Welcome to the Department of History

Whether you are a prospective student, a current Loyola student, or just browsing, we hope that we can help you.

History at Loyola is an integral part of the university's liberal arts program. As such, it seeks to free the mind from common prejudices and faulty intellectual assumptions through a broad-based study of the human past. Students become familiar with the principal forces of change and adaptation that have marked humanity's cultural, social, political and economic development.

Guiding the student's intellectual formation is a dedicated history faculty made up of professional educators who themselves are engaged in the quest for knowledge through continued research and active scholarship. In addition to classroom teaching faculty members serve as academic advisors, counseling history majors in their course selections and in career planning. Students are strongly encouraged to keep in close contact with their advisors.

Departmental course offerings reflect the broad expertise of the history faculty, and treat such diverse areas as American, European, Asian, Middle Eastern, and African history, with thematic courses in intellectual, social, legal, political, and military, as well as African-American, Church, and women's histories. In addition, the department offers a variety of internships for qualified students interested in museum or archival work.

An undergraduate degree in history is a valuable preparation for careers in a number of fields: law, foreign service, politics, journalism, publishing, public relations, teaching and, naturally, historical research and writing. History also serves as an indispensable adjunct to studies in the humanities and the social sciences.

Traditionally, large numbers of history graduates have sought careers in business and in education. The faculty advisor can recommend specific business courses that will allow the student to obtain a minor in business and thus form the basis of work necessary to enter an M.B.A. program. A secondary education minor would provide the student with partial preparation for secondary level certification and would offer an appropriate platform for an M.A.T. or M. Ed. degree.