Bachelors in History

The History Major exposes students to deep connections between the study of past times and places, and the roots of that study in human concerns about values, identities, issues, and policies. Historians are analysts of complex data, exotic documents, and mysterious images, and writers of persuasive prose. The Department of History offers courses in ancient, medieval and modern European history, including Russian history; in both North and Latin American history; in the history of East Asia; and in world history. Through the years, the department has cultivated great strengths in the history of California and the American West. Some of the department s courses are chronological, some national or regional, and some are thematic, with special strengths in gender, race and ethnicity, popular culture, medicine, and urban history. Students are encouraged to sample courses that focus on different periods and places, but are required to take at least three courses from a thematic, temporal, or geographic concentration.