Courses / Faculty of Arts and Humanities

PhD in Feminist and Queer Studies

General Objectives of the Course

The course aims to provide advanced training in the scientific field of Feminist and Queer Studies to students from various disciplinary backgrounds;
prepare students for a world in which sexual hierarchy, misogyny, homophobia and transphobia persist and are not always obvious;
to help students gain critical awareness of the subject's position in the process of knowledge production itself, as well as the politics underlying institutionalisation;
make them aware of the normative discourses that have constructed, in the past and present, images of women and non-binary people that framed their behaviour and defined their roles;
provide empirical data and methods for analysing the plurality of experiences of women and non-binary people, from the elites to the anonymous masses and marginalised social groups;
provide conceptual and operational methods and tools that are indispensable for research and academic production in this area of research at doctoral level.

Admission Requirements

1. The following are eligible to apply for this study cycle:
a) Holders of a master's degree, or its legal equivalent;
b) Holders of a bachelor's degree, those who have an academic or professional resume of particular relevance that is recognized by the Academic Board of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities as attesting to the ability to complete this study cycle;
c) Those who have an academic or professional resume of particular relevance that is recognized by the Academic Board of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities as attesting to the ability to complete this study cycle.

2. The recognition referred to in points b) and c) above only allow access to the study cycle leading to a PhD, and does not confer the equivalence of a bachelor's or master's degree, or the recognition of same.

Applicants who are non native speakers of Portuguese must exhibit level C1 proficiency in Portuguese.

Candidates should check the admission requirements available on this site, in addition to the information provided here.

Professional Goals

Expert, consultant, advisor specialising in gender issues;
Employers: International organizations: UN system organizations and their regional bureaus worldwide (UNIFEM, ILO, UNICEF, UNESCO), European Union, European Parliament, NGOs; National public entities: government (several ministries), Parliaments, municipal governments, Committees for Gender Equality, Committees for Migration and Multicultural Integration, National Education Council; NGOs; Private corporations.

Mode of Study

Face-to-face

Teaching / Evaluation language(s)

Portuguese Language

Examination Regulations, Assessment and Grading

As assessment is a pedagogical activity inseparable from the teaching process, its aim is to establish the students' competencies and knowledge, their critical sense, ability to recognize and resolve problems, as well as their written and oral presentation skills. Students may only register for exams for classes they are currently enrolled. The following are examples of assessment items: Oral or written exams, written or practical work, individual and group projects that may require an oral defense, as well as class participation. Assessment for each class may include one or more of the above mentioned items. Grading is based on a scale of 0 to 20 and a grade of 10 is required to pass. Whenever the grade comprises more than one item, the final grade is calculated by taking into account the relative weight of each item according a formula published in the course outline.

Learning Objectives and Intended Skills

By the end of the degree students should be able:
to do critical analysis of media, literary, historiographic and other representations of women;
to place in historical context both gendered discourses and social practices;
to understand the substantive issues involved in gender relations and social change;
to be familiar with identity theory and its relation with notions such as sexual identity / gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual citizenship and Human Rights;
to discuss the relation of feminism(s) with racial and ethnic identities and colonialism; and know the historical evolution of feminist theories and praxis;
to do autonomous research using the tools adequate to their chosen methodology and object;
to present research results, in oral and written form, clearly argued and sustained by theory and data;
to debate them in academic context at the highest level in dialogue with different disciplinary fields and epistemological positions.

Recognition of Prior Learning

The recognition of prior learning is carried out according according to the Academic Policy of the University of Coimbra in its current wording.

Qualification Requirements and Regulations

The legal framework for the qualification is established by the decrees: Decree-Law no 74/2006, 24th March, in its current wording; Ordinance nº 782/2009, 23rd July.

Graduation Requirements

A total of 240 ECTS including positive assessment in the course units constant of the program and an original thesis subject to public defense.

Access to Further Studies

Post-doctoral research.

Study Programme

Feminist and Queer Studies
Academic year
2026-2027

Course Type
3rd Cycle Studies

DGES Code: D063

Qualification Awarded: Doutor

Duration: 4 Year(s)

ECTS Credits: 240.0

Applications

Call for Applications

Accreditations

Agência de Avaliação e Acreditação do Ensino Superior

Nº Registo: ACEF/2526/1400421

2026-07-31 a 2032-07-30
Direcção Geral de Ensino Superior

Nº Registo: R/A-Cr 112/2015/AL01

2026-04-07

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