About
the Department of History
The goal of the Department of History at Case
Western Reserve University is to enable students
to grapple with the complexities of the present
by equipping them with a deeper understanding
of the past. In addition, the members of the Department
seek to convey to students the exhilaration and
fun of learning more about the past. Furthermore,
historical study is central to a liberal arts
education and provides career and skills preparation
for a great variety of fields including law, government,
journalism, teaching, business, public administration,
the foreign service, editing, archival administration,
museum administration, historical restoration
and preservation.
The Department of History offers courses in United
States, European, East Asian, and African history.
In addition to traditional historical emphases,
our faculty possesses skills and interests in
the history of technology and science, women's
studies, legal history, the use of computers in
historical studies, social and economic history,
and cultural studies. The History Department cooperates
with other departments in interdisciplinary programs
and sponsors an array of student activities. It
encourages students to make use of other area
institutions, including Western Reserve Historical
Society and the Cleveland Museum of Art, as well
as encouraging participation in the Junior Year
Abroad program or the semester in absentia in
Washington DC.
Information
for Majors and Minors
The department offers these basic undergraduate
history programs: the history major leading to
the Bachelor of Arts degree, available in the
regular major and the teaching certification track;
the history minor and sequence; the History of
Technology and Science minor and sequence.
Major
The regular major, based on the Arts and Sciences
Core, offers students the maximum flexibility
in pursuing an intellectually coherent course
of study with a concentration that interests them.
Students who choose to major in history must:
Minors
The Department of History offers two basic minors
to all students in the University. Please note
that a Minor in history, consisting of five (5)
courses, fulfills the Humanities and Social Sciences
Sequence requirement of the Case School of Engineering
Core Curriculum. All students in the Case School
of Engineering and Arts and Sciences Cores are
invited to complete a Minor in history.
History Minor: 15 hours, consisting of :
HSTY 112, 113, and three additional courses,
which must be chosen in consultation with the
departmental Advisor to form a coherent field
of historical inquiry (examples include all of
those listed for the major).
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Information
for Case Core Sequences
For students enrolling in the Case School of
Engineering after July 1, 1998, a sequence of
three history courses satisfies the Humanities
and Social Science Sequence requirement in the
Engineering Core Curriculum. There are two basic
sequences:
Sequence in History: 9 hours, consisting of:
HSTY 112 or 113 and two additional courses,
chosen in consultation with the adviser.
Sequence in History of Technology and Science:
9 hours, consisting of:
Two of the following courses: HSTY 151, 152,
201, 202, and one additional history course approved
by the adviser.
Senior Research Seminars
HSTY 398 is offered every semester. All majors
must, in their senior year, complete a one term
research project in an area of interest, under
the supervision of one or two faculty members.
Undergraduate Tutorials
HSTY 397 is available for 1 to 3 credit hours
for students who have completed 12 credit hours
of History and who have secured the consent of
an instructor. A full statement of policies and
regulations governing HSTY 397 is available from
the departmental Advisor.
Special Programs and Activities
Honors: Majors are recommended for graduation
with Department honors for superior performance
in History, including the 398 senior seminar,
by action of the faculty.
IGS: Integrated Graduate Studies. This
is a program leading to the simultaneous completion
of the B.A. and the M.A. (Master of Arts) in History.
Prerequisites, to be completed during the Junior
year, include completion of the undergraduate
major plus other college requirements (Core, minor,
etc.), and a 3.2 GPA. Further details are available
from the Undergraduate Advisor, Professor Altschul.
Junior Year Abroad and In Absentia. The
Department encourages students to consider the
Junior Year Abroad program and/or the one-semester,
senior year, "Washington D.C. In Absentia"
program. Information is available from Collegiate
Affairs, (for JYA) (Baker 102, x2928) and Professor
McHale, (for Washington Semester) (Political Science,
Mather House Room 113, x2425).
SHC: Society for History and Culture.
The Department hosts a student organization open
to students of all majors and disciplines who
have an interest in history, world affairs, and
related subjects. SHC sponsors social and programmatic
activities, often in conjunction with Phi Alpha
Theta. Contact the SHC advisor, Professor
Elisabeth Köll.
Phi Alpha Theta. The History Department
forms the Eta-Lambda Chapter of Phi Alpha Theta,
the national history honor society. Students become
eligible for nomination as members of the society
upon completion of fifteen credit hours of history
with a grade point average in history of at least
3.2. Phi Alpha Theta sponsors lectures, films,
and social hours—all with a history focus.
For information contact Professor
Elisabeth Köll.
Awards and Prizes. Each year the Department
gives awards and prizes in recognition of outstanding
achievement in history. These awards and prizes
are announced at, and winning students are invited
(as guests of the Department) to the Department's
Annual Banquet. The actual presentation of the
prizes and awards takes place at the College Honors
Assemblies each spring.
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Advising
Overall supervision is maintained by the Undergraduate
Advisor, Professor
Renée Sentilles (ext. 5413; renee.sentilles@case.edu).
Students wishing to declare a major, minor or
sequence do so with her and then are assigned,
depending on intellectual and career interests,
to a specific faculty member. Students are required
to consult with their assigned advisor each semester
for guidance in planning their course schedules.
Other
Undergraduate Programs
Members of the Department actively participate
in other interdisciplinary undergraduate majors
and programs which students may wish to explore.
-
American Studies: Professors Hammack,
Williams, Sentilles
-
Asian Studies: Professor Köll
-
Classics: Professor Altschul
-
Environmental Studies: Professor
Steinberg
-
French Studies: Professor Levin
-
German Studies: Professor Ledford
-
History and Philosophy of Science and
Technology: Professors Rocke, Levin
-
International Studies: Professor
Ledford
-
Women's Studies: Professors Levin,
Sadowsky, Sentilles
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Advanced
Placement Policies
The Department of History grants course credit
to students who attain scores of 4 or 5 on Advanced
Placement examinations in European and US. history.
Students who score 4 or 5 on the European history
Advanced Placement exam receive credit for HSTY
212: Modern European History; those who score
4 or 5 on the U.S. history exam receive credit
for HSTY 256: American Political History. Course
credit by virtue of Advanced Placement scores
does not exempt any student from the two introductory
courses, HSTY 112 and 113.
Can I Take a 300-Level History Course If I'm
Not A History Major?
Yes, of course you can. While depth and breadth
of historical knowledge is always an advantage
in a more narrowly-focused upper-level course,
history as a discipline does not have the same
ladder of prerequisites that other disciplines,
especially the natural sciences, have. If you
are interested in German history, or Chinese history,
or the history of women in the United States,
you may feel free to sample our course offerings
beginning at the 300-level.
