Choose your path and fuel your curiosity through the undergraduate and graduate programs in the History Department. Students have the opportunity to specialize in world history and public history - preparing them for careers in academia, law, journalism, business and public administration.
Online & Campus-Based Degree Programs
Why Study History at UIS?
Small class sizes that offer individualized instruction and close interaction with students and professors
Choice of in-person or online BA program, both with the same quality instruction, taught by the same professors
Access to internationally-renowned historical sites like the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum, the Lincoln Home National Historic Site, the 1908 Springfield Race Riot National Monument, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Dana-Thomas House, among others
A rigorous, wide-ranging curriculum taught by professors who are experts in their fields and award-winning teacher-scholars
An MA program with a high rate of funding that fits your interests and schedule
Internships at libraries, archives, historic sites, and other institutions, particularly in state government
Alumni Spotlight
UIS History alumni learned actionable skills in their coursework that are applicable to roles in archive management, academia, research, public administration and teaching.
"The UIS Online BA in History allowed me to reach my goals with the flexibility I needed. The faculty gave me opportunities to pursue experiential learning that was relevant to my future career goals.
I credit UIS with giving me the foundational skills necessary to become an archivist with the National Archives and inspiring me to continue to participate in academics as an adjunct history professor."
Tara Bachelder - BA, History 2016
Department Mission & Vision
Mission
The History Department helps students understand themselves and the world in which they live by exploring the links between the past and the contemporary world.
Vision
The Department encourages students to compare elements of their own culture with those of other cultures from other time periods. Students of history gain a sense of what is unique in—as well as generally characteristic of—individuals, groups, and national cultures in the present as well as the past.
Support the History Department
Your gift helps build and sustain resources for the success of History students at UIS, including research funds, class projects, experiential learning opportunities and professional development.
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News
Nov 15, 2021
Six weeks after Lincoln’s death, Frederick Douglass described him as “emphatically the black man’s president, the first chief executive “to show any respect…
Nov 11, 2021
In February, 2016, Amy Hathaway, National Register and Survey Specialist for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency visited Dr. Devin Hunter’s Graduate…
Nov 11, 2021
Dr. Devin Hunter’s Material Culture class visited the Illinois Executive Mansion on September 16, 2015. The Graduate students are collaborating with the…
Nov 11, 2021
Dr. Ken Owen hosts a monthly podcast on subjects relating to early American History. A few subjects covered recently include: “The Constitution,” “Thomas…
Nov 10, 2021
This past summer, Dr. Peter Shapinsky, Department Chair and Associate Professor of History, led a group of UIS students to Japan as part of the annual…
Nov 10, 2021
Today UIS welcomes a new sculpture of a smiling young Lincoln crafted by George Lundeen. History Department faculty members Dr. Holly Kent and Dr. Michael…