History and Political Science at Greenville University
Study the past to better understand the present. The bachelor of arts in history and political science equips you to succeed in graduate school or in a wide range of professions that require critical thinking, clear communication, and ethical conduct. These include politics, law, government, business, education, public and civil service, media, and many more.
Study in Washington D.C. or abroad in Israel, Guatemala, Mexico, Spain, and more. Take part in short-term mission trips to Honduras and Nicaragua. Enjoy cross-cultural experiences on campus including a Multicultural Festival and Hispanic Festival.
Combine disciplines
Combine the study of history and political science to round out your knowledge of government, law, public policy, and political processes. Discover how past events inform modern challenges.
Critical and creative thinking
Learn how to write clearly, think critically, and solve problems. Become skilled at defending your ideas with research and strong communication. Learn how to analyze and interpret research, and dialogue about politics, society, and economics.
Why GU
Study in Israel. Stand on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, walk the streets that Jesus walked in Jerusalem, and visit other biblical sites in a three-week exploration of the land of Israel. Study scripture against its historical and geographical backdrop.
Deepen your education. We’re a liberal arts school. That means you get a holistic education that introduces you to many subjects and ideas, helping you grow your interests and skills.
Faith-based. Learn to incorporate your faith into both your studies and your career.
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Success Stories
I decided to come to GU because I love the community here. I was surrounded by great people that really invested in me and always pushed me to be greater than I formerly was.
-Johnny Milabu
History & Political Science, BA Course Requirements
The history and political science major requires students to complete 33 credits, and leads to a bachelor of arts degree.
History & Political Science, BA Courses
This course explores the origin and historical development of various cultures throughout the world and the interplay of physical, economic, political, and social forces in the shaping of world civilization to 1500. Meets the general education humanities/history requirement. (Offered fall semester.)
This course explores the interactions among the diverse cultures around the world and the interplay of cultural, economic, political, and social forces shaping the world civilizations since 1500. Meets the general education humanities/history requirement. (Offered spring semester.)
The study of the history and culture of China and Japan from ancient times to the present. Meets the general education global foundations and humaniities/history requirements. (Offered: Irregularly)
In this course, we will consider how Americans responded to rapidly changing conditions that followed the Civil War. We will consider how a national culture developed in the post-Civil War period, and we will evaluate the benefits and liabilities of this transition. Further we will examine the ways in which the United States assumed a new global identity through the course of the mid-nineteenth to the late twentieth century and consider the repercussions of this new consciousness. Finally, we will study the ways in which Americans placed limitations on state power in order to provide more consistent equality and equity for all. Offered fall semester of even calendar years.
This course assists students to develop skills useful in the current practice of historical thinking, research and writing. Through a variety of projects, students will practice the skills and methods of history, with a balance of traditional methods and newer technologies and their applications for the practices and purposes of history, with a special focus on the principles and methods of oral history.
Prerequisite: HIST 101, HIST 204, or HIST 205. (Offered spring semester of odd calendar years.)
This course examines the settlement, colonization and nation-building of the United States from roughly 1600-1865. This course focuses on the context in which European settlers and the Africans whom they enslaved built a nation, wresting North America from native tribes. We will investigate the loyalties that guided settlers' beliefs and actions; the multi-faceted conflicts that led future generations to demand liberty; and the conflicted notions of equality, democracy and justice that guided the United States in its first eight decades. (Offered fall semester.)
This courses provide an in-depth examination of a single topic from American History. Historiography and book reviews as writing forms that are vital to the practice of History will be considered. Meets the general education upper division writing intensive requirement. (Offered spring of even calendar years.)
Examines structures, functions, and policies of the national government. (Offered spring semester.)
Emphasizes the forces that shaped and are now reshaping the region. Examines historical reasons for the present problems that trouble the area. Cross listed with HIST310 and SPAN310. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. (Offered fall semester.)
This course allows students the ability to practice and refine the skills necessary for successful secondary history instruction. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
African American history (1492-1860) explores the history of American slavery from its beginnings in the West Indies through colonization and up to the Civil War. The course examines the Atlantic slave trade (until its abolition in 1808), domestic slavery in America, the political and ideological divide within America (during this time period) over the issue of slavery, and the efforts of American and British abolitionists to end slavery. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 325. Offered: Fall semester of odd calendar years.
African American history (1860-1970) examines the halting progress Americans made during the 100 years between the Emancipation Proclamation and the civil rights legislation of the 1960's. Students consider the perspective of significant American civil rights activists, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Mary Church Terrell, Anna Julia Cooper, Marcus Garvey, A. Philip Randolph, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 326. Offered: Fall semester of even calendar years.
This course offers a broad overview of at least 5 of the worlds major religions, utilizing an historical and descriptive approach. Emphasis will be placed on attempting to understand the culture, philosophies, and world views associated with each religion empathetically and to consider the ways in which culture and beliefs have dialogically shaped one another and their associated communities. Current social and political issues that face these communities and our world will also be considered as we attempt to apply our knowledge within our chosen field of study and as responsible world citizens. Ultimately, it is hoped that the student will come away from this study with a clearer understanding of their own faith and culture and the ways in which those elements interact, having considered the common theological concerns of humankind through the various lenses of the worlds wisdom traditions, equipped to continue developing their knowledge and applying it within their chosen field or ministry.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered fall semester.)
This course seeks to increase awareness of the uniqueness of Mexican culture, society, and politics and to promote an understanding of the forces driving changes in these areas. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/historyl requirements. Cross-Listed as HIST 348. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
Emphasizes the forces that shaped and are now reshaping the region. Examines historical reasons for the present problems that trouble the area. Cross listed with HIST 110 and SPAN 310. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. (Offered fall semester.)
This course is a study of the history, culture, and religion of the modern Middle East, especially as it relates to the development of, and ongoing interaction between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. We will seek to understand each community in terms of their origin, development, influences, and connections to each other and to civil orders. We will observe the concepts and phenomena they share, as well as the ways in which they are distinguished. We will then apply this knowledge to an analysis of current events and dynamics in the Middle East and how this plays out globally. Cross listed with THEO 315. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
African American History I (1492-1860) explores the history of American slavery from its beginnings in the West Indies through colonization and up to the Civil War. The course examines the Atlantic slave trade (until its abolition in 1808), domestic slavery in America, the political and ideological divide within America (during this time period) over the issue of slavery, and the efforts of American and British abolitionists to end slavery. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 225. Offered: Fall semester of odd calendar years.
African American History II (1860-1970) examines the halting progress Americans made during the 100 years between the Emancipation Proclamation and the civil rights legislation of the 1960's. Students consider the perspective of significant American civil rights activists, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Mary Church Terrell, Anna Julia Cooper, Marcus Garvey, A. Philip Randolph, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements.
Cross-Listed as: HIST 226. Offered: Fall of even calendar years.
The systematic study of the development of Western Christendom from the first through the fifteenth centuries focusing on major themes, figures, actions, and impulses. The historical method of research will be employed as a means of helping students to gain a contextualized understanding and appreciation for the developing role of the church and its relationship to culture. A major emphasis will be placed on the reading of primary sources as a means for understanding the development of Christian theology. Cross listed with THEO 343.
Prerequisite: THEO 110. (Offered spring semester of odd calendar years.)
A study of the Jewish religion/culture that developed in the sixth century BCE and flourished in the Persian, Greek and Roman periods. Includes encounters with the rabbinic literature that began to be produced in the second century CE--the Midrashim, Mishanah and Talmuds--and modern expressions of Judaism around the world. Cross listed with THEO 345. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered spring semester.)
This course seeks to increase awareness of the uniqueness of Mexican culture, society, and politics and to promote an understanding of the forces driving changes in these areas. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: HIST 101. Cross-Listed as HIST 248. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
An interdisciplinary course organized for studying backgrounds to current economic problems in context with related social, political, and religious issues. (Offered irregularly.)
Historiography is the analysis of the theories through which we have understood history.
Concerns political ideas from Plato to the present, analyzed from the perspective of the Judeo-Christian-Classical tradition. Cross listed with PHIL 311.
Prerequisite: POLS 210. (Offered fall semester of odd calendar years.)
A study of the foreign policy of the United States from Teddy Roosevelt to George W. Bush.
Prereq: HIST 204 or HIST 205. (Offered fall semester of even calendar years).
Emphasizes the forces that shaped and are now reshaping the region. Examines historical reasons for the present problems that trouble the area. Cross listed with HIST310 and SPAN310. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. (Offered fall semester.)
The study of the history and culture of China and Japan from ancient times to the present. Meets the general education global foundations and humaniities/history requirements. (Offered: Irregularly)
This course allows students the ability to practice and refine the skills necessary for successful secondary history instruction. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
African American history (1492-1860) explores the history of American slavery from its beginnings in the West Indies through colonization and up to the Civil War. The course examines the Atlantic slave trade (until its abolition in 1808), domestic slavery in America, the political and ideological divide within America (during this time period) over the issue of slavery, and the efforts of American and British abolitionists to end slavery. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 325. Offered: Fall semester of odd calendar years.
African American history (1860-1970) examines the halting progress Americans made during the 100 years between the Emancipation Proclamation and the civil rights legislation of the 1960's. Students consider the perspective of significant American civil rights activists, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Mary Church Terrell, Anna Julia Cooper, Marcus Garvey, A. Philip Randolph, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 326. Offered: Fall semester of even calendar years.
