The Designated Emphasis program was developed to accommodate some of the many students who conduct graduate-level research in gender and/or sexuality related topics on the Berkeley campus. Administered by the Department of Gender & Women’s Studies and its affiliated faculty, the DEWGS provides its students with certification as well as with a context for the interdisciplinary exchange of ideas and development of research.
Applicants will be selected according to their academic qualifications, the appropriateness of their interests to the program’s teaching resources, and the enrollment capacity of its graduate seminars. To be admitted to the program, applicants must already be accepted into an existing Ph.D. program at UC Berkeley (master’s students and students at other institutions are not eligible). Graduate students should apply in their third semester for admission to the program in their fourth semester. Students must apply before completing their qualifying examinations. The Designated Emphasis aims to admit 15 students per year.