The past is essential and inescapable.  Without it we would lack any identity, nothing would be familiar, and the present would make no sense.

David Lowenthal, The Past is a Foreign Country

Students who undertake a major in History operate at the very heart of the liberal arts tradition that is the foundation of Hastings College.  The wonder of History is that students may confront the past – and in so doing, redefine their present and perhaps even their future.

Majors will polish reading, writing, and discussion skills as they practice the historian’s craft.  Departmental offerings, while widely varied in their subject material and approach to the past, require students to analyze primary sources, synthesize secondary sources, and express their ideas in written and oral form.

History at Hastings, then, gives students a deeper understanding of the past of their country, culture, and world while also developing communication and analytical skills that they will use productively throughout life.