History, B.A.

Program Details

Department: History
Modality: In-Person
Concentrations: Public and Applied History; Law, Politics, and Society; Global Economies, Encounters, and Exchange: Race, Gender, and Culture; Environment, Science, and Technology
Semester Hours: 42

Objectives

History is the study of the human past as it is constructed and interpreted with human artifacts, written evidence, and oral traditions. It requires empathy for historical actors, respect for interpretive debate, and the skillful use of an evolving set of practices and tools.

As an inquiry into human experience, history requires that we consider the diversity of human experience across time and place.

As a public pursuit, history requires effective communication to make the past accessible; it informs and preserves collective memory; it is essential to active citizenship.

As a discipline, history requires a deliberative stance towards the past; the sophisticated use of information, evidence, and argumentation; and the ability to identify and explain continuity and change over time. Its professional ethics and standards demand peer review, citation, and acceptance of the provisional nature of knowledge.

The LMU History Department’s core competencies and student learning outcomes are adapted from the AHA Tuning Project: History Discipline Core (see https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/tuning-the-history-discipline/2016-history-discipline-core).

History Student Learning Outcomes

1. Build historical knowledge.
   1. Gather and contextualize information in order to convey both the particularity of past lives and the scale of human experience.
   2. Recognize how humans in the past shaped their own unique historical moments and were shaped by those moments.
   3. Develop a body of historical knowledge with breadth of time and place–as well as depth of detail–in order to discern context.
   4. Distinguish the past from our very different present.
2. Develop historical methods.
   1. Recognize history as an interpretive account of the human past-one that historians create in the present from surviving evidence.
   2. Collect, sift, organize, question, synthesize, and interpret complex material.
   3. Practice ethical historical inquiry that makes use of and acknowledges sources from the past as well as the scholars who have interpreted that past.
   4. Develop empathy toward people in the context of their distinctive historical moments.
3. Recognize the provisional nature of knowledge, the disciplinary preference for complexity, and the comfort with ambiguity that history requires.
   1. Welcome contradictory perspectives and data, which enable us to provide more accurate accounts and construct stronger arguments.
   2. Describe past events from multiple perspectives.
   3. Explain and justify multiple causes of complex events and phenomena using conflicting sources.
   4. Identify, summarize, appraise, and synthesize other scholars’ historical arguments.
4. Apply the range of skills it takes to decode the historical record because of its incomplete, complex, and contradictory nature.
   1. Consider a variety of historical sources for credibility, position, perspective, and relevance.
   2. Evaluate historical arguments, explaining how they were constructed and might be improved.
   3. Revise analyses and narratives when new evidence requires it.
5. Create historical arguments and narratives.
   1. Generate substantive, open-ended questions about the past and develop research strategies to answer them.
   2. Craft well-supported historical narratives, arguments, and reports of research findings in a variety of media for a variety of audiences.
6. Use historical perspective as central to active citizenship.
   1. Apply historical knowledge and historical thinking to contemporary issues.
   2. Develop positions that reflect deliberation, cooperation, and diverse perspectives.

Major Requirements

Minimum of 39 semester hours, distributed as follows and chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor: 

Course List

Code	Title	Semester Hours
Lower Division Requirements 1
HIST 1995	Introduction to History	1
Select one of the following:		4
HIST 2000	What Is History?
HIST 2050	Seminar in World History
HIST 2200	Seminar in European History
HIST 2450	Seminar in American History
HIST 2500	Seminar in Middle Eastern History
HIST 2600	Seminar in African History
HIST 2700	Seminar in Latin American History
HIST 2800	Seminar in Asian History
HIST 2910	Telling History in Public
Subtotal		5
Upper Division Requirements
One upper-division seminar 2		4
HIST 5995	Capstone ePortfolio	1
Subtotal		5
Major Electives
Select eight additional History courses (excluding 1- and 2-unit courses) 3		29
Subtotal		29
Generalist or Specialist Track
Select one of the following tracks:		24
Generalist Track
Specialist Track
Total Semester Hours		63

¹

Note: FFYS 1000 First Year Seminar sections taught by History faculty may count towards the major; HIST 1xxx courses fulfill the University Core Explorations: Historical Analysis and Perspectives requirement; FDIV courses taught by History faculty fulfill the University Core Foundations: Studies in American Diversity requirement, in addition to counting towards the major.

