Department website: http://history.wvu.edu/
Degree Offered
- Bachelor of Arts
Nature of the Program
The Department of History offers courses focusing on a variety of world regions and time periods. Degree requirements insure that majors obtain an acquaintance with the history of several such regions and periods and develop skills in research and writing. Majors and non-majors may qualify for membership in Phi Alpha Theta, the national history honorary.
Students who earn a degree in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences must complete the University requirements, the College requirements for their specific degree program, and their major requirements.
Minors
All students have the possibility of earning one or more minors; follow the link for a list of all available minors and their requirements. Please note that students may not earn a minor in their major field.
Career Prospects
The bachelor of arts with a major in history is designed to prepare students for careers in teaching, business, and government, and for graduate work in history, law, and related social sciences and humanities.
3+3 Program
The Department of History participates in the 3+3 Program with WVU's College of Law, which is an opportunity for qualified undergraduate students to earn their bachelor's degree and law degree in six years instead of seven years. Students accepted into the 3+3 program begin taking classes at WVU Law in what would be their fourth year of college. Students participating in this program must meet certain eligibility criteria and progress benchmarks. For questions regarding your eligibility, please contact your department advisor.
Faculty
Chair
- Kate Staples - Ph.D. (University of Minnesota)
Associate Chair
- Matthew Vester - Ph.D. (University of California)
Professors
- Brian Luskey - Ph.D. (Emory University)
19th-century U.S., social and cultural - Jason Phillips - Ph.D. (Rice University)
Eberly Professor of Civil War Studies, Civil war and reconstruction, southern history, 19th-century U.S. - James Siekmeier - Ph.D. (Cornell University)
U.S. diplomatic, modern Latin America - Matthew A. Vester - Ph.D. (University of California)
Early modern Europe, Italy, France
Associate Professors
- Melissa Bingmann - Ph.D. (Arizona State University)
Public history, 20th-century U.S. - William Gorby - Ph.D. (West Virginia University)
West Virginia, Appalachia, Immigration - Joseph Hodge - Ph.D. (Queen’s University at Kingston)
Modern Britian, British Empire, decolonization, international development, Africa - Tamba E. M'bayo - Ph.D. (Michigan State University)
West Africa, colonial and postcolonial, African diaspora and Pan-Africanism - Kate Staples - Ph.D. (University of Minnesota)
Medieval, gender, England, material culture - Jessica Wilkerson - Ph.D. (University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill)
Joyce and Stuart Robbins Chair, Appalachia and the South, Women, Gender, and Sexuality, 20th-c U.S., Labor and Working Class History
Assistant Professors
- Brooke Durham - Ph.D. (Stanford University)
Modern Europe, French Empire, North Africa, decolonization - Max Flomen - Ph.D. (UCLA)
Early American History, Native American History - Sean Lawrence - Ph.D. (University of California, Santa Cruz)
Germany, colonialism, Middle East, environment, political economy - Austin McCoy - Ph.D. (University of Michigan)
20th-Century U.S., African-American, labor, social movements - Betsy DiSalvo Osborne - Ph.D. (West Virginia University)
Social Studies Education, Education - Devin Smart - Ph.D. (University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign)
Africa, World/Global, environmental
Emeritus Faculty
- William S. Arnett - Ph.D. (Ohio State University)
- Robert E. Blobaum - Ph.D. (University of Nebraska)
- William I. Brustein - Ph.D. (University of Washinton)
- Elizabeth Fones-Wolf - Ph.D. (University of Massachusetts)
- Kenneth Fones-Wolf - Ph.D. (Temple University)
- Jack Hammersmith - Ph.D. (University of Virginia)
- Barbara J. Howe - Ph.D. (Temple University)
- Elizabeth K. Hudson - Ph.D. (Indiana University)
- Ronald L. Lewis - Ph.D. (University of Akron)
- Mary Lou Lustig - Ph.D. (Syracuse University)
- Robert M. Maxon - Ph.D. (Syracuse University)
- Stephen C. McCluskey - Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin)
- A. Michal McMahon - Ph.D. (University of Texas)
- John C. Super - Ph.D. (University of California, Los Angeles)
- Mark B. Tauger - Ph.D. (University of California, Los Angeles)
Admissions for 2025-2026
- First-Time Freshmen are admitted directly into the major.
- Students transferring from another major at WVU must have a minimum GPA of a 2.0 to be directly admitted to the major.
- Students transferring from another institution must have a minimum GPA of a 2.0 to be directly admitted to the major.
Major Code: 1449
Click here to view the Suggested Plan of Study
General Education Foundations
Please use this link to view a list of courses that meet each GEF requirement.
