered: https://www.psych.uic.edu/clinical/adult-services
UI Health Adult Psychiatry Services provide treatment for mood and anxiety disorders, women’s mental health, psychosis, neuropsychology, health psychology, neuropsychiatry, and behavioral neurology. Outpatient and inpatient services are provided.
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:00pm, Saturdays 9:00am-1:00pm by appointment only.
Prioritizes access for students covered by CampusCare health benefits plan.
Miles Square
1220 South Wood Street
312-996-2000
Mile Square Health Center provides healthcare services for patients at a variety of life stages. Much of what we do is primary care, which means we offer continuous, essential day-to-day healthcare for our patients concerning acute and chronic physical, mental and social health issues. We also provide appropriate referrals when needed.
Hours: Mondays 8:00am-6:00pm, Tuesdays 9:30-6:00pm, Wednesday-Friday 8:00am-6:00pm
Accepts Private insurances including Medicare and Medicaid. Sliding scale fees may be available.
Office of Applied Psychological Services (OAPS)
1107 W Harrison room 3011A
312-996-2540
The Office of Applied Psychological Services (OAPS) is a mental health clinic in the Psychology Department at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). We offer therapy and psychological assessment using approaches that are based on scientific theory and supported by scientific evidence, with an emphasis on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques. OAPS serves the UIC community, including faculty, staff, and students, as well as people living or working in the greater Chicago area.
Hours: Monday-Thursday 9:00am-5:00pm, Fridays 9:00am-3:00pm
Sliding scale fees available for therapy and psychological testing services.
Office of the Dean of Students
From the UIC Office of the Dean of Students: We provide a student-centered learning environment that offers support, advocacy, and resources that contribute to student success.
LAS Advising
From LAS Advising: Assigned advisors located within the advising center are equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to assist undergraduate student advisees on university and college degree requirements, general education requirements, and academic policies and procedures.
Rise Act Applications
The RISE (Retaining Illinois Students and Equity) Act was signed into law at UIC on June 21, 2019 and allows state and institutional financial aid eligibility to a subset of students who were previously ineligible. The Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid provides a pathway for students to apply for the MAP Grant and institutional funding at UIC.
Students impacted by the RISE Act include:
- Undocumented students who are Illinois residents
- Transgender students who do not complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) due to the requirement to report their gender “at birth”