²

HIST 5000 Seminar in World History

³

Five (5) of the eight (8) courses must be upper-division History courses: HIST 3xxx, HIST 4xxx, or HIST 5xxx.

Generalist Track

The Generalist Track is an opportunity for students to develop a broad understanding of historical developments and approaches by taking a wide range of courses from different geographical regions and time periods. The Generalist Track develops students’ historical literacy as well as the critical thinking and writing skills that prepare them for a wide variety of careers. In addition to the above requirements, majors in the Generalist Track must take at least 2 courses per geographical region:

• Europe: HIST 1000-1299, 2001-2299, 3100-3299, 4100-4299, and 5100-5299
• US: HIST 1300-1499, 2300-2499, 3300-3499, 4300-4499, and 5300-5499
• World Regions: HIST 1500-1899, 2500-2899, 3000-3099, 3500-3899, 4000-4099, 4500-4899, 5000-5099, and 5500-5899

Specialist Track

The Specialist Track offers students the opportunity to “specialize” their program of study on a particular set of issues and themes. The Specialist Track enables students to focus on particular areas of interest in the History major and to develop expertise in a given area, often in connection with a desired career pathway. Individual courses may count for multiple concentrations. In addition to the above requirements, majors in the Specialist Track must take:

• At least 1 course per geographical region:
  • Europe: HIST 1000-1299, 2001-2299, 3100-3299, 4100-4299, and 5100-5299
  • US: HIST 1300-1499, 2300-2499, 3300-3499, 4300-4499, and 5300-5499
  • World Regions: HIST 1500-1899, 2500-2899, 3000-3099, 3500-3899, 4000-4099, 4500-4899, 5000-5099, and 5500-5899
• At least 3 courses in one of the following concentrations:
  • Public and Applied History (HPAH): Students will focus on debates in public history, including questions of history, memory, commemoration, and identity in the public sphere, as well as issues related to the presentation of public narratives of history (e.g., in textbooks, museums, online). Students will also apply their skills of historical analysis on the practice of public history–e.g., by curating museum exhibits, by creating public history websites or blogs, and/or by interning in museums and archives. In doing so, students will apply historical knowledge to address issues of contemporary relevance and will demonstrate, to those outside of academia, the importance of historical thinking for understanding issues in the contemporary world, as well as the nature of history as a process of continual re-interpretation.
    Courses include: HIST 2910 Telling History in Public, HIST 3910 Museums and Society, HIST 4273 Nazi Germany, HIST 4910 Topics in Public History, and other courses with the HPAH attribute.
  • Law, Politics, and Society (HLPS): Students will explore interrelationships of legal, social, and political issues in their historical context. Students will analyze law as a social institution; the intersections between law and categories such as religion, race, gender, and class; the role of law in social, political, economic, and cultural life; and the ways in which law reflects and informs social and cultural values and practices.
    Courses include: HIST 1300 Becoming America, HIST 1500 State, Society, and the Citizen in the Modern Middle East, HIST 3706 Justice in Latin America, HIST 4132 The Viking World, HIST 4150 Law and Society in Medieval Europe, HIST 4302 Jacksonian America, HIST 4303 The Civil War, HIST 4305 Victorian America, HIST 4432 American Reform Movements, HIST 4450 Urban America, HIST 4520 The Ottoman Empire, HIST 4705 The Inquisition: The Holy Office in Europe, Asia, and America, and other courses with the HLPS attribute.
  • Global Economies, Encounters, and Exchange (HGEE): Students will investigate the history of global interconnectedness, trade, and intercultural encounters and exchange. Rather than understanding world history as a collection of histories of separate regions, students will analyze world history as a series of developments that crossed state and regional lines, including the evolution of the world economy and the integration of national and regional economies, trade, migration, cultural exchange, technology transfer, colonialism and post-colonialism, and the transnational histories of race, gender, and religion.
