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History and Political Science The study of history presents challenges and fulfills important functions. It allows students to gain perspective on their own heritage, that is, to place cultural, scientific, and technological development within the context of that heritage. It also allows the student the opportunity to examine the heritage of other peoples, as well as the impact of other peoples' development upon their own heritage. The study of history offers, as well, a rigorous methodology which enhances the development of the ability to research, absorb, digest, and analyze evidence and to communicate what is learned in a cogent and concise manner. To meet these challenges and facilitate these functions, the history curriculum provides a selection of courses whose purposes are to enrich all students. At the same time, it allows the student pursuing a history major to acquire specialized knowledge and intellectual skills in order to fulfill important career functions in professions such as teaching, the law, library and archival work, museum work, journalism, government, and business. The rationale of our diversified history curriculum, therefore, is to prepare the college student to meet the challenges presented by contemporary society. Students are encouraged to take courses in political, economic, social, and intellectual history in order to achieve as diversified a background as possible. The structure of the department's programs reflect this objective.
FOUNDATION ____ English Composition I & II
_____ U.S. Constitution
_____ Mathematics --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: Graduation requirement: 120 credits.
U.S. History elective courses include: Colonial History, Civil War and Reconstruction, Age of Reform, and Psychological Foundations of Current History. European History electives include: Russian History, English History, History of France. Non-U.S./non-European History includes: Far Eastern History, Latin American History, and Middle East History. For the Political Science minor, course offerings range from State and Local Government through Comparative Government and International Relations.
Special Programs The programs which follow are designed to provide the student with more specific preparation for a professional career. This is accomplished through a particular orientation of their academic pursuits and/or through personal experience provided by internships and in-depth study afforded by independent study under department guidance. Students are encouraged to advance their interests in these areas by consultation with the faculty members indicted. Pre-Law Program The Pre-Law program is designed not only to prepare the student for law school, but also to lay a foundation for active law practice. This is done through a diversity of courses aimed at deepening the student's knowledge and broadening it as well. The pre-law student will ordinarily major in history with a minor in political science. Outside of the major and minor areas, the student will be encouraged to pursue courses that advance speaking and writing skills as well as a broad and solid foundation in the arts and sciences. Students interested in the program should contact Professor Robert M. Spector. Honors Curriculum This program is for Junior and Senior history majors who have distinguished themselves in historical studies as underclassmen. The program offers students the opportunity to pursue broader and deeper study in areas of personal interest in history. Membership in Phi Alpha Theta, the international history honor society, is available to distinguished students (B+ average in major). Students interested in the honors curriculum should contact Professor Joseph P. Baratta. American Studies Program The American Studies program offers a broad choice of independent study and internships in both public and private agencies. These include but are not limited to historical museums, libraries and archives, state, county, and local government offices, as well as private agencies which have a public interest. Students interested in this program should contact Professor David Twiss. Foreign Service Program The Foreign Service program is designed to prepare individuals for careers in the State Department and the intelligence community. An individualized program in the history major, it will be structured by the student in cooperation with the program advisor. In addition to the required courses, students will be encouraged to elect courses in the areas of economics, languages, management, geography, and related fields. Students interested in this program should contact Professor Emmett Shea. Labor Studies Program This is an interdisciplinary program offered under the combined auspices of the Departments of History and Political Science and Business Administration and Economics. Students who wish to pursue this program and who are selected for it will have career options in a number of areas including, in the private sector, industrial relations, personnel, and human resources management; in the public sector, opportunities in government administrative and regulatory agencies. The program is also designed to prepare the student for opportunities, in both the public and private sectors, in unions and other worker organizations as well as for graduate study in the disciplines sponsoring the program. Students interested in this program should contact Professor Bruce Cohen. Women's Studies History majors may elect a Concentration in Women's Studies with 15 credits beyond those required for the major. Applicable courses are offered by faculty in Health Studies, Languages and Literature, and Psychology in addition to History. Students should contact Professor Vivian Fox. American Antiquarian Society Program The History and Political Science Department participates on an annual basis in a cooperative research course with other consortium colleges and the American Antiquarian Society. Students participate in these programs upon nomination by the department. Students should contact Professor Sarah Sharbach.
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