History Major

Dual Majors

A dual major including history requires a minimum of seven history courses; dual majors should normally meet the History department distribution requirements for history majors (see above ). Students with a dual major including history are encouraged to write their senior thesis on a topic in history. For further information, see Senior Thesis in History  above.

Please note the restrictions on honors in the major for students with a dual major including history under Honors in History  below. For further information on dual majors and the requirements for the other field of study of the dual major, please check the appropriate sections of the catalog.

Honors in History

To be eligible for departmental honors in history, a student majoring in history must:

• Achieve a “B+” (10.00) average in all history courses
• Receive at least an “A-” (11.00) in the two-semester, two-unit honors thesis in history, or in exceptional cases, a one-semester honors thesis preceded by a semester of honors independent study with the thesis advisor.

Students with a dual major including history who wish to be considered for honors in history will only receive honors if they:

• Have completed all requirements for a full major in history and are granted honors, or
• Qualify and receive honors in both disciplines of their dual major. See Academic Honors at Graduation  for details.

All participants in the honors program must register with the department chair at the beginning of their senior year. Students with a dual major including history who wish to be eligible for honors in history, must submit their thesis topic to the department chair for approval. In such cases, the thesis must include a substantial historical component and a member of the History department must serve as one of the readers.

Phi Alpha Theta

History majors can become members of the Alpha Theta Nu Chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, the national honors society for the study of history founded in 1921. Our chapter is a joint chapter with Scripps College, and information regarding membership is sent to majors at the start of the Spring semester. Application deadlines are in early March and the induction ceremony typically takes place in April of each year.

Membership includes a subscription The Historian for one year, and invitations to take part in chapter activities. In the past these have included essay contests, regional conferences, etc. For more information visit the Phi Alpha Theta website, and contact the department chair.

Learning Goals

The basic goal of the curriculum of the History department is to increase the intellectual breadth and transferable abilities of our students, and impart an understanding of the past in ways that enhance their understanding of the human condition, facilitate a better understanding of contemporary issues, and explore who we are. We achieve these goals by the distribution requirements within the major and by offering a diverse set of geographic, temporal, methodological, and thematic courses. Our courses emphasize: the critical reading of texts, writing clearly on assigned topics, speaking persuasively, and understanding basic research methodology; we endeavor to have students master specific disciplinary tools and acquire historical thinking skills through challenging class assignments.

Student Learning Outcomes

The student learning outcomes for the history major are:

1. Students will demonstrate a basic understanding of our nation and the world, the ideologies, values, and political, economic, and environmental forces that have shaped the past and the present.
2. Students will demonstrate intellectual breadth through knowledge of the histories of American, Western, and non-Western societies in different time periods.
3. Students will demonstrate an understanding of historical time and sequence, cause and effect, and will be able to place events in an historical context.
4. Students will demonstrate the ability to read sources and identify basic themes, and understand the past as it was experienced by those who lived then.
5. Students can differentiate between primary and secondary sources. They can understand biases in primary sources, where and how the ideas originated, and how they evolve.
6. Students will demonstrate research capabilities in history that allow them to frame a proper research topic, locate and utilize primary and secondary sources, and construct a coherent argument or thesis.