    Courses include: HIST 1010 Premodern World History, HIST 1050 Modern World History, HIST 1060 Modern Global Environmental History, HIST 1120 Heirs of Rome: Europe, Byzantium, and Islam in the Early Middle Ages, HIST 1130 Crisis and Expansion: Europe and the World, 1200-1648, HIST 1200 European Empires, Exploration, and Exchange since 1500, HIST 1204 Revolutions in the Making of Modern Europe, HIST 1301 American and the Atlantic World 1450-1850, HIST 1401 The United States and the Pacific World, HIST 1500 State, Society, and the Citizen in the Modern Middle East, HIST 1520 The Social Lives of Commodities in the Modern Middle East, HIST 1600 African States and Societies since 1800, HIST 1800 Modern Asia: China, Korea, and Japan since 1600, HIST 3810 The Chinese Economy, HIST 4010 Pirates and Piracy, HIST 4020 Mediterranean Cities, HIST 4050 Global History of Food, HIST 4132 The Viking World, HIST 4205 Europe in the Long Nineteenth Century, HIST 4215 European Imperialism, HIST 4230 The City in European History, HIST 4250 Modern Britain and the British Empire, HIST 4281 Modern Russia, 1825-1991, HIST 4300 Colonial America, HIST 4402 Politics and Culture of the Cold War, 1917-1989, HIST 4423 Asians in America: From the "Yellow Peril" to the "Model Minority", HIST 4520 The Ottoman Empire, and other courses with the HGEE attribute.
  • Race, Gender, and Culture (HRGC): Students will take an intersectional approach to the study of identity, analyzing how race and gender have shaped personal identity, understandings of collective belonging, social difference, structures of power and inequality, belief systems, and political and social action. Students will explore how race and gender have intersected with–sometimes constituting, sometimes supporting, and sometimes undermining–other categories of identify and social organization, including class, religion, and nation.
    Courses include: HIST 1201 Power, Privilege, and Agency in Modern Europe, HIST 1300 Becoming America, HIST 1301 American and the Atlantic World 1450-1850, HIST 1400 The United States and the World, HIST 1401 The United States and the Pacific World, HIST 1510 Minorities and Women in the Modern Middle East, HIST 1700 Colonial Latin America, HIST 1750 Modern Latin America, HIST 2300 Red, White, and Black: Race in Colonial America, HIST 2400 Picturing Race and Gender, HIST 2405 Civil Rights Activism, 1880-Present, HIST 2410 Race and Ethnicity in America, HIST 2420 American Indian History, HIST 3252 Crime Stories: Morality, Deviance, and Popular Culture in Modern Britain, HIST 3272 Culture and Politics of Weimar Germany, HIST 3600 Conflict and Genocide in Africa, HIST 3702 Women in Colonial Latin America, HIST 4050 Global History of Food, HIST 4126 Medieval Spain: Land of Three Faiths, HIST 4205 Europe in the Long Nineteenth Century, HIST 4215 European Imperialism, HIST 4225 Gender and Sexuality in European History, HIST 4250 Modern Britain and the British Empire, HIST 4273 Nazi Germany, HIST 4302 Jacksonian America, HIST 4305 Victorian America, HIST 4401 Recent America, HIST 4403 Consensus and Conflict: America in the 1950s and 1960s, HIST 4410 History of Los Angeles HIST 4411 The American West, HIST 4412 History of California, HIST 4423 Asians in America: From the "Yellow Peril" to the "Model Minority", HIST 4425 Chicana/o History, HIST 4427 Immigrant America, HIST 4430 Women in American History, HIST 4431 History of Childhood and the Family, HIST 4432 American Reform Movements, HIST 4433 Health and Disease in American Culture, HIST 4440 Imagining Asian Pacific America, HIST 4441 Hollywood and History, HIST 4453 The Invention of Communities, HIST 4540 The Palestine/Israel Conflict, HIST 4700 Early Mexico, HIST 4830 Women in East Asian History, and other courses with the HRGC attribute.
  • Environment, Science, and Technology (HEST): Students will examine how the natural environment, as well as humans’ efforts to understand and control it (e.g., through agriculture, science, and technology) have shaped human history. Students will employ a variety of analytical lenses to explore science, the development of technology, and humans’ relationships with nature in relation to broader historical contexts, and as products and producers of those contexts.
    Courses include:HIST 1060 Modern Global Environmental History, HIST 1900 Science, Nature, and Society, HIST 3452 US Environmental History, HIST 3820 Environment and Economy in China, HIST 4411 The American West, HIST 4433 Health and Disease in American Culture, and other courses with the HEST attribute.
  • Individual Program: Students may design an individual area of concentration in consultation with a faculty advisor and with the approval of the Department Chair. The Individual Program must incorporate courses offered in the department and may not be fulfilled merely through independent studies courses (including the senior thesis).

