The purpose of studying history is to learn about worlds past, providing an indispensable tool for understanding the present. Students in the Department of History learn to ask questions in order to place the challenges that lie at the heart of the modern experience within broad and varied perspectives on the past. Thus, we aim to develop historical sensibilities by means of which to cultivate critical awareness of the assumptions and institutions that govern our world.
Our curriculum is anchored in the history of European civilizations and their enduring encounters with other cultures, both East and West. The program offers a rich selection of courses at all levels, dealing with the political, intellectual, social, economic and cultural aspects of European history, from Antiquity through the Middle Ages, the Early Modern period, and up to the present.
Our teaching programs are tailored to the advanced study of the history of Western Civilization and to those wishing to pursue a teaching career. Faculty members also lead cross-university programs in Classics and African Studies, exposing our students to leading scholarship in these fields.
