at
Madison
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B.A. Requirements - About the Program
History Web Page administered by:
Department of Social Sciences and History
Madison, N.J. 07940
Tel: 973-443-8721
Dept. Secretary: Ms. Grethe Zarnitz
Dept. Chair: Dr. David Rosen
This page was designed by Peter J. Woolley and is maintained by the Department of Social Sciences and History
"Ye can lead
a man up to the university but ye can't make him think"
Why study history?
Because it's fascinating. Taking a history course is like watching a
never-ending soap except that you can stop the camera at any given point and
dig into what really make the characters work. If you like people, you'll love
history. People is what history is all about. Not just the people who have
changed the course of events, but those who have never made the news are there
for the keen observer--both the Pharaoh and those who painted and carved his
tomb; both the roman emperor and those who he dominated; both the industrialist
and the worker; the dictator and the victim. Everyone is grist for the historic
mill.
Study history if you're
curious. Study history if you're interested in finding out about yourself and
the world you live in.
But history isn't
simple. You will have to hone your skills. You will have to be a detective, a
news analyst, and a critic. You may have the impression from secondary
education that all history is memorizing the facts and spitting them back in multiple-choice
or true-false form. The facts are essential, but at a higher level it is you
who get to interpret them, to turn them over in your mind, and to draw
conclusions from them. Your conclusions cannot ignore the facts or suppress
them, but the picture is there even though the puzzle may be missing a few
pieces. To study history is to attempt to understand the world around you by
investigating the ongoing experiment in which we are all involved.
And history is truly
interdisciplinary. Art, literature, music, social trends, abnormal psychology,
-- it is the laboratory experiment for all. But it also strives to give a
framework, to confirm that you have not simply been dropped here on a trash
heap out of which protruded a classic here and a truant there; a heroine here,
a scientific break through there; here the Venus de Milo, there Vanna White.
Discover where you are and maybe even who you are. Stranger things have
happened.
"And where will it
get me?" That's not an unimportant consideration. You will learn to read
critically. You will learn to write clearly. You will learn to sort special
interests out from general interests. You will become familiar with an infinite
variety of human responses to both good and evil situations. You will become
more resourceful, more sophisticated, more aware. You may do better on graduate
entrance examinations (history majors have an advantage here due to their
experience at critical thinking and accurate expression of their thought).
So, history is an open
field on which the human mind may graze at will. You can take from it what you
will, but in the process you will be forced to consider a multitude of possible
human responses. These are the same human responses which you will encounter at
home, on the job, as a citizen, and as a human being.
Welcome aboard no matter
what your major may be, but, who knows, it may even end up being history.
- Dr. Robert McTague (Ph.D. Drew University) specializes in modern European and American intellectual history. He teaches our courses on 20th Century Europe, 20th Century United States, Modern Germany, U.S. Intellectual History, American Heroes and Britain since 1688. Representative of his unique historical interests is his article "Klee, Kandinsky, and Modern Physics" published in European Legacy. He is the faculty advisor to Phi Sigma Pi, the National Honors Fraternity.
· · Office - M15A
Phone
- 973-443-8797
· Dr. Jasonne Grabher O’Brien (Ph.D. University of Kansas) specializes in medieval legal history. She teaches survey classes in ancient and medieval civilizations as well as upper-division courses that include “Origins of European Law,” “Medieval Art,” “Magic and Witchcraft” and “Burnt Offerings: Women’s History in Pre-Modern Europe.” Her research has been published in Roman Legal Tradition and History of Medieval Canon Law and Cincinnati Judaica Review. For the year 2002-3 Dr. O’Brien has been awarded a Mellon Post Doctoral Fellowship and will research at the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies in Toronto, Canada.
· · Office - M15A
Phone
- 973-443-8735
- Dr. Neil Salzman received his Ph.D. in modern European history form N.Y.U. and completed post-doctoral work in international relations at the City University of New York. He teaches our modern world history courses and advanced courses in the history of China, Russia, the Arabs, and the Jews. His most recent book is Russia in War and Revolution: General William V. Judson's Accounts from Petrograd, 1917-1918. His earlier book, Reform and Revolution: the Life and Times of Raymond Robbins, examines the early stages of American-Soviet relations through the experiences of another American eyewitness to one of the greatest political upheavals of the 20th century.
· · Office - M34A
Phone - 973.443.8732
- Dr. Diane Sommerville specializes in 19th century American history. She completed her doctoral work at Rutgers University, taught at Princeton University for several years, has authored several articles, and has a book forthcoming from the University of North Carolina Press.
· · Office - M30A
Phone
- 973-443-8387
- Dr. Thomas McDonald specializes in pre-1500 French and Roman Imperial history. He received his Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr in 1971. His courses include Ancient Civilization, Medieval World, the Rise of Rome, Roman Empire, Ancient Greeks, Medieval England and France, and Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Among his scholarly contributions is a score of authoritative articles in Medieval France: An Encyclopedia (New York & London: Garland, 1995). He is often asked by community organizations to present programs on medieval history.
· · Office - M15A
Phone -
973-443.8730
· ·
The History Department fosters both broad based and specific objectives. The Department currently offers a wide variety of courses, all concerned with changes in human experience through time. These courses range from the histories of Greek and Roman civilizations to the histories of Europe and America. Some courses deal with the history of a particular country, others concentrate on a certain period of time and still other deal with a special theme. Taking advantage of the variety of offerings, students are able to develop broad perspectives on both the past and the present.
Remember,
history is among the humanist pursuit. Like a great painting, a piece of music,
or a gorgeous sunset, history enriches one's life and can have an existence
separate from the narrow, practical (and soon obsolete) skills and professional
preparation associated with some disciplines.