Note:

An average grade of C (2.0) must be obtained in the courses included in the major.

Secondary Teacher Preparation Program in Social Science (History)

The Secondary Teacher Preparation Program (STPP) for Social Science (History) is designed for students who anticipate teaching history and social sciences in grades 6-8 or 9-12. Because of the rigorous standards set by the State of California for teacher credentialing, the Program at LMU is very specific in terms of the coursework you will be taking. With careful planning, however, it is possible to complete a History major, the University’s Core Curriculum requirements, the Secondary Teacher Preparation Program for Social Science (History), and the School of Education credential requirements in four years. The requirements are as follows:

History Major Requirements:

Minimum of 39 semester hours, distributed as follows and chosen in consultation with the STPP advisor:

• HIST 1995 Introduction to History 1 semester hour
• 1 lower-division seminar: HIST 2000, HIST 2050, HIST 2200, HIST 2450, HIST 2500, HIST 2600, HIST 2700, HIST 2800, or HIST 2910 4 semester hours
• HIST 4412 History of California 4 semester hours
• 1 5000-level seminar: HIST 5000-5899 4 semester hours​​
• Seven (7) additional History courses (excluding 1- and 2-unit courses). Four (4) of the seven (7) courses must be upper-division courses: HIST 3xxx, HIST 4xxx, or HIST 5xxx.
• Students may complete the History major by following either the Generalist Track or the Specialist Track (See the History B.A. for more information):
  • Generalist Track: 2 courses in each of the three geographical regions (Europe, US, World Regions)
  • Specialist Track: 1 course in each of the three geographical regions (Europe, US, World Regions) AND 3 courses in one concentration.

Social Science Course Requirements:

20 semester hours distributed as follows:

• ECON 1050 Introductory Economics 4 semester hours
• GEOG 1000 Human Geography OR GEOG 2000 World Geography 4 semester hours
• POLS 1200 U.S. Politics 4 semester hours
• POLS 1400 Comparative Politics OR POLS 1600 International Relations 4 semester hours
• THST 1080 Comparative Theology OR THST 1500 World Religions of Los Angeles 4 semester hours

School of Education Requirements:

• EDTL 500 Language Theory and Pedagogy 3 semester hours

• EDTL 501 Policies and Practices for Inclusive Classrooms 2 semester hours

• EDTL 502 Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion 3 semester hours

• EDTL 503 Effective Learning Environments 3 semester hours

• EDTL 521 Clinical Supervision 1 – Secondary Student Teachers 1 semester hour

• EDTL 525 Clinical Supervision 2 – Secondary Student Teachers 6 semester hours 

• EDTL 574 Introductory Methods for Teaching Secondary Literacy & Social Sciences 2 semester hours

