Fact Sheet 07: History

Revised August 2007

History

The student of history seeks to re-create the past (or, more precisely, as much of it as possible) in a rational manner, not only to explain and understand the past for its own sake, but also to identify our age with earlier times. As a history major, you will be concerned with the origins, development, and relationships between past people and events and, from the multiplicity of credible and sometimes conflicting evidence, will render judgments on causation and consequences. You will seek to achieve a sense of the past. A strong preparation in history can lead to possibilities in virtually every field of endeavor.

Career Opportunities

If you receive a bachelor of arts degree in history, you will be prepared for a wide range of careers, including business management, documentary film production, historic preservation, law, journalism, library services, museum work, and public administration. Additional academic study is necessary for some of these fields, but not for all. If you graduate with elective social studies teacher certification, you will be qualified to teach in middle and high schools. You also may pursue careers in the same fields as graduates with other liberal arts degrees.

Students who have graduated with a major in history have been accepted at graduate and professional schools locally, in the region, and across the country.

Graduates of the program have taken jobs with a wide range of companies, institutions, and agencies, including:

Hagley Museum and Archives U.S. State Department Vanguard Investments School districts nationwide

Undergraduate Degree

Bachelor of Arts in History. This degree program teaches you analytical reasoning and writing skills, while providing a sound foundation of historical facts and methodology. While pursuing your history degree, you may choose to gain teacher certification in elective social studies to qualify for teaching in secondary schools.

Minors

The department offers a minor in history. You can apply this minor to the B.A. or B.S. liberal studies degree programs.

Interdisciplinary Programs

The department participates in interdisciplinary programs that offer you the opportunity to develop a synthesis of knowledge from several fields of study, including history, anthropology, art, geography, literature, music history and literature, philosophy, political science, and sociology. Programs at West Chester are available in American studies, ethnic studies, Latin American studies, peace and conflict studies, Russian studies, and women's studies.

Special Study Opportunities

History internships are available at such off-campus institutions as museums, archives, historical societies, and history video producers. You also are encouraged to take advantage of foreign study opportunities. The Robert E. Drayer Endowment supports full and partial scholarships for selected outstanding students. Computer facilities for historical research are available.

Related Student Activity

History Club
Phi Alpha Theta (history international honor society) Facilities

The Francis Harvey Green Library Special Collections Room holds the Chester County Collection of scientific and historical books; the Normal Collection, publications by West Chester University faculty and alumni; the Ehinger Collection, a collection of historical books on physical education; the Biographies of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence by John Sanderson; and the Shakespeare Folios. The Philips collection of autographed books, approximately 2,000 volumes collected between 1881 and 1920, is housed in the Philips Memorial Building. The Chester County Historical Society in the borough of West Chester and Chester County Archives in nearby West Goshen Township are also excellent resources for scholars.

Advanced Degrees

Master of Arts in History
Master of Education in History

Faculty

You can obtain a complete listing of faculty and their academic qualifications for this program from the contact person listed below.

For More Information

Dr. Thomas Legg, Chairperson
Department of History
500 Main Hall
West Chester University
West Chester, PA 19383
610-436-2201