College of Letters and Science
Department of History
Administration Building, Room 315University of Idaho
Moscow, ID 83844-3175
Voice: 208-885-6253
Fax: 208-885-8964
Richard B. Spence, Department Chair
Faculty: Katherine G. Aiken, Dale T. Graden, Wm. Kent Hackmann, Ellen E. Kittell, Rebecca K. McCoy, Carlos A. Schwantes, Richard B. Spence, William R. Swagerty. Affiliate Faculty: Marvin G. Slind, Merle W. Wells.
The study of history provides a broad, general view of human development from the beginning of recorded time to the present. Emphasis is on intellectual and cultural values and activities in political, social, economic, and religious institutions. Each course provides rigorous training of the mind to think, to evaluate problems, and to reach sound conclusions through the examination of general or specific chronological periods in several geographic settings. Special attention is given to written work in the form of quizzes, examinations, and review or research essays.
A major in history can be used in government service, the new specialty of public history, several areas of business and industry, and many other fields. It can also be used in preparation for study of the law, the ministry, and archival work and librarianship. Double majors combining history with other fields are easily arranged.
The history curricula provide, through lectures, seminars, and directed studies, a survey of mankind's experience. The department offers courses of study leading to the B.A. or the B.S. degree and has a staff of eight full-time professors who hold the Ph.D. degree. The historian's laboratory is the library, where one finds the record of the past as preserved in primary sources and interpreted by authorities in general works, monographs, and maps. The department has a good collection of maps, slides, and microform readers.
Graduate study is offered in American, English, European (medieval through modern), Latin American, and ancient history. The degree programs include Master of Arts, Master of Arts in Teaching, and Doctor of Philosophy, for which dissertation topics are limited to the fields of the American West, and Europe since 1760. Undergraduates considering graduate study should master at least one modern foreign language through the intermediate level.
Curricular Requirements for a B. A. in History
Required course work includes the university requirements (see regulation J-3), the general requirements for the B.A. degree, and:
- Lower-division courses selected from the following (9 credits):
- Hist 101-102 History of Civilization
- Hist 111-112 Introduction to U.S. History
- Hist 290 The Historian's Craft, 3 credits.
- Upper-division history courses, including a seminar in senior year, 27 credits.
- Related fields, 20 credits.
Curricular Requirements for a B. S. in History
Note: Students expecting to study for an M.A. or Ph.D. degree in history should take the B.A. rather than the B.S. degree.
Required course work includes the university requirements (see regulation J-3), the general requirements for the B.S. degree, and:
- Lower-division courses selected from the following (9 credits):
- Hist 101-102 History of Civilization
- Hist 111-112 Introduction to U.S. History
- Hist 290 The Historian's Craft, 3 credits.
- Upper-division history courses, including a seminar in senior year, 27 credits.
- Related fields, 20 credits.
- Any combination of the following (12 credits):
- Any foreign language (high-school foreign language may be substituted at the rate of 4 credits per year)
- Eng 111-112 Literature of Western Civilization
- FL/EN 313-314 Modern French Literature in Translation
- FL/EN 323-324 German Literature in Translation
- FL/EN 363-364 Literature of Ancient Greece & Rome
- FL/EN 393 Spanish Literature in Translation
- FL/EN 394 Latin American Literature in Translation
Requirements for a History Minor
- History courses chosen from the following* (9 credits):
- Hist 101-102 History of Civilization
- Hist 111-112 Introduction to U.S. History
- History courses at the 300- or 400-level (at least 3 credits in U.S. or Latin American hist and at least 3 credits in Ancient or European hist), 9 credits.
- History elective (may be course not taken above), 3 credits.
*For demonstrable cause, department chair or minor adviser may allow substitution of courses numbered above 100-level.
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