Required Courses
A total of 36-42
credits is required for a major in history with at least 24 credits in major
elective courses.
UNIVERSITY CORE REQUIREMENTS (58-61 credits)
Freshman Seminar (1)
Basic Skills (22-23 credits)
· ENGW 1101 Freshman Writing Workshop (3)
ENGW 1102 Freshman Writing Workshop (3)
MATH 1126 Contemporary Math (3) or MATH 1128 Math Methods (3) or MATH 1107 Precalculus (4)
MATH 1133 Applied Statistics (3) or CSCI 1145 Computers & Computing (3)
THEA 1107 Public Speaking (3)
Modern Language: 1001 (3); 1002 (3).
Physical
Education: PHED (1)
University Core (12 credits)
· · CORE 1001 Perspectives on the Individual (3)
CORE 2002 American Experience (3)
CORE 2003 Cross-Cultural Perspectives (3)
CORE 3004 Global Issues (3)
Social & Behavioral Sciences (9 credits)
(Three courses in at least two disciplines.)
Wroxton courses with appropriate
prefix meet these requirements.
Humanities (6 credits)
(Two courses in disciplines other than history.)
Wroxton courses with appropriate
prefix meet these requirements.
Laboratory Sciences (8 - 10 credits)
(Two 4-cr courses OR three courses (three
3-cr, or one 4-cr and two 3-cr) in at lest two disciplines.)
MAJOR COURSES IN HISTORY(36 - 42 credits)
2.33 GPA Required
Required history courses (12 credits):
· · HIST 1201 Ancient Civilization (3) or HIST 1202 Medieval World (3)
HIST 1203 Foundations of the Modern World (3)
HIST 1204 Modern World: 1776 to the Present (3)
HIST 1205 American Themes (3)
Major elective courses (24 - 30 credits)
At least 3 credits from each of the following areas.
Wroxton history courses meet these requirements.
- NON-AMERICAN HISTORY
HIST 3320 The Ancient Greeks
HIST 3321 The
Rise of
HIST 3322 The
HIST 3323 Medieval
HIST 3327 The
HIST 3328 Judaism, Christianity and Islam
HIST 3331 Modern Revolutions
HIST 3332 World War II and the Cold War
HIST 3343 20th Century Revolutions
HIST 3344 Russian Foreign Policy
HIST 3345
HIST 3346
HIST 3347 History
of Modern
HIST 3348 Modern
HIST 3349 History
of Modern
HIST 3350 Rise
of Nazi
HIST 3422
HIST 3433 Ideology
& Literature in the
HIST 3440
HIST 4830
- AMERICAN HISTORY
· · HIST 2350 Colonial and Revolutionary
HIST 2351 The Age of Jefferson and Jackson
HIST 2352 Civil War and Reconstruction
HIST 2357 Industrial and Urban America
HIST 2358 20th Century United States
HIST 1112 U.S. History since 1877
HIST 3354 U.S. Social and Cultural History
HIST 3355 The Old South
HIST 3356 The American West
HIST 3357 African-American History
HIST 3358 U.S. Constitutional History
HIST 3359 The Great Depression
HIST 2350 Colonial and Revolutionary America
Free Electives (25-34 credits)
Free electives are any courses not needed to meet college core requirements or major requirements.
Wroxton courses meet these
requirements.
· The Pre-Law Minor provides you with the substantive background and specific skills necessary for success in law school. The Minor requires that you complete six courses. The courses in the Minor are:
Writing
Skills: ENEW30001 Advanced Writing Workshop
Reasoning Skills (choose one courses from among):
· PHIL1104 Practical Logic
PHIL1101 Logic
Anthropological and Sociological Approaches (choose one course from among):
· ANTH3430 Anthropology of Law
SOCI3333 Criminal Law
SOCI2306 Crime and Criminology
SOCI2307 Deviance and Social Control
Political and Legal Studies (choose three courses from among):
· HIST3358 U.S. Constitutional History
POLS3304 Criminal Justice
POLS3306 American Constitutional Law
POLS3307 Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
POLS3308 Law
and Society
For more information, visit our pages on Pre-Law and Legal Studies.
· STUDY ABROAD AT FDU'S WROXTON CAMPUS!
· Students are encouraged to spend a semester at Wroxton College, FDU's campus in England. Sample the cultures of Europe and experience a first-rate British education, including tutorials, seminars and visits to major cultural and political events. Because the College's curriculum is carefully planned and coordinated with FDU, all courses are accredited. For information on applying for study and advisement on course selection, see your advisor.
· THE WASHINGTON CENTER
· The Washington Center, located in Washington D.C., offers internships for every field of study. A Washington Center staff member, called a "program supervisor," will find an internship that matches your area of interest. The program supervisor will assist you during your stay in Washington. He or she will be there to offer support, answer your questions, and help you work through any problems that may arise.
Your internship will be at least 80 percent entry-level professional work and no more than 20 percent clerical, ensuring you the hand-on career experience you need.
In addition to your internship, you will participate in an academic course one evening a week. The Washington Center offers a wide range of courses on topics including issues in the arts and humanities, communications, public policy, business, and law. You also will meet periodically with your program supervisor and other students to discuss your internship experiences.
You will be invited to attend at least two breakfasts at the U.S. Capitol with an influential leader or policy maker. These breakfasts allow you to meet and speak informally with prominent national figures. You will also attend an afternoon speaker series which features experts in a diverse set of issues of national importance.
To participate in our internship program, you must be a second semester sophomore or above at the time you attend with at least a 2.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Many students earn 12 to 15 credits while participating in our internship program and your school will determine the credits awarded. Dr. Greene is the campus liaison with the Washington Center and will be able to provide you with more information about the Center's programs.
