Program Overview

The History major and minor programs at SPU seek a deeper understanding of world cultures.

Together we:

• Explore the roots and development of our world regional histories.
• Learn to "do" History through research and internships.
• Probe more deeply into the ways our Christian faith can speak to human issues.

The History Department launched a new curriculum in 2020 for its History Majors and Minors. The new curriculum is designed for students to grow in:

• Cross-cultural insight
• Understanding of historic inequalities and the construction of race, gender, and class over time
• The cultivation of empathy for others
• Drawing on the past to address the pressing problems of today 
• Wrestling with the sometimes dark and difficult periods of human history--wars, displacement, and injustice--and contemplating how the Christian story can speak into these challenging moments.
• Cultivating career-oriented skills and professional experiences through a new "Careers in History" class and internship placement support

The new sequence of classes for the majors and minors helps students achieve mastery of an essential skill set in an intentional way: students first take classes in "Thinking Historically," then study "Systems in History," and finally learn to "Do History" themselves.

Our redesigned majors and minor offer students flexibility in their choice of electives while ensuring that students will have broad exposure to many different time periods and world regions.

• Cross-cultural insight
• Understanding of historic inequalities and the construction of race, gender, and class over time
• The cultivation of empathy for others
• Drawing on the past to address the pressing problems of today
• Wrestling with the sometimes dark and difficult periods of human history--wars, displacement, and injustice--and contemplating how the Christian story can speak into these challenging moments.
• Cultivating career-oriented skills and professional experiences through a new "Careers in History" class and internship placement support

The new sequence of classes for the majors and minors helps students achieve mastery of an essential skill set in an intentional way: students first take classes in "Thinking Historically," then study "Systems in History," and finally learn to "Do History" themselves.

Our redesigned majors and minor offer students flexibility in their choice of electives while ensuring that students will have broad exposure to many different time periods and world regions.