REQUIREMENTS FOR HISTORY MAJORS (FOR FRESHMEN AND TRANSFERS ENTERING IN FALL 2010 OR LATER):

All students majoring in History must complete 36 credits distributed among the following six components. Up to 18 credits may be transferred from another college; in History courses taken at Queens students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0.

REQUIRED FORMS: Students seeking to major in History must first consult with a departmental advisor to review the above requirements. The Declaration of Major Form should be filled out with departmental secretaries.  By the junior year, majors should file a Concentration Form in person with a departmental advisor, outlining their past and intended coursework.

1.     Introductory surveys in European and U.S. history (4 courses, 12 credits).  Students must complete ALL of the following courses:

101, 102, 103, 104.

2.     Introductory surveys in non-western history (2 courses, 6 credits).  Students must choose TWO courses from the following list:

105, 106, 111, 112, 121, 125, 126, 140-142, 144-149.

3.     Upper-division course in non-western history (1 course, 3 credits).  Students must choose ONE course from the following list:

160, 166, 255-257, 289, 294, 295, 298, 309, 311, 315, 332, 334, 335, 338, 344, 355, 356, 360, 361.

4.     Concentration (3 courses, 9 credits).  Students must complete an additional THREE courses within a particular area of study, and may either choose a concentration from among the standard options listed below, or design a thematic concentration with approval from the Director of Undergraduate Studies and the Chair.

• Ancient and pre-modern history: 113, 114, 140, 144, 148, 158, 204-206, 208, 209, 212, 251, 286, 291, 311, 352.
• European history since the fall of Rome: 107-110, 115, 116, 150, 164, 169, 203, 209-213, 215-218, 222, 225, 227-233, 236-242, 251-254, 287, 291, 292, 295, 302-305, 308-310, 312-315, 332, 349, 352, 361.
• United States history: 163, 168, 249, 255, 258-260, 262, 263, 265-267, 270-279, 284, 285, 288, 297, 299, 313, 314, 329, 340-343, 345, 347, 348, 350, 351, 388.
• History of regions other than the U.S. and Europe: 105, 106, 111, 112, 121, 125, 126, 140-142, 144-149, 160, 166, 255-257, 289, 294, 295, 298, 309, 311, 315, 332, 334, 335, 338, 344, 355, 356, 360, 361.
• Jewish history: 114-116, 159, 237, 249, 251-257, 290, 295, 311, 312, 336, 338, 349.
• Gender and history: 162, 270-272, 298, 308, 335, 336, 342, 345.
• Legal history: 161, 186, 286-290, 340, 341.

5.     Colloquium (1 course, 4 credits). Students must complete ONE four-credit, writing-intensive colloquium (HIST 392W).  The topics of these vary from semester to semester.  Ideally the student should choose a subject that fits the concentration, but that is not required.

6.     Elective or HIST 190 (1 course, 2-3 credits).  Students must complete ONE additional course, either HIST 190: Writing and History, or an elective, which may be any course, at any level and in any area of concentration. Students choosing to take HIST 190 should ideally do so before taking HIST 392W.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO AND WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:

ADVANCED PLACEMENT CREDITS: Students with a 4 or 5 on the AP European History exam will receive credit for HIST 101 and 102/002.  Students with a 4 or 5 on the AP U.S. History exam will receive credit for HIST 103 and 104.  Students with a 4 or 5 on the AP World History exam will receive credit for HIST 125 and 126.  History majors receiving more than six AP credits must still take 30 credits in History.

ELEMENTARY and SECONDARY EDUCATION: History majors seeking to qualify for secondary school social studies licenses or to be certified for elementary education should consult with faculty in the College of Education about History requirements in their program. For additional information, visit the Secondary Education and Youth Services (SEYS) website.

PACE YOURSELF: Introductory surveys (components 1 and 2 on the other side) should be taken early in the major and should normally precede more advanced work, although that is not required.

VARIABLE TOPICS COURSES: Some courses, such as HIST 200, 370, and 393, have subjects that vary from semester to semester (“Variable Topics”).  They will be included in whichever concentration area is appropriate for their content.

CHOOSING A 392W: Enrollment for the colloquium is capped at 15 students, so sections fill up quickly.  History majors will have the opportunity to pre-register for the colloquium in the department about a week before regular registration opens to all students.  Majors are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the pre-registration period, lest they be shut out of a course needed for graduation.

THEMATIC CONCENTRATIONS: Students seeking to design a thematic concentration (such as Military History or History of Medicine) must do so by the start of their junior year, and with the permission of the Director of Undergraduate Studies and the Chair.

GRADUATE SCHOOL: Those who plan to do graduate work in any field of history should consult with relevant faculty members as early as possible and should pay special attention to the language requirements for advanced study.

Declaration of Major/Minor Form (PDF)

History Majors (for students enrolled at Queens College before Fall 2010):

Majors are required to take a minimum of 36 credits in history. As part of the 36 credits, the following courses are required: History 101, 102, 103, 104, and at least one colloquium (History 392w). All majors must take two courses (6 credits) from the following list of courses.

History 105, 106, 111, 112, 117, (or Arabic 160), 140 through 142, 144 through 149.

Also, as part of the 36 credits, majors must take a minimum of 12 credits (in addition to the required courses) in any one of the following special areas:

• Ancient History: 113, 114, 204-206, 208, 301

• European History since the Fall of Rome: 100, 107-110, 115, 116, 209-211, 213, 215-218, 222, 225, 227, 228, 230-233, 236, 239-242, 251-254, 291, 292, 302-305, 308, 310, 312-314, 332

• United States History: 258-260, 262, 263, 265-267, 270, 271, 273-278, 284, 285, 299, 339, 340-345, 347, 348, 350, 351

• History of Africa, Asia, Latin America, Russia and World: 105, 106, 111, 112, 140-149, 256, 332, 355, 360, 361

• Jewish History: 114-116, 248, 254, 256, 312, 338, 339

(History 200, 290, 392w, 393 and 394 have subjects which vary. They will be included in whichever special area is appropriate for the particular section of the course.)

When the topic of the history major’s required colloquium corresponds to the area of specialty, the student may use the colloquium (History 392w) for one of the four courses required for the specialty.

To graduate with a major in history, students must have a cumulative grade point index of at least 2.0 in history courses taken at Queens College. Transfer students majoring in history must take a minimum of 18 credits in the History Department, regardless of the number of history credits earned at other institutions.

Students majoring in history must consult with the concentration advisors in order to ensure that their programs satisfy department requirements. A concentration form should be filed with the department during the junior year. Introductory surveys (History 100 through 116) should be taken by majors as soon as possible and should normally precede more advanced courses in each of the areas covered. Those who plan to do graduate work in any field of history should consult the chairman or department members as early as possible and should pay special attention to the language requirements for advanced study.

History majors seeking to qualify for secondary school social studies licenses should study the relationships between history and education requirements when planning their courses. History co-majors with Elementary Education should also consult the courses that are required and recommended by the Elementary Education Department.

Students interested in Latin American history may take the joint major in Latin American Area Studies and history. For requirements, please visit the Latin American Area Studies website.