This course offers a broad overview of at least 5 of the worlds major religions, utilizing an historical and descriptive approach. Emphasis will be placed on attempting to understand the culture, philosophies, and world views associated with each religion empathetically and to consider the ways in which culture and beliefs have dialogically shaped one another and their associated communities. Current social and political issues that face these communities and our world will also be considered as we attempt to apply our knowledge within our chosen field of study and as responsible world citizens. Ultimately, it is hoped that the student will come away from this study with a clearer understanding of their own faith and culture and the ways in which those elements interact, having considered the common theological concerns of humankind through the various lenses of the worlds wisdom traditions, equipped to continue developing their knowledge and applying it within their chosen field or ministry.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered fall semester.)
This course seeks to increase awareness of the uniqueness of Mexican culture, society, and politics and to promote an understanding of the forces driving changes in these areas. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/historyl requirements. Cross-Listed as HIST 348. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
Emphasizes the forces that shaped and are now reshaping the region. Examines historical reasons for the present problems that trouble the area. Cross listed with HIST 110 and SPAN 310. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. (Offered fall semester.)
This course is a study of the history, culture, and religion of the modern Middle East, especially as it relates to the development of, and ongoing interaction between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. We will seek to understand each community in terms of their origin, development, influences, and connections to each other and to civil orders. We will observe the concepts and phenomena they share, as well as the ways in which they are distinguished. We will then apply this knowledge to an analysis of current events and dynamics in the Middle East and how this plays out globally. Cross listed with THEO 315. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
African American History I (1492-1860) explores the history of American slavery from its beginnings in the West Indies through colonization and up to the Civil War. The course examines the Atlantic slave trade (until its abolition in 1808), domestic slavery in America, the political and ideological divide within America (during this time period) over the issue of slavery, and the efforts of American and British abolitionists to end slavery. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements. Cross-Listed as: HIST 225. Offered: Fall semester of odd calendar years.
African American History II (1860-1970) examines the halting progress Americans made during the 100 years between the Emancipation Proclamation and the civil rights legislation of the 1960's. Students consider the perspective of significant American civil rights activists, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Mary Church Terrell, Anna Julia Cooper, Marcus Garvey, A. Philip Randolph, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. Meets the general education global foundations and humanities/history requirements.
Cross-Listed as: HIST 226. Offered: Fall of even calendar years.
The systematic study of the development of Western Christendom from the first through the fifteenth centuries focusing on major themes, figures, actions, and impulses. The historical method of research will be employed as a means of helping students to gain a contextualized understanding and appreciation for the developing role of the church and its relationship to culture. A major emphasis will be placed on the reading of primary sources as a means for understanding the development of Christian theology. Cross listed with THEO 343.
Prerequisite: THEO 110. (Offered spring semester of odd calendar years.)
A study of the Jewish religion/culture that developed in the sixth century BCE and flourished in the Persian, Greek and Roman periods. Includes encounters with the rabbinic literature that began to be produced in the second century CE--the Midrashim, Mishanah and Talmuds--and modern expressions of Judaism around the world. Cross listed with THEO 345. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: THEO 110 or THEO 310. (Offered spring semester.)
This course seeks to increase awareness of the uniqueness of Mexican culture, society, and politics and to promote an understanding of the forces driving changes in these areas. Meets the general education global foundations requirement.
Prerequisite: HIST 101. Cross-Listed as HIST 248. (Offered spring semester of even calendar years.)
An interdisciplinary course organized for studying backgrounds to current economic problems in context with related social, political, and religious issues. (Offered irregularly.)
Selected readings chosen by student and instructor.
In this course the student applies theories and skills learned in the major. Each experience should include significant learning opportunities related to the student's major field. Two supervisors are involved, a work supervisor and an academic supervisor. Registration must occur prior to the activity. Forty to sixty hours of work experience is required for each credit awarded. The students must consult with their academic supervisor at least twice during the experience. A learning experience summary paper following departmental guidelines is required as well as a final review with the academic supervisor. A maximum of twelve credits may be applied to the degree.
Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing with a 2.0 G.P.A., 18 semester credits completed in the field and departmental approval.
Historiography is the analysis of the theories through which we have understood history.
Concerns political ideas from Plato to the present, analyzed from the perspective of the Judeo-Christian-Classical tradition. Cross listed with PHIL 311.
Prerequisite: POLS 210. (Offered fall semester of odd calendar years.)
A study of the foreign policy of the United States from Teddy Roosevelt to George W. Bush.
Prereq: HIST 204 or HIST 205. (Offered fall semester of even calendar years).
