Students Network, Gain Exposure to Public Relations Career Paths at International Conference
College of Communication & Information

Kent State public relations students

Networking and connections are critical foundations of public relations. Earlier this month, Kent State public relations majors experienced a conference where professionals from some of the most recognizable brands spoke to budding young professionals — the perfect opportunity for Kent State students to build strong foundations for their future careers. From Oct. 13-17, 2023, eight Kent State’s Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA Kent) members traveled to the Public Relations Society of America’s International Conference (ICON) in Nashville.  Junior public relations m...

Passion for Animals Drives Student’s Success during Internship

Honors College student Betty Sterling beams with a passion for animals, so she was ecstatic to take on a fitting internship opportunity with the Lake Erie Nature & Science Center. After receiving an email from the biological sciences department about an intriguing internship opportunity, the second-year commuter changed her usual course from Cuyahoga Falls to Kent toward Bay Village, about 15 miles west of Cleveland. Betty further advanced her experience with animals here as a wildlife intern. For four full days a week, the zoology major assisted with wildlife rehabilitation, pub...
Kent State Goes Gold for Homecoming 2023

Kent State Football team

Kent State University celebrated its annual Homecoming on the Kent Campus this past weekend, with a resounding display of Golden Flashes spirit. The event brought together a diverse community, including alumni, students, parents, employees and community members. The Homecoming festivities culminated in the grand Homecoming Parade and an exciting football game on Saturday, Oct. 21, continuing a cherished tradition. This year's Homecoming was particularly special, as Kent State commemorated 50 years of excellence in global education with the theme "It's a Flash World." In 1972, Kent State sen...

History - B.A.

Gain a comprehensive understanding of history and develop critical thinking, research and communication skills to succeed in a wide range of careers. With experienced faculty, personalized attention and engaging courses, Kent State's History B.A. program provides you the foundation needed to pursue graduate studies, law school or careers in education, government, non-profit and many other fields.

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Program Information for History - B.A.

Program Description

Program Description

Full Description

The Bachelor of Arts degree in History provides a well-rounded educational experience in which students have the independence and flexibility to explore and develop their individual interests while getting a solid grounding in different approaches to historical research, writing and analysis.

The study of history offers insight into the complexity of the human experience by exploring the political, cultural, social, economic and environmental factors that have shaped the past and the present. The study of history also offers training in a range of skills, including how to find, evaluate, manage and synthesize multiple sources of information; how to think critically and analyze complex evidence; how to undertake independent research and manage time effectively; how to develop and present reasoned arguments supported by evidence; how to present information and arguments effectively in writing; and how to develop and deliver effective oral presentations. The skills and experiences gained through the study of history provide preparation for a variety of career tracks.

The History major is comprised of several elements:

  • Lower-Division History Electives provide history majors with an overview of the major themes and developments in world history from human origins to the present and in the history of the United States from pre-colonization to the present.
  • The required Historical Research Methods course introduces students to the main tools and techniques of doing history, while providing them with the opportunity to develop and refine the skills of historical research, writing and analysis to do well in their upper-division coursework.
  • Area Studies Electives are a group of upper­-division history courses in which the history of a place (state, nation or region) is the primary focus of the courses.
  • Thematic Studies Electives are a group of upper-division history courses in which a specific topic or theme is the primary focus of the courses while the place and time period are secondary.
  • The required Senior Seminar in History course is a capstone experience in which students develop, design and execute their own original historical research project that utilizes primary sources and engages with current historical scholarship.

Students in the History major are encouraged to undertake an internship for course credit to gain job experience and further strengthen their profile for their career after graduation.

Admissions for History - B.A.

Admissions

Admission Requirements

The university affirmatively strives to provide educational opportunities and access to students with varied backgrounds, those with special talents and adult students.

First-Year Students on the Kent Campus: First-year admission policy on the Kent Campus is selective. Admission decisions are based upon cumulative grade point average, strength of high school college preparatory curriculum and grade trends. Students not admissible to the Kent Campus may be administratively referred to one of the seven regional campuses to begin their college coursework. For more information, visit the admissions website for first-year students.

First-Year Students on the Regional Campuses: First-year admission to Kent State’s campuses at Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Salem, Stark, Trumbull and Tuscarawas, as well as the Twinsburg Academic Center, is open to anyone with a high school diploma or its equivalent. For more information on admissions, contact the Regional Campuses admissions offices.

International Students: All international students must provide proof of proficiency of the English language (unless they meet specific exceptions) through the submission of an English language proficiency test score or by completing English language classes at Kent State’s English as a Second Language Center before entering their program. For more information, visit the admissions website for international students.

Former Students: Former Kent State students who have not attended another institution since Kent State and were not academically dismissed will complete the re-enrollment process through the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center. Former students who attended another college or university since leaving Kent State must apply for admissions as a transfer or post-undergraduate student.

Transfer Students: Students who attended an educational institution after graduating from high school or earning their GED must apply as transfer students. For more information, visit the admissions website for transfer students.

Admission policies for undergraduate students may be found in the University Catalog's Academic Policies.

