The Department of History offers a Bachelor of Arts degree that prepares students broadly for modern careers in business, government, and teaching, or for graduate study in history, law, library science, business, or education. The Department's academic offerings reflect the diversity of the faculty, and students are encouraged to sample broadly the course offerings.
Program Highlights
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The degree offers you many varied options to expand your horizons beyond the required number of classroom courses. The department offers study abroad courses over the spring break. A very popular study abroad course is the Holocaust in France. Students travel to Paris and trace the route of French Jews to Auschwitz. There are also possibilities for an entire study abroad semester in universities around the world. Internships in museums, at historical and archaeological sites, and libraries give you hands-on practical experience and offer networking possibilities for later employment.
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A bachelor’s degree in history will give you invaluable research and analytic skills that will prepare you to enter into several professional fields. Teaching at the secondary level of education is a major career field. You can work as a historian in many large government and commercial organizations. You can use your research skills working in archives. You can also work as a curator in a museum. A very important professional field is serving in the military. A degree in history is also great preparation for a career as a lawyer.
Careers
Check out these ideas from ODU's Center for Career & Leadership Development and the Occupational Information Network (O*NET). A median salary is a midpoint of what people typically earn—half of those surveyed earned above the median salary, and half earned below.
Historians
Research, analyze, record, and interpret the past as recorded in sources, such as government and institutional records, newspapers and other periodicals, photographs, interviews, films, electronic media, and unpublished manuscripts, such as personal diaries and letters.
Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other
All postsecondary social sciences teachers not listed separately.
Requirements
Transfer
At ODU, we understand that as a transfer student you have unique needs that require a wide array of campus resources. The Center for Advising Administration and Academic Partnerships aims to create a transfer inclusive culture that supports the successful...
Featured Courses
Required of all history and secondary education social studies majors. Recommended prior to upper-division course work. Examines methods of historical research and primary and secondary source analysis, inclusive of internet usage. Explores historiography and historical writing. Introduces students to issues in the philosophy of history. Prerequisites: HIST 100H or HIST 101H or HIST 102H or HIST 103H or HIST 104H or HIST 105H.
An investigation of different representations of the Earth: physical and cognitive maps, atlases, spatial databases, aerial photographs, and remote sensing imagery, with an emphasis on the use of geographic tools for communicating and analyzing information. Prerequisites: GEOG 100S or GEOG 101S.
Cost
Estimated rates for the 2024-25 academic year. Rates are subject to change. Other fees are assessed for special services and certain academic programs. Anyone that is not a current Virginia resident will be charged non-resident rates. That includes international students.
Ways to Save
Here are a few ways for you to save on the cost of attending ODU. For more information visit University Student Financial Aid.
Contact
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Additional Programs
Are there other programs at ODU I may be interested in?
With over 120 undergraduate programs, 130 graduate programs at the master's, education specialist and doctoral levels plus a wealth of certificate and professional development programs, Old Dominion University has the program for you. Visit our academic program listing page to see other programs ODU has to offer.