The department requires that majors have a breadth of competence in the history of various areas of the world, and that they have an ability to research carefully, using a variety of methods. Considerable attention is given to the philosophy of history and the various points of view with which scholars have approached the study of the past. Historians contribute to society as teachers and researchers on many levels and in many settings: in classrooms from grammar school to university, in museums, archives, and libraries, at historical sites and for a wide variety of public and private agencies.

A background in history also provides a useful foundation from which to move into a variety of fields, particularly those professions that require an understanding of human activity?the ministry, journalism, law and politics, business. The history faculty represent a wide spectrum of the discipline in subject matter and methodology, from political history to material culture study, ethnic, gender and religious history, from ancient civilizations to the present, in the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.