History Major with Departmental Honors

The history departmental honors major offers an opportunity for motivated and capable students to engage in more extensive interaction with faculty and to complete challenging individual research projects that will further their personal and professional goals.

Application to the major: To be accepted to the program, students must have a cumulative and major/program grade point average of 3.50 and must have completed HIST 1200 , either HIST 1210  or HIST 2310 , HIST 2010 , HIST 2020 , and 10 elective credits in history. (As an alternative to HIST 1200  and HIST 1210  or HIST 2310 , students may complete the University Honors Program history sequence: HONR 1210 ,  HONR 1230 , HONR 2210 , and HONR 2220 ). Interested students should apply to the department chairperson in spring quarter for the following year’s department honors courses. Upon acceptance, a Change of Major, Degree, or Specialization form is submitted to the Office of the Registrar.

Completion of the major: During senior year, departmental honors students will take the departmental honors sequence (HIST 3770  in fall quarter, a 4000-level history research seminar in winter quarter, and HIST 4790  in spring quarter). Students in the departmental honors program complete 5 credits of course work above the norm for history majors (for a total of 70 credits in history) and write a substantial thesis under the direction of a faculty member. The thesis will be graded by departmental faculty and presented in an oral defense. In order to complete the requirements for departmental honors and receive a notation to that effect on their transcripts, students must also maintain a cumulative and major/program grade point average of 3.50. In addition, the grade received for HIST 4790  Departmental Honors Thesis Supervision, must be an A or A-. In addition to the bachelor of arts major in history requirements, the honors major also includes: