Changes in women's roles throughout the world are among the most deeply transforming forces in contemporary society. The social movement of women has a long and rich history, yet it is in recent decades particularly that we have witnessed an explosion of knowledge about the roles, status, experiences, and achievements of women.

The interdisciplinary field of women's studies integrates the perspectives and methods of many research disciplines with the aim of providing a cohesive understanding of the complex interactions between gender and social structure, personality, behavior and cognition, historical development, and creative expression. Some of the specific issues addressed in women's studies courses include the roles of women in their communities—both their individual contributions and their function as a class in the economy and in society; the nature of the family; the recovery of women's distinctive intellectual and artistic achievements; the nature and extent of the commonalities as well as the racial, class, and national differences in women's experiences; the origin and perpetuation of sex roles; and the dynamics of change.

Mills was one of the first colleges to offer a major in women's studies. A special feature of the major is a fieldwork project with one of the many women's organizations in the Bay Area. While a student's academic courses will address the position of women from a variety of standpoints, she will be expected to focus primarily on one discipline, such as sociology, history, visual arts, or literature. This focus will be reflected in the senior project, a major investigative or creative work undertaken with the guidance of two faculty members.

The student who chooses to concentrate in women's studies by majoring or minoring in this field prepares herself to make significant contributions to any of these aspects of contemporary life affecting and affected by women: politics, law, government and administration, social service and counseling professions, and intellectual and cultural life.