The Department of History offers bachelors of arts and masters of arts degrees in history and a graduate certificate in public history and specializes in Southern history, Georgia history, women?s history, and military history, among other areas. For undergraduates, the Department participates in the University Honors Program, and for graduate students the Department has several graduate assistantship opportunities.

In survey after survey, employers stress the need for people who think critically and write well.

History graduates work as analysts in business in government, as researchers, public relations officers, editors, teachers, sales executives, and managers. History is a preferred pre-law major, and two Georgia Southern history professors are also attorneys who give students expert advice on choosing classes and getting into law school. History majors also go to graduate schools in business, public administration, information science, education, and journalism, in addition to history.

History prepares students for careers in public history, including archival management, museum curatorship, and historic preservation.

More than dates and events, history gives us a broader view of our world. By understanding how people thought and acted across the ages in the different parts of the world, we can better understand the events of today and how we can influence tomorrow.

Learning Outcomes

Students will:

  • Display knowledge of fundamental themes and narratives in history. This implies the ability to:
  • Discuss diverse time periods, peoples, situations, and societies;
  • Perceive past events and issues in an appropriate historical context;
  • Comprehend the interplay of change and continuity;
  • Grasp the complexity of historical causation;
  • Appreciate the nature of judgments about the past;
  • Read critically to differentiate fact and conjecture, evidence and assertion, and thereby to frame useful questions.
    • Conduct original historical research. This implies the ability to:
  • Design analytical and historiographically significant research questions;
  • Research and analyze historical evidence from both primary and secondary sources;
  • Construct an interpretation that answers the questions posed in the project;
  • Situate the interpretation in the historiography of the topic being analyzed.
    • Communicate historical knowledge and explanations to others. This implies the ability to:
  • Present a historical interpretation in a well organized, readable, and logical manner;
  • Follow proper rules of grammar and syntax, and accepted style of the profession.