About the History Department

Courses in history are designed to encourage reflection on the nature, advantages, and struggles of human societies in different times and places, and to invite cross-cultural comparisons. Moreover, they are intended to stimulate the historical imagination and to promote critical and technical skills in the comprehension and production of historical narratives. Students of history may take many different roads to historical understanding; department members have diverse interests, and they actively encourage students’ independent investigations of history.

Majors, in particular, are invited to collaborate closely with their department mentors in their historical inquiries, while at the same time shaping their own methodologies, foci, questions, and answers. Students majoring in history are encouraged to plan their program of study with their departmental adviser by the end of the sophomore year.

The history department at Bucknell includes scholars who are active in their professional subfields, who present a wide range of views and interests, and who take teaching seriously. Coursework in the department is demanding. Classes tend to be small, and students therefore can benefit from close contact with professional historians who take a personal interest in their students.