NOTE: Some major requirements will fulfill specific GEF requirements. Please see the curriculum requirements listed below for details on which GEFs you will need to select.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Foundations | ||
| F1 - Composition & Rhetoric | 3-6 | |
| Introduction to Composition and Rhetoric and Composition, Rhetoric, and Research | ||
or ENGL 103 | Accelerated Academic Writing | |
| F2A/F2B - Science & Technology | 4-6 | |
| F3 - Math & Quantitative Reasoning | 3-4 | |
| F4 - Society & Connections | 3 | |
| F5 - Human Inquiry & the Past | 3 | |
| F6 - The Arts & Creativity | 3 | |
| F7 - Global Studies & Diversity | 3 | |
| F8 - Focus (may be satisfied by completion of a minor, double major, or dual degree) | 9 | |
| Total Hours | 31-37 | |
Please note that not all of the GEF courses are offered at all campuses. Students should consult with their advisor or academic department regarding the GEF course offerings available at their campus.
Degree Requirements
Students must complete WVU General Education Foundations requirements, College B.A. requirements, major requirements, and electives to total a minimum of 120 hours. For complete details on these requirements, visit the B.A. Degrees tab on the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences page.
Departmental Requirements for the B.A. in History
- Capstone Requirement: The university requires the successful completion of a Capstone course. Students majoring in History will complete HIST 484 to satisfy this requirement.
- Writing and Communication Requirement: The History Bachelor of Arts is a SpeakWrite Certified ProgramTM. SpeakWrite Certified programs incorporate and develop students’ written, verbal, visual, and mediated communication skills across the curriculum.
- Calculation of the GPA in the Major: A minimum grade of C- is required in all courses applied to major requirements. If a course is repeated, all attempts will be included in the calculation of the GPA, unless the course is eligible for a D/F repeat.
- Secondary Concentration: Students must complete a minor outside of History or a second major.
- Residence Requirement: Students must complete a minimum of 18 credits at WVU; a minimum of 6 of those 18 credits must be at the upper-division level (courses numbered 300 or above).
Curriculum Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| University Requirements | 66 | |
| ECAS B.A. Requirements | 6 | |
| History Major Requirements | 48 | |
| Total Hours | 120 | |
University Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Foundations (GEF) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 (31-37 Credits) | ||
| Outstanding GEF Requirements 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 | 25 | |
| HIST 191 | First-Year Seminar | 1 |
| General Electives | 40 | |
| Total Hours | 66 | |
ECAS Bachelor of Arts Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Fine Arts Requirement | 3 | |
| Global Studies and Diversity Requirement | 3 | |
| Total Hours | 6 | |
History Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory History Courses | 12 | |
| Practicing History | ||
Select three courses: | ||
| European History: Antiquity to 1600 | ||
| European History since 1600 | ||
| Latin America: Past and Present | ||
| The Middle East | ||
| East Asia: An Introduction | ||
| Growth of the American Nation to 1865 | ||
| Making of Modern America: 1865 to the Present | ||
| World History to 1500 | ||
| World History Since 1500 | ||
| History Concentration | 18 | |
Take at least one course in all three of the following regions, with twelve of the total 18 hours at the 300 or 400 level. | ||
United States | ||
| Modern Military History | ||
| History Through Public History Sites | ||
| Climate Change: A Global History | ||
| West Virginia | ||
| History of the American Revolution: 1763-1790 | ||
| Rise and Fall of the US Republic | ||
| The United States: 1865-1918 | ||
| Recent America: The United States since 1918 | ||
| American Indian History | ||
| United States Cultural History: 1819-1893 | ||
| America in the 1960's | ||
| The Vietnam War | ||
| Hollywood and History | ||
| Field Methods in Historic Preservation | ||
| Introduction to Public History | ||
| Eighteenth Century America | ||
| History of American Women | ||
| African-American History-1900 | ||
| African-American Since 1900 | ||
| Civil War and Reconstruction | ||
| The Coming of the United States Civil War | ||
| The Gilded Age in US History | ||
| United States History: New Deal to Great Society | ||
| World War II in America | ||
| American Foreign Relations to 1941 | ||
| American Foreign Relations 1941 to Present | ||
| The Old South | ||
| United States Civil Rights Movement | ||
| Appalachian Regional History | ||
| Working Class America | ||
| American Immigration History | ||
Europe | ||
| History of Ancient Times: Stone Age to the Fall of Rome | ||
| Introduction to Medieval Europe | ||
| Renaissance and Reformation | ||
| Absolutism & Enlightenment | ||
| Revolutionary Europe | ||
| Twentieth Century Europe | ||
| Modern Military History | ||
| The Mediterranean 1200-1800 | ||
| History Through Public History Sites | ||
| History of Russia to 1917 | ||