• EDTL 575 Advanced Methods for Teaching Secondary Literacy & Social Sciences 2 semester hours

• EDUC 8000 Health Education + CPR Certification 1 non-credit hour; fee-based

• EDUC 8001 Foundations of Online Teaching 1 non-credit hour; fee-based

School of Education Credential Requirements (Non-Degree Requirements):

Students fulfill the Single Subject student teaching requirement for the preliminary teaching credential by completing 3 semester hours of EDTL 527: Secondary Teaching Seminar – Secondary Student Teachers and 6 semester hours of EDTL 525: Clinical Supervision 2 – Secondary Student Teachers, which are applied toward both the semester hour requirement for the baccalaureate degree in Social Science (History) and the requirements for the preliminary credential within the state of California. Student teaching is met through elective units taken as EDTL 527: Secondary Teaching Seminar – Secondary Student Teachers and EDTL 525: Clinical Supervision 2 – Secondary Student Teachers.

Note: If your catalogue year is earlier than 2023-2024, click the following link: School of Education Requirements for HIST-STPP (before fall 2023) for the School of Education requirements for the degree and credential.

Advising:

Students should consult with the Director/Advisor for the Secondary Teacher Preparation Program in Social Science (History), Elizabeth Drummond, to sign up for the program and to discuss their course of study, especially their History and Social Science courses.

The Center for Undergraduate Teacher Preparation (CUTP) is also available to assist students interested in teaching careers in elementary, secondary, bilingual, and special education. Students interested in a career in teaching should consult with the CUTP Senior Director, Dr. Annette Pijuan Hernandez, or Associate Director, Hilda Bedinian, to discuss their options. All students in the teacher preparation pipeline work with a dedicated CUTP advisor for all education coursework. CUTP has a library of information and advice for prospective teachers as well as sponsors several informational sessions every year. CUTP is located in UNH H 2600. Please contact cutp@lmu.edu for more information. For more information about the Center for Undergraduate Teacher Preparation, check out this video.

School of Education Admission:

Students interested in adding a preliminary credential in Social Science (History) must apply for admission to the School of Education to formally add the preliminary credential to their program. Students should work with the STPP Director and their advisor in CUTP to determine when to apply. Instructions on this process can also be found here.

History Model Four-Year Plan

The normal course load is 16 semester hours (4 classes). By following the model below, a student will complete all lower division core requirements by the end of the sophomore year as well as HIST major prerequisites. Note that core areas are suggested to provide a distribution of various disciplines every semester. Please be flexible implementing these suggestions, given your own interests and course availability. In four years, this plan meets all common graduation requirements, provided students take an average of 16 hours each semester.

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
Fall		Semester Hours
HIST 1995	Introduction to History	1
HIST 1XXX		4
FFYS 1000	First Year Seminar	4
University Core		3-4
University Core		3-4
	Semester Hours	15-17
Spring
HIST 2300-HIST 2449		4
RHET 1000	Rhetorical Arts	4
University Core		3-4
University Core		3-4
	Semester Hours	14-16
Sophomore Year
Fall
Select one of the following:		4
HIST 2000	What Is History?
HIST 2050	Seminar in World History
HIST 2200	Seminar in European History
HIST 2450	Seminar in American History
HIST 2500	Seminar in Middle Eastern History
HIST 2600	Seminar in African History
HIST 2700	Seminar in Latin American History
HIST 2800	Seminar in Asian History
HIST 2910	Telling History in Public
University Core		3-4
University Core		3-4
Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	13-16
Spring
HIST Lower or Upper Division		4
HIST Upper Division		4
University Core		3-4
Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	14-16
Junior Year
Fall
HIST Upper Division		4
University Core		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	13-16
Spring
HIST Upper Division		4
HIST Upper Division		4
University Core		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	14-16
Senior Year
Fall
HIST Upper Division		4
University Core		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	13-16
Spring
HIST Upper Division Seminar 5000-HIST 5899		4
HIST 5995	Capstone ePortfolio	1
Upper Division Elective		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
Upper Division Elective		3-4
	Semester Hours	14-17
	Minimum Semester Hours	110-130

