How to Be a History Major

There are many possible paths leading to the History Major at Whitman -- class offerings span the centuries and the globe, and there is no required introductory course. The best place to begin is with your own interests: for first-year students, either 100-level or 200-level classes are the best place to start; very few history classes have prerequisites.

Some guidelines for undeclared students as you explore History as a possible major--

• 100-level courses are all surveys, often covering an entire continent over a fairly long period of time. If you have already taken a good history survey course in high school (for example Western Civ, or AP European or US history), we suggest an exploration of some other part of the world, or else digging in a bit more deeply at the 200- or 300-level. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask one of the faculty!
• The only number that will tell you anything about the level of a course is the first digit: History 297, for example, is not "harder" or "more advanced" than, say, History 218. In fact, the latter two digits can be misleading: you need to take at least one other 200-level (or a 300-level) class before you take History 201. But in general any 300-level class will probably require more reading, more complex interpretation and analysis, more independent research, than a 200-level class.
• Very roughly, classes get more narrowly focused as course levels go up. Hist 277, for example, explores European history during the 19th Century; Hist 329 focuses on France from 1789 to 1815. But there are quite a few exceptions to this rule, as you will see when you read through catalog course descriptions. And very few classes (with the exception of the 400-level research seminars) expect prior knowledge of the area you'll be studying. If you have questions about a particular class, feel free to ask the professor who will be teaching it.
• History majors are required to take classes from three different geographic areas. If you're deciding on your second or third class in the department as you contemplate the major, try a new continent. Note that 100-level classes do not fill the geographic area requirement.
• You can count up to 6 credits of 100-level work toward the major. If you have already taken two 100-level classes, or if you've earned AP credit in history, you'll probably want to head toward the 200- and 300-level classes.

For a more detailed description of major requirements, see Requirements and Rationale for the Major.

return to History Department homepage.

updated 3 August 2007.