History Major & Minor Requirements

Major Requirements

One year of introductory work at the College level is required for admission to the major.

A major in history consists of the following:

One Introduction to History course (HIS 111)

One U.S. History survey course (201 or 202)

One World History or Western Civilization course (203, 204, or 205)

HIS 399: Historical Method (Junior Seminar)

History Senior Capstone Experience

Seven additional department offerings at the 300 and 400 level, at least one from each of the following sub-specialties: Early U.S., Modern U.S., Early Europe, Modern Europe, Global.

  • 313: Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century America
  • 315: The Early Republic
  • 319: African-American History
  • 343: History of American Women
  • 414: Comparative Cultural Encounters
  • 319: African-American History
  • 334: The American Civil War
  • 335: Reconstruction and the Gilded Age
  • 336: Progressivism and the Twenties
  • 343: History of American Women
  • 350: Empire and Papacy: Medieval Germany and Italy
  • 351: Ancient Rome
  • 352: Castles, Cloisters, Cathedrals, and Mosques
  • 354: Renaissance and Reformation
  • 355: Women in Medieval Europe
  • 360: Modern Germany
  • 391: Russia and the Soviet Union I
  • 392: Russia and the Soviet Union II
  • 357: Early Islamic Civilization
  • 371: History of South Africa
  • 372: Colonial Latin America
  • 381: History of Modern China
  • 383: History of Modern Japan
  • 414: Comparative Cultural Encounters
  • 473: Latin American Literature as History

Students will also take any two additional history courses at the 300 and 400 level, plus HIS 399 and the SCE. 

Senior Capstone Experience

The Senior Capstone Experience in history consists of studies in historiographical techniques and preparation of a substantial senior thesis. During the spring term of the junior year, history majors participate in a required course entitled Historical Method (HIS 399). In connection with this course, each student is assigned a thesis advisor under whose supervision a prospectus, preliminary bibliography and other elements are prepared. Students who wish to be considered for departmental honors, or who are preparing for graduate study in history or related fields, should request permission to attempt an honors thesis. Students who wish to be candidates for honors on the senior thesis must have a 3.5 grade point average by the start of Spring semester junior year.

Minor Requirements

The history minor requires successful completion of six courses: one Introduction to History course (HIS 111); one U.S. History survey course (201 or 202); one World History  or Western Civilization course (204 or 205), and three upper-division courses. At least one of the upper-division courses must be taken in U.S. History, and at least one must be taken in non-U.S. History. AP credits will not count toward the total course credits required for the minor.