Secondary Teacher Preparation Program in Social Science (History)

Four Year Plan for HIST-STPP Major:

Freshman Year

Fall Semester

• FFYS 1000 First Year Seminar (FFYS Core) 3 or 4 semester hours
• HIST 1995 Introduction to History 1 semester hour
• HIST 1300 Becoming America, HIST 1301 America and the Atlantic World, OR HIST 1401 The U.S. and the Pacific World (EHAP Core) 4 semester hours
• THST 1080 Comparative Theology (FTHI Core) 4 semester hours
• POLS 1200 U.S. Politics (EHVB Core) 4 semester hours

Spring Semester

• RHET 1000 Rhetorical Arts (FRTA Core) 4 semester hours
• HIST 2300-2499 Lower-Division History (FDIV Core) 4 semester hours
• PHIL 1800 Philosophical Inquiry (FPHI Core) 4 semester hours
• Quantitative Reasoning (FQTR Core) 3-4 semester hours

Sophomore Year

Fall Semester

• EDTL 501 Policies and Practices for Inclusive Classrooms 2 semester hours

• EDTL 503 Effective Learning Environments 3 semester hours

• HIST Lower-Division Seminar (HIST 2000, HIST 2050, HIST 2200, HIST 2450, HIST 2500, HIST 2600, HIST 2700, HIST 2800, HIST 2910) 4 semester hours
• GEOG 1000 Human Geography OR GEOG 2000 World Geography 4 semester hours
• Creative Experience (ECRE Core) 3-4 semester hours

Spring Semester

• EDTL 502 Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion 3 semester hours

• EDUC 8001 Foundations of Online Teaching 1 non-credit hour; fee-based

• HIST 4412 History of California 4 semester hour

• HIST Lower or Upper Division 4 semester hours
• HIST Upper Division 4 semester hours
• Nature of Science, Technology, and Mathematics (ESTM Core) 3-4 semester hours

Junior Year

Fall Semester

• HIST Upper Division 4 semester hours

• HIST Upper Division 4 semester hours

• ECON Introductory Economics 4 semester hours

• POLS 1400 Comparative Politics 4 semester hours OR POLS 1600 International Relations 4 semester hours

       

Spring Semester

• HIST Upper Division 4 semester hours
• HIST Upper Division 4 semester hours
• Faith & Reason Core (IFTR Core) 4 semester hours
• Ethics & Justice Core (IEJH CorE) 4 semester hours

Senior Year

Fall Semester

• EDTL 574 Introductory Methods for Teaching Secondary Literacy & Social Sciences 2 semester hours

• EDTL 500 Language Theory and Pedagogy 3 semester hours

• EDTL 521 Clinical Supervision 1 – Secondary Student Teachers 1 semester hour

• HIST Upper-Division Seminar (5000-5899) 4 semester hours

• Interdisciplinary Connections (IINC Core) 3-4 semester

• Elective 3-4 semester hours

Spring Semester

• EDTL 575 Advanced Methods for Teaching Secondary Literacy & Social Sciences 2 semester hours

• EDTL 527 Secondary Teaching Seminar – Student Teachers 3 semester hours

• EDTL 525 Clinical Supervision 2 – Secondary Student Teachers 6 semester hours

• EDUC 8000 Health Education + CPR Certification 1 non-credit hour; fee-based

Note: Depending on the number of 3-unit courses taken, students might need to take an additional two 1-unit courses or one 2-unit course.

For more information about the Center for Undergraduate Teacher Preparation, check out this video.