History
What is History?
LMU's History major helps students arrive at a fuller awareness and understanding of the many vital problems of existence for without a knowledge of the past, one cannot claim to be an educated individual or hope to establish perspective and meaning in a course of study for life.
The History major introduces students to the back stories of Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Latin America. History students may also learn about, for example, contemporary history and women's history. Students may choose to concentrate in the history of one geographical area.
The History major learns to examine evidence, select relevant materials, search for causes and effects, and formulate conclusions. With knowledge of historical setting, students can understand and appreciate their own heritage and culture, as well as the cultural experience of others.
What do History majors do?
History majors develop analytical thinking and an understanding of events, processes, and patterns in the human experience. Students gain understanding of how their lives relate to a larger historical process.
History majors analyze historical texts and learn methods used in interpreting the past, such as criticism of sources, the definition of historical questions, comparative analysis, and the diverse perspectives of participants in history. Students craft arguments about historical change, and analyze the factors that cause such change on local, national, and global scales.
LMU's location in historically rich Los Angeles offers a further advantage through research opportunities in local archives, film collections, and presidential libraries. History majors and faculty also participate in Study Abroad programs.
Is this major right for you?
You might be a History major if you:
- Are curious about the past
- Regard yourself as a detective
- Enjoy researching, reading, and writing
- Like historical novels and films
- Have diverse intellectual interests
About our faculty
Our faculty members reflect the international diversity of Southern California, with cultural roots in Latina America, East Asia, North America, the Middle East, Western Europe, Russia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Faculty members are widely traveled and productive scholars who serve on boards, and earn honors and prizes.
Faculty publications include recent books such as, Transformative Beauty, Art Museums in Industrial Britain, and Reimagining Indian Country: Native American Migration and Identity in Twentieth-Century Los Angeles.
About our students and graduates
Our students earn membership in the LMU chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, the history honor society. LMU students majoring or minoring in History go on to work as lawyers and diplomats, state department officers, teachers, university professors and administrators, bankers, market researchers, journalists, screenwriters and government workers, and in a variety of other businesses and professions. An increasing number of History students pursue graduate studies in fields such as business and international affairs.
Representative courses
Our courses have included:
- Ancient Rome
- From Viking to Crusader
- The French Revolution
- The British Empire
- Victorians to Moderns
- Health and Disease in American Culture
- Hollywood and History
- The Black Sea: Crossroads of History
- The Rise of Russia
- African Kingdoms
- The Politics and Culture of the Cold War
- Popular Culture in East Asia
- The Palestine/Israel Conflict
- Early Mexico
- Civil Rights and Black Power