Social Studies, Bachelor of Arts (592)
Program Coordinator
Jennifer A. Hanley, jennifer.walton-hanley@wku.edu, (270) 745-4723
The Social Studies major, a 51-credit-hour program, is interdisciplinary by design: students must complete courses in History, Political Science, Economics, and Geography, with elective options in History, Political Science, Geography, Anthropology, Sociology, and Psychology. This program of study provides students with a strong foundation in history and equips them with the skills to collect, analyze, and summarize data and the ability to apply those skills to construct arguments and use evidence to support them. The Social Studies major prepares students to bring a range of skills from the social and behavioral sciences, economics, and geography to the study of the past. The major is designed to prepare students to teach Social Studies in grades 8-12, and students who complete this major may become eligible for teacher certification in Social Studies. Social Studies, particularly when combined with a second major in History, enables students to pursue careers in education (at all levels), library sciences, management, law, administration, and sales. Social Studies graduates are well suited for work in local, state, and federal government; banking; journalism; and politics. Many businesses seek job candidates with a strong background in the liberal arts because of their critical thinking, analytic, and writing abilities. Students with a major in Social Studies who pursue teacher certification receive a 12-hour waiver in the upper-division hour requirement in the major field. In choosing elective courses, students should consider the number of upper-division courses required for graduation. No minor or second major is required.
Concentrations
- General (No Concentration)
- Teacher Education (TCHR)
Program Requirements (51 hours)
A baccalaureate degree requires a minimum of 120 unduplicated semester hours. More information can be found at www.wku.edu/registrar/degree_certification.php.
Students who began WKU in the Fall 2014 and thereafter should review the Colonnade requirements located at: https://www.wku.edu/colonnade/colonnaderequirements.php.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| History | ||
| HIST 101 | World History I | 3 |
| HIST 102 | World History II | 3 |
| HIST 240 | The United States to 1865 | 3 |
| HIST 241 | The United States Since 1865 | 3 |
| HIST 498 | Senior Seminar | 3 |
| Select 12 hours of upper-division courses including a course from each of the following areas: | 12 | |
United States 1 | ||
Europe 2 | ||
Global South 3 | ||
Ancient to Early Modern 4 | ||
| Political and Behavioral Sciences | ||
| PS 110 | American National Government | 3 |
| PS 250 | International Politics | 3 |
| Select two courses, each from a different discipline, from the following (at least three hours must be upper division): | 6 | |
| Introduction to Cultural Anthropology | ||
| Peoples and Cultures of the Caribbean | ||
| Applied Anthropology – