School of Arts and Humanities
History (BA)
The study of history aims to promote a broader, more critical understanding of the world and our place in it, to give students the ability to contextualize events in the present by distinguishing them from past times and places, and thus to provide the basis for making informed decisions in the public sphere. While the interpretive and communication skills students develop as History majors will be of value to them in their work lives, the History major aims at humanistic understanding rather than specific vocational ends. Because the term "history" refers to both the object of study (the human past) and to the discipline by which we claim to know that past, the History major at the University of Texas at Dallas aspires to both expansive knowledge of the past, achieved through breadth and distribution requirements, and critical assessment of the means by which historians reconstruct and interpret the past, emphasized in the required Historical Inquiry course, the disciplinary focus requirement, and the research project undertaken in the Senior year.
Students who complete the major in History may design distinctive degree programs by selecting among courses in a range of geographical areas, time periods, approaches to the study of history, and topical subject matters. Students are encouraged to focus their work in History on a particular time or place, significant theme, topic, or problem, and to balance breadth and range of historical study with depth in a particular subject. Students may also be certified to teach history and/or social studies.
Since the following catalog course descriptions are very general, students are urged to consult the detailed course descriptions available on the web site for the School of Arts and Humanities. At least one-half of the semester credit hours for a major must be taken at UT Dallas.
Most upper-division courses in History are open to all students in the University who have met lower-division core requirements.
Bachelor of Arts in History
Degree Requirements (120 semester credit hours)1
View an Example of Degree Requirements by Semester
Faculty
Professors: David F. Channell, Pamela Gossin, David A. Patterson, Nils Roemer
Associate Professors: J. Michael Farmer, Kimberly Hill, Monica Rankin, Natalie J. Ring, Eric Schlereth, Daniel B. Wickberg, Michael L. Wilson, Benjamin (Ben) Wright
Assistant Professors: Rosemary Admiral, Anne Gray Fischer, Amy Kerner, Whitney Stewart
Professors Emeriti: Joan Chandler, R. David Edmunds, Stephen G. Rabe
Associate Professors Emeriti: Peter Park, Gerald L. Soliday
Clinical Associate Professor: Jeffrey Schulze
Clinical Assistant Professor: Pia Jakobsson
Research Assistant Professor: Debra Pfister
I. Core Curriculum Requirements: 42 semester credit hours2
Communication: 6 semester credit hours
Select any 6 semester credit hours from Communication Core courses (see advisor)
Mathematics: 3 semester credit hours
Select any 3 semester credit hours from Mathematics Core courses
Life and Physical Sciences: 6 semester credit hours
Select 6 semester credit hours from Life and Physical Sciences Core courses
Language, Philosophy and Culture: 3 semester credit hours
PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy3
PHIL 1305 Introduction to Philosophy of Religion3
PHIL 1306 Introduction to Ethics3
PHIL 2316 History of Philosophy I3
PHIL 2317 History of Philosophy II3
HUMA 1301 Exploration of the Humanities3
LIT 1301 Introduction to Literature3
LIT 2329 Introduction to Ethnic American Literature3
LIT 2331 Introduction to World Literature3
Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Language, Philosophy and Culture Core courses (see advisor)
Creative Arts: 3 semester credit hours
Select 3 semester credit hours from Creative Arts Core courses
American History: 6 semester credit hours
Select 6 semester credit hours from American History Core courses
Government/Political Science: 6 semester credit hours
Select any 6 semester credit hours from Government/Political Science Core courses (see advisor)
Social and Behavioral Sciences: 3 semester credit hours
Select any 3 semester credit hours from Social and Behavioral Sciences Core courses
Component Area Option: 6 semester credit hours
PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy3
PHIL 1305 Introduction to Philosophy of Religion3
PHIL 1306 Introduction to Ethics3
PHIL 2316 History of Philosophy I3
PHIL 2317 History of Philosophy II3
HUMA 1301 Exploration of the Humanities3
LIT 1301 Introduction to Literature3
LIT 2329 Introduction to Ethnic American Literature3
LIT 2331 Introduction to World Literature3
Or Select any 6 semester credit hours from Component Area Option Core courses (see advisor)
II. Major Requirements, Lower-Division: 0-6 semester credit hours beyond Core Curriculum4
One of the following World Regional History Surveys (3 semester credit hours):
HIST 2340 Middle East Civilizations3
HIST 2341 East Asian Civilizations3
HIST 2350 Latin American Civilizations
HIST 2360 European Civilizations
And one of the following (3 semester credit hours):
PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy3
PHIL 1305 Introduction to Philosophy of Religion3
PHIL 1306 Introduction to Ethics3
PHIL 2316 History of Philosophy I3
PHIL 2317 History of Philosophy II3
HUMA 1301 Exploration of the Humanities3
LIT 1301 Introduction to Literature3
LIT 2329 Introduction to Ethnic American Literature3
LIT 2331 Introduction to World Literature3
III. Major Requirements, Upper-Division: 42 semester credit hours
Major Core Courses: 6 semester credit hours
HIST 3301 Historical Inquiry
HIST 4390 History Capstone Project5
Major Distribution and Elective Courses: 30 semester credit hours
30 semester credit hours of upper-division HIST courses are required beyond the Major Core Courses. These courses must meet the following distribution requirement:
Major Distribution Courses:
Select any 3 upper-division semester credit hours from 3 of the following 5 geographical areas (9 hours)
- East Asian History
- European History
- Latin American History
- Middle Eastern History
- North American History
Select 3 upper-division semester credit hours from each of the following disciplinary focus areas (12 hours)
- Gender and Women's History
- Race and Ethnicity
- Intellectual History
- Pre-1500 History
All courses will be designated with the geographical and disciplinary focus areas they cover. The same course may be used to meet no more than two distribution requirements. No double counting of courses will reduce the requirement that students must take a total of 30 semester credit hours of upper-division HIST courses in addition to the major required courses.
In addition, in order to achieve depth students will be required to take a second linked course in any one geographical or disciplinary focus area that they have used to fulfill the distribution requirements above.
Research-Focused Course:
All 4000-level HIST courses have a focus on historical research. Select at least 3 semester credit hours of HIST courses at the 4000-level. Note that HIST 4390 History Capstone Project requires students to further develop a research project begun in a prerequisite 4000-level course taken in a prior semester. Make sure to choose 4000-level course(s) in the area you wish to focus on for your capstone project.
It is recommended that you take a variety of 4000-level HIST courses.
Major Elective Courses:
Once meeting the requirements above, students will take between 3-15 additional semester credit hours of HIST electives, for a total of 30 semester credit hours.
Major-Related Courses: 6 semester credit hours
Select 6 semester credit hours of major related upper-division electives from the following list of courses:
Any 3000 or 4000 level course AHST Course
ARHM 3342 Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies in the Arts and Humanities
DANC 3340 Dance in Historical Context
FILM 3321 Film in Historical Context
MUSI 3322 Music in Historical Context
MUSI 3324 Jazz History: Roots to Swing
MUSI 3325 Jazz History: Modern Jazz since BeBop
PHIL 3321 Philosophical Traditions I
PHIL 3322 Ancient Philosophy
PHIL 3323 Early Modern Philosophy
PHIL 3324 19th and 20th Century Philosophy
PHIL 3328 History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine
THEA 3323 Performance in Historical Context
IV. Elective Requirements: 30-36 semester credit hours
Free Electives: 30-36 semester credit hours
Both upper-and lower-division courses may be used as electives, but students must complete at least 51 semester credit hours of upper-division courses to qualify for graduation.
Incoming freshmen must enroll and complete requirements of ARHM 1100.1
1. Incoming freshmen must enroll and complete requirements of UNIV 1010 and the corresponding school-related freshman seminar course. Students, including transfer students, who complete their core curriculum at UT Dallas must take UNIV 2020.
2. Curriculum Requirements can be fulfilled by other approved courses from institutions of higher education. The courses listed are recommended as the most efficient way to satisfy both Core Curriculum and Major Requirements at UT Dallas.
3. A required Preparatory course that also fulfills a Core Curriculum requirement. Semester credit hours may be counted in Core Curriculum.
4. 0 semester credit hours beyond Core Curriculum, if the student has not previously completed other courses to satisfy these core curriculum requirements.
5. HIST 4390 requires students to complete a capstone project based on research completed in a previous 4000-level course. You need to complete at least 3 SCH of 4000-level HIST courses before you can sign up for HIST 4390, and it is recommended that you take a variety.