ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

The Department of History offers a curriculum that is global in its approach and integral to a liberal arts education. A history major enables us to understand human beings and institutions around the world through the study of the human past. It encourages us to understand ourselves and our multiple communities through comparison with cultures of other times and places. In a world that is increasingly interconnected, the study of history is a particularly apt way for us to understand both how the world we live in came to be and our place in it. Indeed, the department strives to place all national and local histories into a global context.

Reflecting the department's commitment to providing an education fit for a global world, the course sequence begins in the freshman year with HIST 101, Introduction to World History, and ends with a capstone seminar. Three courses in one world area offer depth, and one course in three other world areas contributes breadth of knowledge about the world.
HIST 101 and 200-level courses serve as the foundational prerequisites for the 300-level courses. Students planning a history major should take History and Theory (HIST 280) in the sophomore year, and Historical Methods (HIST 380) in the junior year.

To help prepare students for the world of work or for graduate school, the Department of History's curriculum offers two additional opportunities. Preceptorships (HIST 60 and HIST 61) offer a special opportunity for junior and senior history majors to work with Whittier faculty or teachers off-campus (local elementary schools or high schools) as teaching assistants. Preceptorships are especially useful for students intending to pursue either a graduate degree or a career in secondary school teaching, although they are open to all majors. Through a for-credit internship program (HIST 50), the department offers opportunities for students to gain work experience in a variety of educational or other settings, including museums, libraries, law offices, electoral politics, or non-profit organizations.