| History of Russia: 1900-Present | ||
| The Holocaust (The Holocaust) | ||
| History of Modern Germany | ||
| Climate Change: A Global History | ||
| France from 1450 to 1750 | ||
| France Since 1815 | ||
| German Central Europe, 1648-1900 | ||
| Twentieth Century German Central Europe | ||
| History of Italy, 1200-1800 | ||
| Women, Gender, and Kinship in Premodern Europe | ||
| The Great War, 1914-1918 | ||
| Early Modern Law & Society | ||
| The French Wars of Religion | ||
| World War II in Europe | ||
| Revolutionary Russia: 1900-1953 | ||
| USSR and After: 1953 to Present | ||
| Hitler and the Third Reich | ||
| Twentieth-Century Germany from Weimar to Bonn | ||
| Britain 1455-1603 | ||
| Living and Dying in Medieval Europe | ||
| Eighteenth Century Britain: 1715-1832 | ||
Africa, Asia, and Latin America | ||
| History of Ancient Times: Stone Age to the Fall of Rome | ||
| History Through Public History Sites | ||
| Climate Change: A Global History | ||
| Latin America: Culture, Conquest, Colonization | ||
| Latin America: Reform and Revolution | ||
| Myth and Culture in Pre-colonial Africa | ||
| Pre-Colonial Africa | ||
| Colonial Africa and Independence | ||
| Modern China | ||
| The International Middle East | ||
| The Aztec, Maya, and Inca | ||
| The Vietnam War | ||
| Latin America and the World | ||
| East Africa Since 1895 | ||
| West Africa to 1885 | ||
| West Africa from 1885 | ||
| History of Chinese Thought | ||
| Africa in World History | ||
| History of Modern Mexico | ||
| Mexican Law from Montezuma to El Chapo | ||
| Capstone Experience | 3 | |
| Historical Research-Capstone | ||
| Secondary Concentration/ Minor (fulfills the F8 requirement) | 15 | |
Students must complete a minor, double major, or dual degree | ||
| Total Hours | 48 | |
Suggested Plan of Study
The plan below illustrates a plan of study with a minor.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (GEF 1) | 3 |
| HIST Intro Course 1 | 3 | GEF 3 | 3 |
| GEF 2 | 4 | GEF 4 | 3 |
| GEF 5 | 3 | HIST Intro Course 2 | 3 |
| General Elective | 4 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (GEF 1) | 3 | ECAS Fine Arts Requirement (GEF 6) | 3 |
| ECAS Gobal Studies & Diversity Requirement (GEF 7) | 3 | HIST Concentration Area 1 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| HIST 302 | 3 | Minor Course 1 | 3 |
| HIST Intro Course 3 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST Concentration Area 2 | 3 | HIST 3/400-level | 3 |
| HIST Concentration Area 3 at 3/400-level | 3 | HIST 3/400-level | 3 |
| Minor Course 2 | 3 | Minor Course 3 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST 3/400-level | 3 | HIST 484 (Capstone and Writing) | 3 |
| Minor Course 4 | 3 | Minor Course 5 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
Suggested 3+3 Program Plan of Study
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (GEF 1) | 3 |
| HIST 302 | 3 | Foreign Language 102 | 3 |
| Foreign Language 101 | 3 | HIST Intro Course 1 (GEF 5) | 3 |
| General Elective | 2 | HIST Intro Course 2 | 3 |
| GEF 2 | 3 | GEF 3 | 3 |
| GEF 4 | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (GEF 1) | 3 | ECAS Fine Arts Requirement (GEF 6) | 3 |
| Foreign Language 203 | 3 | Foreign Language 204 | 3 |
| HIST Intro Course 3 (GEF 7) (Non-western and ECAS Gl. St. and Div. Req.) | 3 | HIST Concentration Area 1 | 3 |
| Minor Course 1 | 3 | HIST Concentration Course Area 1 | 3 |
| GEF 2 | 3 | Minor Course | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST Concentration Area 1 | 3 | HIST 484 (Capstone) | 3 |
| HIST Concentration Area 2 | 3 | HIST Concentration Area 2 | 3 |
| Minor Course 3 | 3 | HIST Concentration Area 3 | 3 |
| Minor Course 4 | 3 | Minor Course 5 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LAW 641 | 1 | LAW 675 | 1 |
| LAW 686 | 4 | LAW 703 | 4 |
| LAW 700 | 3 | LAW 707 | 4 |
| LAW 705 | 3 | LAW 711 | 2 |
| LAW 709 | 4 | LAW 725 | 4 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
Degree Progress
- Students must maintain a 2.0 GPA overall and a minimum of a 2.00 GPA in History every semester (with a 2.2 in HIST required for graduation).
- All majors must meet with their History adviser every semester.
Students who do not meet these benchmarks may be removed from their major.
Major Learning Outcomes
History
Upon successful completion of their undergraduate degree in History, students will demonstrate competence in the following ways and areas:
- Students will be able to explain and analyze the histories of a variety of geographical and chronological contexts.
- Students will be able to identify and analyze primary sources, based on familiarity with the historiography and methodologies covered in their courses.
- Students will be able to evaluate and analyze secondary sources, based on familiarity with the historiography and methodologies covered in their courses.
- Students will be able to produce analytically-driven written and oral work based on the critical evaluation of evidence.
- Students will be able to research and write scholarly papers that develop an argument on a defined historical topic, based on primary and secondary sources and that relates their work to the historical literature.