Undergraduate Program

Undergraduate Program

Undergraduate program in history is designed to introduce students to major conceptual tools and research methods of historical study, while providing a historical depth of field for the understanding of the contemporary world. The history of the Eastern Mediterranean basin in its social, economic, political, and cultural dimensions constitutes the geographic emphasis. Ottoman and Turkish history is a main focus along with other topics. Comparative perspectives and interdisciplinary approaches to the history of the region as well as to Asian and European history enrich the program.

The department offers a flexible and liberal curriculum. Students follow a core program, while taking a large number of elective courses in their own areas of interest. Introduction to history and the social sciences, methods and theories of historical study, world history, the social, economic, political and cultural aspects of the history of Anatolia and the Balkans from the medieval to the modern era constitute the subject matter of courses in the core program. The core program also includes courses in mathematics and statistics, in order to familiarize students with quantitative research methods. Students graduate with a thesis based on primary and secondary source material.

A rich and diversified pool of elective courses complement the core program. Elective courses offered by faculty members cover a broad range of topics in Asian, Islamic, Mediterranean, Byzantine, Ottoman, Modern Turkish, European, and American history. Courses in archaeology, and the history of art and architecture aim at introducing students to aspects of visual and material culture within these historical and geographical contexts. Students may choose from this pool of departmental electives, or take elective courses in social and political sciences and humanities included in the university’s undergraduate curriculum.

Research languages constitute another component of the core program. While students who choose to concentrate on Ottoman history follow courses in Ottoman language and paleography, those who wish to focus on European or Byzantine history study Ancient Greek or Latin, in addition to an introduction to Ottoman. The students who choose this second option must start taking Greek or Latin in their second year. The department also offers courses in three East Asian languages, Japanese, Chinese, and Korean. Those specializing in East Asian history have to take two years of Japanese or Chinese language in addition to one year of Ottoman Turkish. To be able to expand their areas of research and develop comparative perspectives, students are also required to learn a modern language apart from English.

The department has double-major programs with the Departments of Philosophy, Political Science and International Relations, Psychology, Sociology, and Turkish Language and Literature.

UNDERGRADUATE CURRICULUM (Credits)

* Science Elective: One course should be selected from the pool of introductory science courses :            
Physics: STS 205, PHYS 111, PHYS 112, PHYS 205, PHYS 206                 
Chemistry: CHEM 111, CHEM 112, STS 301 ve STS 302
Molecular Biology and Genetics: BIO 121                
SCI 101, 102              
Environmental Sciences: ESC 301, ESC 305, ESC 306                                                          

** AE 112: Students who pass the proficiency exam with a C, and students who get a grade below BB in Engl 111 have to take AE 112. Students who pass the proficiency exam with a B or A grade, and students who pass Engl 111 with  BB or a higher grade have to take Lit 212

*** Complementary Elective: Complementary Elective: Courses offered by the Departments of Economics, Political Science and International Relations, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Turkish Language and Literature, Western Languages and Literatures, pending on the approval of the advisor and the instructor.                                        

**** Restricted elective:  courses offered by the History Department on topics related to archaeology, art and architectural history, visual culture, material culture.           

***** Unrestricted Elective: Any course from any department or faculty offered with credit. Students can take a maximum of two Pass/Fail courses to count within this category.