Honors Program in History


Purpose
The History Honors Program is designed for outstanding history majors at UAB and allows qualified students to write a Honor’s Thesis based on original research. Faculty-led independent research for the senior thesis provides students with experience in applying historical methods and analytical writing techniques. This more advanced study helps prepare undergraduate history majors for graduate work in the field or for post-graduate training in other areas such as law, theology, and medicine. Students who complete the program will graduate “With Honors in History.”

Eligibility
To be eligible for the History Honors Program, students must meet the following criteria:

  • complete at least 60 semester hours with a minimum 3.0 overall GPA and a minimum 3.5 GPA in history courses
  • At least 24 semester hours in the history major (including HY 300 Historian’s Craft and HY 497 History Capstone) must be completed prior to acceptance
    in the Honors Program.

Interested students must apply for the program which includes submitting a prospectus with bibliography. The application must include the signature of a History Department faculty member who has agreed to direct the Honor’s Thesis. If the student is accepted to the program, the student and the thesis director will choose two additional faculty members to make up the student’s thesis committee. The thesis committee will determine whether the student’s completed thesis qualifies for honors.

 

Requirements
The History Honors Program requires a total of 42 semester hours in history (as compared to 39 for the traditional history major) and maintenance of an overall 3.0 GPA and a 3.5 GPA in history courses through graduation. Additional requirements include:

  1. 12 semester hours of lower-division survey courses selected from Western Civilization, HY 101 and 102, United States History, HY 120 and 121;
  2. 3 semester hours of HY 300, The Historian’s Craft.
    • The department recommends that this course betaken after the completion of the lower-division survey requirement and before taking upperdivision
      courses
  3. 24 semester hours which should include:
      • 9 semester hours at the 300 or 400 level,
      • 3 semester hours for HY 497 History Capstone Course, and
      • 6 semester hours at the 300 level or above
    • (these courses may not be transferred from another institution and must be taken at UAB);
  4. 3 semester hours of HY 401, Honors Thesis in History

Honors students may take one or two graduate seminars in history for undergraduate credit with permission of the Director of the History Undergraduate Program. This credit may not be used for graduate credit.

 

Contact
For additional information on the History Honors Program, contact the Department of History, Director of Undergraduate Programs or Chair; Telephone (205) 934-5634.