UMass Boston

History BA

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Gain the Skills for a Wide Range of Careers – From Teaching to Law

As a student in the History BA program at UMass Boston, you will develop deep knowledge of the past, preparing you for a range of career opportunities and graduate studies. Through rigorous coursework, engaging faculty, and numerous opportunities for experiential learning – including internships – you will gain a comprehensive understanding of the forces and events that have shaped human society and culture over time.

In this program, you will:

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the historical processes and events that have shaped the world we live in, including social, political, economic, and cultural factors.
  • Develop strong analytical and critical thinking skills, enabling you to evaluate and interpret primary and secondary sources, analyze complex historical arguments, and draw your own conclusions based on evidence.
  • Emerge with the skills to communicate effectively in both written and oral forms, using clear and persuasive language to convey your ideas to a variety of audiences

Plan Your Education

How to Apply

Apply for Admission

Please review the first-year and transfer apply pages for important information about application requirements, deadlines, and application status check.

Apply as a First-Year Student

Apply as a Transfer Student

Deadlines & Cost

Early action deadline: November 1; Regular Decision Deadline: June 15

Financing Your Education

Become a Beacon and pursue your passion in UMass Boston’s diverse, supportive environment. Many students across our 200+ undergraduate and graduate programs receive financial aid—providing access to an education that’s exceptional and affordable. Click below to learn more about financial aid opportunities and deadlines.

Financial Aid Deadlines & Application Process 

Scholarships for First-Year & Transfer Students

For additional information regarding tuition and fees, please visit the Bursar’s Office or send an email to Bursar@umb.edu.

Related Minors

History Minor

Supplement any major with a minor in History to advance your research skills and cultural knowledge, and to open doors to your future career.

Required Courses

Introductory Course (3 Credits):

  • HIST 101 - Introduction to Historical Thinking and Analysis 3 Credit(s)

200-Level Survey Courses (9 Credits):
Take three courses from the list below.

  • HIST 210L - Labor and Working Class History in the United States 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 211 - Europe to 1600 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 212 - Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 213 - World History to 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 214 - Modern World History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 249 - Modern Middle East History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 251L - South Asia and the India Ocean World: Trade, Labor and Capital from 1800 to the Present 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 252 - African History to 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 253 - African History since 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 255L - Gods and Slaves: Latin America before 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 256L - Skyscrapers and Shantytowns: Latin America since 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 262L - American Indian History to 1783 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 263L - Modern American Indian Social and Political History: From the American
  • Revolution to Standing Rock 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 265 - American History before 1877 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 266 - American History since 1877 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 275L - Learning to Labor: Work and Education in US History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 276 - This Land is Your Land: A Survey of American Environmental History 3 Credit(s)

Electives (21 Credits):
Take seven history courses. At least four must be at the 300-level and at least one must be at the 400-level.

Capstone (3 Credits):

  • HIST 481 - Research & Methods: Senior Research Methods in History 3 Credit(s)

Pre-1800 History Requirement:
At least one course from the pre-1800 history list below must be used toward the major requirements.

  • HIST 125L - Jerusalem: Sacred Space, Contested Space 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 160L - East Asian Civilizations to 1850 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 211 - Europe to 1600 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 213 - World History to 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 219 - History of the Mediterranean 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 230L - Ancient Egypt 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 233L - The Homeric Warrior 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 249 - Modern Middle East History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 252 - African History to 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 255L - Gods and Slaves: Latin America before 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 262L - American Indian History to 1783 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 265 - American History before 1877 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 301L - Ancient Greek History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 302L - Roman History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 303L - The Archaeology of Ancient Greece 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 304 - Early Middle Ages: Europe 300-1000 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 305 - Later Middle Ages: Europe 1000-1450 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 306L - The Archaeology of Ancient Rome 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 307 - Renaissance and Reformation 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 308 - The History of Common Law 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 312 - Cities in Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 314 - Health and Healing in Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 317L - Women in Medieval and Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 322 - Shakespeare’s London 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 330 - The French Revolution 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 360L - Traditional China 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 371 - The American Revolution, 1763-1789 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 413 - Saints, Witches and Heretics 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 416L - Thucydides: War & Human Nature 3 Credit(s)

Geographic Breadth Requirement:
At least one course from four of the five geographic breadth areas below must be used to fulfill major requirements.

