Bachelor of Arts in History

Students who pursue a General History Concentration will examine a wide array of historical events to include their causes, consequences, and social impact. They will learn critical and analytical thinking and effective writing and research methods. Students explore the philosophies, personalities, strategies, leadership, and other factors that influenced the world. Topics cover American History, Ancient and Classical History, as well as European and Global History.

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

• Demonstrate a broad knowledge of historical literature that is relevant to the discipline.
• Summarize historical experiences that go beyond a single time period and national or cultural experience.
• Identify historical forces that have shaped social change and contemporary human problems.
• Interpret documents, and other forms of evidence, in their historical context.
• Apply historical methods to critically evaluate the past.
• Articulate, in writing, a persuasive and well-structured historical argument.

Students in the American History Concentration are encouraged to take HIST101-American History to 1877 and HIST102-American History after 1877 as part of their General Education Requirements.

Students who pursue a concentration in American History will study U.S. history from the Colonial Period to the present. This includes an examination of the philosophies, personalities, strategies, leadership, and other factors that influenced the United States. Topics cover foreign policy and military operations as well as the domestic political, economic, and social components of America.

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

• Assess the social, economic, and political situation in the United States from colonization to the present.
• Illustrate America’s evolving relationship with the rest of the world.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the major events, ideas, trends, and problems in American history.
• Explain how the past has shaped the present.
• Interpret documents, and other forms of evidence, in their historical context.
• Apply historical methods to critically evaluate the past.
• Articulate, in writing, a persuasive and well-structured historical argument.

Students in the European History Concentration are encouraged to take HIST121-Western Civilization before The Thirty Years’ Wars, and HIST122-Western Civilization after the Thirty Years’ War as part of their General Education Requirements.

Students who pursue a concentration in European History will focus on Europe’s history from ancient Greece to the present. Students will examine the political, philosophical, scientific, and social changes that laid the foundation for early Europe to the key developments that gave rise to modernity. Topics include the development of political, economic, and cultural institutions in early European societies and the rise of Europe as a global power in the modern period.

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

• Understand influences of the past on contemporary European events and problems.
• Analyze significant problems and situations as they relate to the current issues and the investigation of history.
• Demonstrate a wider perspective that recognizes the political, economic, and cultural interdependence of differing societies and people.
• Assess the specific contributions and perspectives of diverse members of European society.
• Interpret documents, and other forms of evidence, in their historical context.
• Apply historical methods to critically evaluate the past.
• Articulate, in writing, a persuasive and well-structured historical argument.

Students enrolled in the Concentration in Global History will examine the cultural interconnections, trade networks, conflicts, and major events that have taken place in the world from pre-history to the present. Students will study the political, philosophical, scientific, and social changes that shaped the world. Special emphasis will be placed on how the various regions of the globe interacted with one another over the millennia to create the modern world.

Upon successful completion of this concentration, the student will be able to:

• Assess the ways that different cultural groups have interacted through conquest, migration, commercial exchange, and cultural diffusion.
• Explain the development of different social, economic, and political systems.
• Describe the practices, ideals, and developments of major belief systems.
• Evaluate the social, economic, and political effects of the Industrial Revolution.
• Interpret documents, and other forms of evidence, in their historical context.
• Apply historical methods to critically evaluate the past.
• Articulate, in writing, a persuasive and well-structured historical argument.