History

Explore the Past & Understand its Impact on the Present

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE

Stevenson’s History program gives you a firm foundation in American history and the opportunity to study the and practices the public presentation of history. You graduate with specialized knowledge and transferrable skills—critical thinking, research, writing, and communication—that give you a competitive edge in many professional fields, including teaching, historic preservation, communications, and public advocacy. History is also a stepping stone to graduate and professional studies in the humanities, law, and social and political sciences.

At Stevenson, you will have the opportunity to study history alongside faculty who are active specialists in the field and in a region that is steeped in history. From the colonial past of Maryland’s port towns to the battlefields of Gettysburg, you will find numerous opportunities in and out of the classroom to make connections between the past and present through coursework and internships.

Stevenson History students have assisted government and private agencies and been commended for their contributions to history by George Washington’s Mount Vernon, the Maryland State Archives, the City of Baltimore, the Maryland National Guard, and the Maryland Military Historical Society.

Graduates of the History program will:

  • Articulate the significance of various historical periods, persons, events, ideas, and themes in history with a special focus on United States history.
  • Analyze historical events, texts, and artifacts using the concepts of context, historical causation, conflict, and change over time.
  • Evaluate the significance of race, ethnicity, class, gender, sex, and religion, as factors in history and in its presentation to the public.
  • Create research-based history products for the public as well as for traditional historians.
  • Locate and evaluate examples of public history projects that faced issues of an ethical, practical, or interdisciplinary nature.
  • Participate in the community of historical practice both within the Stevenson Public History Program and the larger community.
  • Make informed academic and career choices based on self-determined goals.

Stevenson History

Connection to Career

Internship Placements

  • Babe Ruth Museum and Sports Legends at
    Camden Yards Museum
  • George Washington’s Mount Vernon
  • National Museum of American History
  • Office of the U.S. Cost Guard Historian
  • Women in Military
    Service for American Memorial Foundation

Top Employers

  • Assateague State Park
  • Baltimore County Public Library
  • Baltimore Museum of Education
  • Maryland State Archives
  • National Human
    Genome Research
    Institute

Graduate Opportunities

  • Howard University
  • Loyola University of Maryland
  • Massachusetts Institute
    of Technology (MIT)
  • San Francisco State University
  • Stevenson University
  • Towson University

Career Pathways

  • Archivist
  • Biographer
  • Historian
  • Lawyer
  • Park Ranger

History in Hyper-Focus

Special topics give a deeper insight to moments, movements, and individuals in history. Here is a selection of recent special topics covered in Stevenson’s History program:

  • When Free Men Shall Stand: The Defense of Baltimore in 1814
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The History of Pirates in the Atlantic Region
  • Combat Medicine in Vietnam: Saving Lives on Borrowed Time
  • Mulberries, Marshes, and Mummies: The Development of Paper and Printing

Learning By Doing

Public History majors researched and curated an African American history exhibit on behalf of the Maryland Military Historical Society.

Caroline Smith History Student

Meet Our Students & Alumni

A Passion for Preservation

Caroline Smith

History

“Stevenson has greatly assisted me in preparing for my career path through class periods focusing on developing the right skills for getting a job, and I have the ability to reach out to any of my professors for support following graduation.”

Study History at Stevenson

Courses

The courses listed below are required for completion of the bachelor’s degree in history. Students must also complete the requirements for the Stevenson Educational Experience (SEE).

Specific pre- and co-requisites for each course are listed in the course descriptions.

History majors are required to complete 45 credits (15 courses) from the courses listed below as indicated. Students must also complete the 1-credit HIST 100 every semester while enrolled in the history program. In addition, students who are new to the history major (traditional University freshmen, transfer students, and students who are declaring a history major for the first time) are required to complete a special section of the 1-credit First-Year Seminar that is designed specifically for new history majors. HIST 450 is a variable credit course (3, 6, or 9) based on the number of hours associated with the internship. Interns earn roughly three credits for every 120 hours worked during the internship.

Major Requirements

Students are required to pass all nine of the following required core history courses. In addition, students must also pass the department’s professional development seminar HIST 100: History Forum (1 credit) each semester the major is enrolled in the history program. Exceptions to the HIST 100 requirement may be made when the major is engaged in an internship.

FYS 100First Year Seminar1 credit
HIST 100History Forum1 credit
HIST 105World History I3 credits
HIST 106World History II3 credits
HIST 109The United States: Colonial America to 18773 credits
HIST 110The United States: 1877 to Present3 credits
HIST 208Introduction to History3 credits
HIST 209Research and Writing in History3 credits
HIST 410The Great Historians3 credits
HIST 411Senior Seminar3 credits
HIST 450History InternshipVariable credits

History Elective Courses

Students are required to take five courses, three courses of which must be at the 300- or 400-level. The five elective courses will be selected from the list below.

HIST 210African American History3 credits
HIST 211Topics in History3 credits
HIST 220American History and Community Service3 credits
HIST 238History of Baltimore3 credits
HIST 265History of the Family3 credits
HIST 270Revolutionary America3 credits
HIST 311Topics in General History3 credits
HIST 312Topics in Public History3 credits
HIST 325Fieldwork in Archival Operations3 credits
HIST 330Riches, Radicals, and Reformers: 1877-19203 credits
HIST 331American Material Culture3 credits
HIST 336The American Civil War3 credits
HIST 337The United States: The Sixties3 credits
HIST 339The United States Since 19703 credits

Explore our academic catalog for a full listing of courses, course descriptions, suggested course sequences, and more.

Minors and Other Options

Minor in History

The minor in history requires successful completion of a minimum of six courses and 18 credits with an HIST prefix. Please see the history department chairperson for more information. General guidelines regarding minors may be found in the Minors section of the catalog.

BA Option

Students also have the option of completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public History. The student must fulfill all SEE requirements, program requirements, and complete two semesters of a foreign language from the point of placement or completion of 202 level.

History News

As the world reaches out to aid refugees from Ukraine who have lost everything in this moment, a Stevenson History class has worked all semester to uncover Baltimore's pivotal role during a similar humanitarian crisis in the .

Stevenson's history students are learning about Civil War medicine and surgery by examining the experiences of Marylanders who were killed, wounded, or missing during the Battle of Antietam in September 1862. Along the way, t.

On Saturday November 6, the Stevenson History Program journeyed down to Talbot County, Maryland to see the oldest working mill in Maryland.Caption: The front of Old Wye Mill.

Have a Question?

Contact Admissions
Undergraduate Admissions
Owings Mills Campus
Garrison Hall North, Second Floor
1-877-468-6852