African History:

  • HIST 150 - Food and Empire 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 252 - African History to 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 253 - African History since 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 346 - Women & Gender in African History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 347 - Feast to Famine: Food in African History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 352 - Topics in African History 3 Credit(s)
     

Asian History:

  • HIST 115L - Survey of South Asia 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 160L - East Asian Civilizations to 1850 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 161L - East Asian Civilizations since 1850 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 249 - Modern Middle East History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 251L - South Asia and the India Ocean World: Trade, Labor and Capital from 1800 to the Present 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 357 - The Vietnam War 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 359L - Women in Modern China 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 360L - Traditional China 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 361L - The History of Modern China 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 363L - Modern Japan 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 364L - India since 1857 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 365L - Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan in Modern History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 456 - Faith and Politics in Islam: Devotion, Reform, and Jihad in Historical Perspective 3 Credit(s)
     

European History:

  • HIST 130 - Goddesses and Supergirls 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 211 - Europe to 1600 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 212 - Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 219 - History of the Mediterranean 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 220 - History of European Empires 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 301L - Ancient Greek History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 302L - Roman History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 303L - The Archaeology of Ancient Greece 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 304 - Early Middle Ages: Europe 300-1000 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 305 - Later Middle Ages: Europe 1000-1450 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 306L - The Archaeology of Ancient Rome 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 307 - Renaissance and Reformation 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 308 - The History of Common Law 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 312 - Cities in Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 313 - Nineteenth Century Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 314 - Health and Healing in Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 315 - Europe 1900-1945 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 316 - Europe since 1945 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 317L - Women in Medieval and Early Modern Europe 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 322 - Shakespeare’s London 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 324 - Russia and the Soviet Union: From the 1917 Revolution to Putin 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 325 - European Expansion 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 326 - Hitler, A Man and His Times 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 330 - The French Revolution 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 334 - Italy Since 1815 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 342 - Cinema in Hitler’s Germany: Movies, Propaganda, Politics in Weimar and Nazi Germany 1919-1945 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 343 - World War II: The Global War 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 413 - Saints, Witches and Heretics 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 416L - Thucydides: War & Human Nature 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 433 - Mussolini 3 Credit(s)
     

Latin American History:

  • HIST 152 - Crime, Corruption, and Scandal in Historical Perspective 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 255L - Gods and Slaves: Latin America before 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 256L - Skyscrapers and Shantytowns: Latin America since 1800 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 350 - Mexico since 1850 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 351 - Histories of Brazil 3 Credit(s)
     

United States History:

  • HIST 171 - Leeches to Lasers: Medicine and Health in the United States 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 173 - Baseball and American History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 175 - Comic Books in America: The History of Comic Books and American Society since 1938 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 185 - Mascots, Monuments, Massacres: Native American History in the Public Sphere 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 210L - Labor and Working Class History in the United States 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 262L - American Indian History to 1783 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 263L - Modern American Indian Social and Political History: From the American Revolution to Standing Rock 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 265 - American History before 1877 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 266 - American History since 1877 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 276 - This Land is Your Land: A Survey of American Environmental History 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 349L - The Cold War: Rise and Fall 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 357 - The Vietnam War 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 371 - The American Revolution, 1763-1789 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 372 - The Early Republic 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 374 - The Whaling Women of Nantucket 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 377 - The American Progressive Era, 1890-1920 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 380 - The United States Since 1945 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 382 - American Indian Treaty Rights, Sovereignty, and Self-Determination 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 387 - US Foreign Policy since 1898 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 388 - American Soldiers in American Wars: History and Memory 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 395 - The History of Boston 3 Credit(s)
  • HIST 440L - United States in a Global Context 3 Credit(s)

Career Possibilities

Work in a research position at a museum, historical society, government agency, or private research firm. Pursue opportunities in government and public service, including positions in public policy, advocacy, or diplomacy. Or, go on to law school to pursue a career in advocacy, using your analytical skills to effect change. Whatever your goals, UMass Boston is here to support you.

Become a(n):

  • History Teacher
  • Researcher
  • Historical Society Manager
  • Professor
  • Activist
  • Journalist
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History Department

The History Department equips students for success by exploring how past societies grappled with complex challenges. It explores how people have structured & managed their relationships with one another; how and why those structures and relationships changed over time; and how globalization has shaped life, identity, opportunity, and justice. Studying history deepens our understanding of the human condition and of how the past continues to shape our lives today.

Explore the Department of History
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College of Liberal Arts

Learn more about the faculty, research, and programs that make up our College of Liberal Arts.

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