Department of History | | Western Michigan University
The Department of History
History as a field of study is concerned with understanding and interpreting societies’ changes over time. The WMU History Department is proud to have approximately 30 full-time teacher-scholars whose areas of specialization range from antiquity to the present and include the continents of Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. History students gain research and communication skills while learning how humans have organized their lives in multiple historical contexts.
Dr. Bruce Haight Retires
Please join the Department of History in honoring Dr. Haight for his forty-one years of service to Western. A Michigan native and graduate of Kalamazoo College, Haight came to WMU in the fall of 1970 after receiving his Ph.D. from Northwestern. Dr. Haight taught in the College of General Studies before moving to the Department of History in 1989. The Department will honor Dr. Haight with a reception at the Oaklands on February 2, 2012 from 4 to 6 p.m. Please share your favorite memory that will be shared with Dr. Haight at the reception.
Undergraduate Study
Students interested in history at WMU select one of three distinct majors. The Secondary Education Curriculum follows WMU’s century-old tradition of preparing future teachers for successful careers. While developing skills as historians, students in this major gain extensive experience in courses and internships through WMU’s College of Education. The Public History Major is designed for those interested in interpreting history in non-school settings, such as museums, archives, and other public institutions. The Liberal Education Curriculum provides a broad education with the opportunity for choice of specialization and can be the foundation for a variety of careers and professions or for graduate study in history or other disciplines.
The Department has recently approved revisions to the curriculum and the major and minor forms. For more information about these changes and to view the major and minor forms click here.
Graduate Study
The History Department offers both the Masters of Arts (MA) degree and the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). The program is known for special strengths in Public History, Medieval Europe, and many aspects of North American History. Through the specialization of Ethnohistory, graduate students have the ability to study societies’ changes over time on many continents of the world, in situations where two or more cultures come into contact with one another.
Spring 2012
Speaker Series
Fall 2011
Newsletter
Bruce Haight Retirement Celebration
February 2, 2012
4 to 6 p.m.
The Oaklands
Open to the Public
Share your memories
Memorial Fund Established to Honor
Dr. Catherine Julien