Understand the complex past to engage the world as an informed citizen. A degree in history will teach you to think critically and write persuasively.
Why Study History?
By earning a degree in history, you'll learn how the issues of the past affect the present. You will analyze historical changes from diverse perspectives and place events into context. These critical thinking skills will prepare you for our global world and the workforce.
The History major is also designed to develop your research and writing skills. You will learn how to perform historical research and critical analysis. Learn to synthesize your findings and write persuasively. Equipped with these tools, you will be ready for career opportunities in a wide range of fields from teaching to journalism to law.
Why Study History at CSUN?
Excellent Faculty
What makes CSUN's Department of History stand out is our faculty. They have won numerous distinguished and publication awards from CSUN. You'll learn from dedicated faculty who will provide you with personal attention in the classroom and during office hours.
Internship Program
Connect your classroom learning with the real world. Through our robust internship program, you'll gain class credit and career skills. In the past five years, we have placed over 100 students in internships at 70 different institutions. Locations include museums, archives and publications.
Study Abroad
As a history student, you will have opportunities to travel and take classes abroad with our professors. Every two years, faculty members take a group of our students to a foreign region. You'll experience the history and culture of cities you've studied. Students have recently visited Argentina, Italy, Poland, Belgium, Germany and the Czech Republic. For information about upcoming trips, please contact the department office.
What You'll Learn
The History major will develop your skills in critical thinking, research and writing. You'll take a mix of broad survey classes and upper-level classes on more specific topics. You'll also take required seminars to gain historical research and critical analysis skills. Because of our breadth of classes, we encourage you to develop areas of interest to focus your degree. You can work with your advisor to create a plan that works for you.
In your general core curriculum classes, you will receive a broad overview of history. They will cover:
- World history to 1500 or Western civilization to 1500
- World history since 1500 or Western civilization after 1500
- U.S. history to 1865
- U.S. history since 1865
- History of a geographic region of your choosing
In your research core curriculum classes, you will learn important research and analysis skills. These topics include:
- Principles of historical research
- Historical document analysis
- Constructing logical arguments
- Communication skills
For your upper-division classes, you will choose from a variety of course offerings. They include:
- European history
- U.S. history
- Latin American history
You will also complete an internship to apply your knowledge and gain professional experience.
Careers & Outcomes
By building critical thinking and research skills, a History major opens the door to a variety of career opportunities. History majors are also employed in business and as teachers, researchers and writers. You can also pursue an advanced degree in fields like law, urban planning or business.
Write better history.
Need help organizing your paper or citing sources? The Michael Patterson History Writing Center has friendly tutors who are eager to help. They'll assist with brainstorming, outlining and deciphering paper prompts. Become a confident writer with the History Writing Center.
Teaching History and Social Studies
The History Department makes it easy for you to pursue teaching at the middle school or high school level. Our Four-Year Integrated (FYI) and Junior-Year Integrated (JYI) History Subject Matter Programs will prepare you for this rewarding career in a short time.
Through the FYI/JYI program, you can earn a bachelor's degree in history and a Single Subject History-Social Science Preliminary Credential together. FYI students can complete the program in four or five years and JYI students can complete the program in two or three years, depending on your transferred credits.
Four-Year Integrated Curriculum
Junior-Year Integrated Curriculum