U-HIST-AB - History (AB)

Requirements

Ten history courses, at least seven of which must be at or above the 200 level. The ten courses may include one transfer credit and up to three courses cross-listed as history courses regardless of the department through which the student enrolls. At least seven must be from the list of approved “core” history courses on the department website.

The ten courses are to be distributed as follows:

1 Gateway Seminar: History 150-199 are identified as gateways and are ideally taken by the end of the sophomore year.

3 Courses from a Geographic Area of History: Select one course each in any three of the six geographic areas listed below.

4 Courses in an Area of Concentration: Students have two ways to focus their studies in History. A geographic concentration allow you to explore a specific area of the globe while a thematic concentration allow you to focus on a specific theme or subject area from an historical perspective.

• You must select at least four courses in your chosen field of concentration.

• One course below the 100 level may be counted toward the student’s concentration.

• Concentration courses count toward meeting the area and pre-modern distribution requirements.

2 Pre-Modern Courses: At least two courses must focus substantially on eras before 1800 (consult list on department website).

1 Capstone Seminar: Select at least one senior research seminar (History 550-499s) specifically coded CAPSTONE SEMINAR or CAP SEM. This seminar is usually taken in the junior or senior year.

• A 500-600 level history seminar may be substituted for the capstone seminar if approved by the director of undergraduate studies and the course instructor.

• The senior thesis seminar (History 495S and 4965S) substitutes for the capstone seminar for those students accepted into the program.

Geographic Concentrations:

•        Africa and Middle East

•        Asia

•        Europe and Russia

•        Global or Comparative

•        Latin America and Caribbean

•        United States and Canada

Individual courses in each area are listed on the department website. If a course is not listed, students should petition the Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) to classify it appropriately (a syllabus may be requested).

Thematic Concentrations:

•        Economic and Business Cultures

•        Emotions and Psychology of Self

•        Human Rights and Social Movements

•        Law and Governance

•        Medicine, Science, and Technology

•        Race and Ethnicity

•        War, Military, and Society

•        Women, Gender, and Sexuality

Individual courses in each are listed on the department website. If a course is not listed, students should petition the DUS to classify it appropriately (a syllabus may be requested).

Double Counting: Courses can fulfill two or more requirements. For example, History 226 on Ancient and Early Modern Japan could count towards both a pre-modern and a geographic area requirement. For a student with an area concentration on Asia, it would also count toward their geographical concentration requirement.

Advanced Placement: Advanced Placement (AP) courses do not count as one of the ten required courses for the history major.

International Baccalaureate:  International Baccalaureate (IB) courses do not count as one of the ten required courses for the history major.

Transfer Credit: One History course taken abroad or at another college may be counted towards the major if approved by the DUS.

• The History Department sets a relatively high standard in evaluating whether college-level courses completed at other institutions are acceptable as equivalent to courses taken in our department. Approval is not automatic and will be awarded only on a case-by-case basis and must be accompanied by a syllabus.

• Courses taken in a Duke abroad program (e.g., Duke in Florence, Duke in Berlin) are not counted as transfer credits towards the major because they are considered to have been taken at Duke.

Cross-listed Courses: Three Duke courses from other departments that that have been cross-listed in history can count towards the ten courses required for the major.

• However, when taking courses cross-listed in history that originate in other departments, the major must be careful to guarantee that their ten courses for the major include seven courses listed as “core” courses on the website.

• In exceptional cases, a student may petition the DUS to consider a specific cross-listed course for classification as “core” for the purpose of the major.

Foreign Languages: Majors interested in a particular area of study benefit from knowledge of the language of that area. Those considering possible graduate work are reminded that most graduate programs require advanced and/or reading knowledge of one or more foreign languages.

Majors Planning to Teach: Majors who plan to teach in secondary schools should consult an advisor in the Program in Education. Rising juniors who intend to practice-teach in the senior year should consider taking the senior capstone seminar as juniors.

Departmental Graduation with Distinction: Any student who is qualified may apply to the DUS for permission to undertake work leading to a degree with distinction (see the section of the History website on the Honors Thesis and Graduation with Distinction).

Independent Study (HISTORY 391/392) is usually undertaken by students concurrently with the Thesis Seminar or with an instructor with whom they have had a course. They offer students a unique opportunity for directed work in an area of special interest not available in the existing course offerings.

• A proposal for directed reading and research should include a detailed description and a list of the proposed readings, and should result in a substantive paper or report.

• The form must be signed by the instructor and the director of undergraduate studies.