Students may be required to meet certain criteria to progress in their program. Any progression requirements will be listed on the program's Coursework tab

Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

  1. Understand and apply a variety of basic historical methods.
  2. Find, use and analyze historical evidence and communicate their findings in an effective manner.
  3. Obtain historical content knowledge and understand the connectedness of historical events and the wide varieties of human experiences.
  4. Understand history as a discipline based on interpretation with historical questions constantly being reframed and investigated.

Coursework

On This Page

Program Requirements

Major Requirements

Major Requirements (courses count in major GPA)
HIST 32050HISTORICAL RESEARCH METHODS 3
HIST 49091SENIOR SEMINAR IN HISTORY (ELR) (WIC) 13
History (HIST) Upper-Division Electives (30000 or 40000 level) 29
History (HIST) Lower-Division Electives (10000 or 20000 level), choose from the following:9
HIST 11050
WORLD HISTORY: ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL (DIVG) (KHUM)
HIST 11051
WORLD HISTORY: MODERN (DIVG) (KHUM)
HIST 12070
EARLY AMERICA: FROM PRE-COLONIZATION TO CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION (DIVD) (KHUM)
HIST 12071
MODERN AMERICA: FROM INDUSTRIALIZATION TO GLOBALIZATION (DIVD) (KHUM)
Area Studies Electives, choose from the following:6
HIST 30010
NEW DEAL AMERICA AND BEYOND
HIST 30020
THE SIXTIES IN AMERICA
HIST 30040
NINETEENTH-CENTURY EUROPE
HIST 30049
MODERN EUROPEAN HISTORY, 1914-1945
HIST 30050
MODERN EUROPEAN HISTORY: 1945-PRESENT
HIST 30060
HISTORY OF GERMANY, 1871-PRESENT
HIST 30111
JEFFERSON-JACKSON ERA, 1789-1848
HIST 31022
THE GREAT POWERS IN WAR AND PEACE, 1792-1914
HIST 31023
THE GREAT POWERS IN WAR AND PEACE, 1914-1945
HIST 31025
ITALY FROM ROME TO THE RENAISSANCE
HIST 31026
ITALIAN HISTORY FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO THE ENLIGHTENMENT
HIST 31032
THE GLOBAL CRISIS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
HIST 31034
MURDER MYSTERY AND MAYHEM: THE MEDICI DYNASTY IN FLORENCE
HIST 31036
THE TWENTIETH CENTURY WORLD
HIST 31040
AMERICAN HISTORY THROUGH POPULAR MUSIC
HIST 31053
MODERN EUROPE, 1815 TO PRESENT
HIST 31055
POLITICS, CULTURE AND SOCIETY OF 20TH-CENTURY EUROPE
HIST 31056
EUROPE IN THE RENAISSANCE
HIST 31057
THE FRENCH REVOLUTION AND NAPOLEON
HIST 31061
HISTORY OF OHIO
HIST 31082
HISTORY OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS AND BLACK POWER MOVEMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31084
THE INVENTION OF AMERICA: 1492-1714 (DIVD)
HIST 31085
ALEXANDER HAMILTON'S WORLD: 18TH-CENTURY AMERICA (DIVD)
HIST 31087
SECTIONAL CONFLICT AND CIVIL WAR
HIST 31100
RECONSTRUCTION AND THE LATER SOUTH
HIST 31106
PROGRESSIVE AMERICA - REFORMERS, CRUSADERS AND RADICALS: AMERICA, 1893-1929
HIST 31107
NEW ERA THROUGH WORLD WAR: THE UNITED STATES, 1920-1945
HIST 31112
CHINESE CIVILIZATION
HIST 31113
HISTORY OF JAPAN
HIST 31126
HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE EAST
HIST 31130
HISTORY OF PRE-COLONIAL AFRICA TO 1880
HIST 31131
HISTORY OF COLONIAL AFRICA, 1880-1994
HIST 31132
HISTORY OF POST-COLONIAL AFRICA
HIST 31140
MODERN LATIN AMERICA (DIVG)
HIST 31141
EARLY MODERN LATIN AMERICA (C. 1450-1820) (DIVG)
HIST 37001
FLORENCE THE MYTH OF A CITY
HIST 38495
SPECIAL TOPICS IN AREA STUDIES
HIST 41003
HISTORY OF ANCIENT GREECE
HIST 41006
ROMAN HISTORY
Thematic Studies Electives, choose from the following:6
HIST 30030
IDEAS IN ACTION: U.S. INTELLECTUAL HISTORY (DIVD)
HIST 30070
THE HOLOCAUST: THE DESTRUCTION OF EUROPEAN JEWRY, 1938-1945
HIST 30112
THE UNITED STATES: THE WESTWARD MOVEMENT
HIST 31000
INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HISTORY
HIST 31020
POLIS TO METROPOLIS: HISTORY OF THE EUROPEAN CITY
HIST 31024
WORLD WAR II
HIST 31031
REFORMATIONS IN EARLY MODERN CHRISTIANITY
HIST 31033
WITCHES AND EUROPEAN HISTORY, 1500-1800
HIST 31035
THE GLOBAL COLD WAR
HIST 31041
SPORT HISTORY IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31045
A HISTORY OF CRIME IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31071
AMERICA AND THE WORLD THROUGH 1898
HIST 31072
AMERICA AND THE WORLD: 1898-1945
HIST 31073
AMERICA AND THE WORLD SINCE 1945
HIST 31074
HISTORY OF ESPIONAGE: FROM JOSHUA TO EDWARD SNOWDEN
HIST 31075
HISTORY OF WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31077
HISTORY OF SEXUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31080
AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY: SLAVERY TO FREEDOM
HIST 31083
THE HISTORY OF WHITENESS IN THE UNITED STATES
HIST 31101
WAR AND SOCIETY IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1607 THROUGH 1865
HIST 31102
WAR AND SOCIETY IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1865 TO THE PRESENT
HIST 31104
MIGRATIONS TO AMERICA, 1607 TO PRESENT (DIVD)
HIST 31114
TRADITION AND REVOLUTION IN SOUTHEAST ASIA (DIVG)
HIST 31118
VIETNAM WAR
HIST 31124
HIGHLIFE HISTORIES: MODERN AFRICAN URBAN EXPERIENCE
HIST 31543
THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION
HIST 31550
MEDICINE IN THE MODERN WORLD SINCE 1500
HIST 38595
SPECIAL TOPICS IN THEMATIC STUDIES
HIST 41060
COMPARATIVE FASCISM
Additional Requirements (courses do not count in major GPA)
UC 10001FLASHES 101 1
Foreign Language (see Foreign Language College Requirement below)10-16
Kent Core Composition6
Kent Core Mathematics and Critical Reasoning3
Kent Core Fine Arts3
Kent Core Social Sciences (must be from two disciplines)6
Kent Core Basic Sciences (must include one laboratory)6-7
Kent Core Additional3
General Electives (total credit hours depends on earning 120 credit hours, including 39 upper-division credit hours)46
Minimum Total Credit Hours:120
1

