History Major

Requirements for the Major in History

To major in history, a minimum of 11 history courses are required, distributed as follows:

1. Field distribution: at least one course from each of the following fields: Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean, Europe Since the Renaissance, United States history, Africa, African Diaspora, and Middle East, Asian history and Latin American and Caribbean history.
2. Field specialization: at least four courses in one of the above fields, including two core courses for that field. Students who waive a core course in a field, through placement examination or some other method approved by the department, must substitute another course from that field.
3. At least two Research Seminars (History 100-, 110- or 125-series), which may count either toward field specialization or toward field distribution, depending on the subject of the seminar.
4. A senior exercise (either a senior essay or a senior honors thesis) in the field of specialization, in addition to the minimum four courses in that field.

No more than two courses for the major in history may satisfy requirements for another major.

Note: History courses not taken at Pomona College may count toward the History Major, unless they are cognates of courses available at Pomona. All courses must be taken for a letter grade to count toward the History Major. All history majors must have a history faculty advisor.

Senior Exercise

Senior Essay. All majors must enroll in History (HIST) HIST 190 PO , the Senior Seminar in the fall of senior year and HIST 192 PO  in the spring, in order to complete the senior essay. The essay should be approximately 25-35 pages long. It may be primarily a research paper or an historiographical essay or a literature review and it may use a combination of primary and other sources.

Senior Thesis Option. Students who wish to complete a senior thesis rather than the senior essay should enroll in HIST 191 PO  in the spring, rather than HIST 192 PO . A senior thesis should make extensive use of primary sources and should normally be 50-100 pages long.

Note: The Senior Thesis and Senior Essay conclude undergraduate study in history and may only be taken during the senior year.