History

First-year history students are introduced to the discipline of history through modules that emphasize global and regional patterns. They learn how political and economic trends, geography, and other determinants have shaped the last few centuries of human civilization. Upper-level students take modules that cover aspects of the histories of specific regions or countries, or focus on specialized topics such as the rise and fall of empires; major developments in art, science, and technology; the formation of trans-regional and international networks of trade, culture, and communication; and the historical interaction of human societies with their fragile environments.

Students engage such pressing issues as gender and racial relations, sustainable development, war and peace, and the social, political, and intellectual dimensions of humankind’s relationship to technology and to nature. In keeping with the Department's overall focus, the Ph.D. scholars work on topics in Southeast and East Asian history, and the M.A. programme covers the same broad range of areas, themes and topics as the undergraduate curriculum. Graduate students are encouraged to participate fully in the academic and social life of the department, as teaching and research assistants, and in presenting conference papers and attending seminars.