URSINUS COLLEGE
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
Department Goals
The general objectives of the history department are to introduce students to the history and value systems of the major world cultures; to foster communication and analytical skills; and to provide the historical perspective necessary for understanding the human condition and the world today. In so doing, the department seeks to give history majors and minors a sound liberal education, to prepare them for post-graduate study and careers, and to cultivate an awareness of social and political issues that will make them better informed citizens.
To study history is to study the powerful interaction between the past and the present. The goals of the history department are threefold: first, to convey an understanding of the meaning of history and knowledge of its methodology; second, to nurture students' abilities to read critically, write clearly, reason logically and inferentially; and third, to offer the multicultural historical perspective that is necessary to understand the human condition and contemporary world affairs.
In addition to acquiring sound communication skills, history majors learn how to work with a vast variety of evidence, and how to evaluate the results. Moreover, the study of history is wide-ranging, as it connects all aspects of the present with the past. For these reasons, not only are there many career opportunities for history majors, but a minor in history can be combined with almost any other field.