History Program and Degrees

For program brochures, Check Sheets, and Bulletin links please go to Documents & Forms. These links are also found on their specific program pages.

The undergraduate program in history at UCA prepares its majors for a wide variety of careers including public service, law, media relations, museums and libraries, business, information systems, publishing, and education. Major requirements are broadly based to expose students to many historical cultures and time periods and also offer opportunities to specialize.  In the process, students develop research, analytical, and communications skills that transform them into historians capable of applying those skills to wherever their career goals take them.

The BA in History stresses the development of critical reading and thinking skills, reasoning, oral and written communication, and the analysis and interpretation of conflicting evidence. Above all, the history program emphasizes the cultivation of sensitivity to human differences and values. The B.A. prepares students for work in public history, public service, business, media, post-graduate studies, and the law.

• 16 hours of foundational courses, 6 hours of methods courses, and 18 hours of electives
• Special degree requirements include minimum of 3 hours of foreign language, study abroad, and communications-focused courses (total of 9 hours needed)
• Select either a traditional minor or create a minor tailored to your career goals from both an interdisciplinary minor program and one interest area. See the check sheet for these areas.

The BS in History offers a unique opportunity to bridge the liberal arts and the sciences, reimagining such STEM fields as computer science, medicine, land management, and others by placing them within a humanistic context grounded in the liberal arts’ traditions and methods. Students fluent in both the historian’s language of communication, cultural context, empathy, and diversity, and STEM’s emphasis on quantitative analysis and scientific methodology are well positioned to tackle the 21^st century’s most pressing problems. This degree envisions its graduates pursuing careers in information systems, digital humanities, parks and land management, historical preservation and curation, and more scientifically oriented segments of the law, such as environmental law.

• 16 hours of foundational courses, 6 hours of methods courses, 15 hours of electives, and 6 hours of science-focused history courses
• Special degree requirement: 6 hours from a list of quantitative-focused courses including introductory statistics courses, logic, data management, geographic information systems, and computer programming.
• Select either a traditional minor or create a minor tailored to your career goals by selecting 12 hours each from 4 interest areas: Information Systems and Digital Humanities; Parks, Recs, and Land Management; Environmental Sciences; and Curation and Preservation. See the check sheet for more details.

BSE in Social Studies (history emphasis) prepares students for careers in secondary education and successful completion results in licensure to teach social studies in Arkansas

African and African American Studies (interdisciplinary major and minor)

Asian Studies (interdisciplinary minor)

Southern and Arkansas Studies (interdisciplinary minor)