A minimum C grade must be earned to fulfill the writing-intensive requirement.

2

Maximum 3 credit hours of HIST 40092 may be applied toward the degree.

Graduation Requirements
Minimum Major GPA Minimum Overall GPA
2.000 2.000

Foreign Language College Requirement, B.A.

Students pursuing the Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Arts and Sciences must complete the following:

  1. Elementary I and II of any language (or equivalent) and
  2. One of the following options:
    1. Intermediate I and II of the same language
    2. Elementary I and II of a second language
    3. Any combination of two courses from the following list:
      1. Intermediate I of the same language
      2. One to two college-level course(s) completed outside the United States
      3. Courses: ARAB 21401, ASL 19401, CHIN 25421, MCLS 10001, MCLS 20001, MCLS 20091, MCLS 21417, MCLS 21420, MCLS 22217, MCLS 28403, MCLS 28404

All students with prior foreign language experience should take the foreign language placement test to determine the appropriate level at which to start. Some students may start beyond the Elementary I level and will complete the requirement with fewer courses. This may be accomplished in one of three ways:

  1. Passing a course beyond Elementary I through Intermediate II level
  2. Receiving credit through one of the alternative credit programs offered by Kent State University
  3. Demonstrating language proficiency comparable to Elementary II of a foreign language

Certain programs may require specific languages, limit the languages from which a student may choose or require coursework through Intermediate II. Students who plan to pursue graduate study may need a particular language proficiency.

Roadmap

Roadmap

Roadmap

This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this program. Students will work with their advisor to develop a sequence based on their academic goals and history. Courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.

Plan of Study Grid
Semester OneCredits
UC 10001 FLASHES 101 1
History (HIST) Lower-Division Electives (10000 or 20000 level) 6
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours13
Semester Two
!History (HIST) Lower-Division Elective (10000 or 20000 level) 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Three
!Area Studies Elective 3
!Thematic Studies Elective 3
Foreign Language 4
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours16
Semester Four
!Area Studies Elective 3
!Thematic Studies Elective 3
Foreign Language 4
Kent Core Requirement 3
General Elective 3
 Credit Hours16
Semester Five
!History (HIST) Upper-Division Elective (30000 or 40000 level) 3
Foreign Language and/or General Elective 3
General Electives 9
 Credit Hours15
Semester Six
HIST 32050 HISTORICAL RESEARCH METHODS 3
Foreign Language and/or General Elective 3
General Electives 9
 Credit Hours15
Semester Seven
!HIST 49091 SENIOR SEMINAR IN HISTORY (ELR) (WIC) 3
History (HIST) Upper-Division Elective (30000 or 40000 level) 3
General Electives 9
 Credit Hours15
Semester Eight
History (HIST) Upper-Division Elective (30000 or 40000 level) 3
General Electives 12
 Credit Hours15
 Minimum Total Credit Hours:120

Program Delivery

Program Delivery

  • Delivery:
    • In person
  • Location:
    • Kent Campus
    • Stark Campus

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