About Us

HISTORY is the study of the human past. It seeks to understand and interpret that storehouse of past experience in meaningful ways for today's world. In so doing, it helps us all---as individuals, as citizens, and as members of communities---to learn who we are.

At Missouri State, the Department of History is part of the College of Humanities and Public Affairs. It consists of twenty two full-time faculty members and five graduate assistants. The department office is managed by a full-time administrative secretary and a nine-month administrative clerk.

Among the exceptional people in the department is a recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, the winners of six Faculty Recognition Awards for Excellence, and one Fulbright Lecturer. The faculty have written more than three dozen books published by scholarly presses including titles by Harvard and Princeton. The American Historical Review, Traditio, Zeitshrift für Assyriologie, Journal of American History, and the English Historical Review, are among the scholarly periodicals in which history faculty have published. The faculty have studied all over the world, from Shanghai to Jerusalem, Berlin to Paris, California to New York. They bring to the classroom a depth of understanding and a breadth of knowledge that matches their concern for students and for the process of learning.

Full-time faculty teach all graduate and upper-division, and all but a few lower division sections. Classroom facilities are superb. Nearly all of our classes are held in the new Strong Hall.

The department houses four degree programs: Bachelor of Arts, the Bachelor of Science in Education, the Master of Science in Education, and the Master of Arts. 200 of Missouri State's 370 history majors are candidates for the B.S.Ed. degree. There are also 100 B.A. majors, and 70 candidates for graduate degrees.

A major in History requires 36 hours (12 courses) for the B.A. degree, and 33 hours for the B.S.Ed. Among the department's undergraduate offerings are courses in such diverse subjects as Women's History, the Plains Indians, African Civilization, the Ancient Near East, and the Civil War. Students may take courses as part of a major, a minor, or simply to expand their intellectual horizons.

The Master's program consists of 32 semester hours, including three proseminars (or readings seminars) and a seminar in which the student produces a research paper; or two proseminars and Master's thesis. Recent graduate proseminars have been held on such topics as European Imperialism in Africa, The Life and Presidency of John F. Kennedy and Sumerian civilization.

Financial assistance is available to graduate students in the form of graduate assistantships. Three such awards are made yearly. They consist of a waiver of all tuition and fees and a $8,200 stipend.  The AHEEP grant project includes a fourth assistantship at the same rate. Graduate students are also eligible to apply for the university Basil and JoAnn Boritzki Scholarship and the Phi Alpha Theta Scholarship awarded by Missouri State History Department.  Undergraduate students also may receive financial assistance. The University offers numerous scholarships and loans, and in addition the Department nominates twelve students for scholarships reserved for History majors.

Missouri State sponsors an active, involved chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, the national history honor society. Phi Alpha Theta's programs range from the serious to the social. They are a great way for outstanding students to get to know one another and the history faculty. Students and faculty discuss issues ranging from exciting new discoveries in history to the best graduate and professional schools--and how to get in.