History, BA

Program Learning Outcomes

Objectives:

1. Analyze and use primary and secondary sources. 

   • Students learn to differentiate between primary and secondary sources and to evaluate the reliability of such sources.

2. Understand historical debate and controversies. 

   • Students learn to understand diverse interpretations and to examine different sides of historical debates.

3. Gain an understanding of historiography in given region and time period. 

   • Students learn to understand the ways historians in given regions and time periods have approached history and how the field has changed as new evidence is uncovered and re-examined.

4. Understand how to use evidence in writing research papers. 

   • Students learn to use leading historical journals, texts, and primary sources to examine the ways historians build arguments from evidence. Students in the history program also learn to use proper citations.

5. Productive skills: writing and oral expression. 

   • Students hone their writing and speaking skills and learn to articulate an argument regarding key historical events.

Degree Requirements

See the “Degree Requirements ” in the University Catalog for complete details on general degree requirements.

General Education Requirements (48 units)

See the “General Education ” requirements in the University Catalog for information on General Education requirements. Some major requirements may double count for GE requirements.

Major Core Requirements

• HIST 201 - Foundations of World Civilization Unit(s): 3
• HIST 202 - Development of the Modern World Unit(s): 3
• HIST 251 - History of the United States to 1877 Unit(s): 3
• HIST 252 - History of the United States Since 1865 Unit(s): 3
• HIST 498WIC - Senior Seminar Unit(s): 4

Major Electives

To finish the major, students must complete additional units in history to total 40 units. These units must include upper-division courses in 3 of 4 breadth areas:

• European history
• United States history
• World Regional (Asian, Latin American, African, or Middle-Eastern history)
• Comparative/Thematic/Global history

Among their major electives, students must take at least one upper-division course in the period before 1800 and at least one upper-division course that covers the period after 1800. An upper-division substitute for HIST 201/202 may not also count as a breadth or chronology requirement. Three (3) units of electives may be lower-division; the remaining 20-21 units must be upper-division.

History Teaching Credential Preparation

History majors—or majors in other programs—interested in seeking a general elementary credential or secondary school credential for social sciences may demonstrate subject matter competency by passing the CSET Multiple Subjects Exams or the CSET Single Subject Exam in Social Science. For further information and guidance, contact Steve Estes, Department of History, (707) 664-2313.

Public History Certificate

The Public History Certificate is a 22-unit interdisciplinary program designed to give students concrete research, writing, and interviewing skills that are applicable in a number of professions including museums, libraries, city/county governments, historic preservation organizations, and corporations. Students take core courses in history and elective courses in at least two other disciplines.  For further information and a list of qualifying courses, please consult the department website or contact the Department of History.

The Dual Language Historical Research Certificate

The DLHRC is a minimum 14 unit program that combines advanced language training with historical study and research, allowing students to broaden their topics of study by making use of primary and secondary sources in other languages. Students are required to demonstrate language proficiency, take a historical research methodology course, and two-4 unit history electives, a portion of which includes reading and research in non-English language sources. For further information and a list of qualifying courses, please consult the department website or contact the Department of History.

Units

GE units: 48

Major core units: 16 (6 units also count for GE)

Major elective units: 24

Concentration units: 16

University Elective units: 22

Total units to graduate: 120

Program Roadmaps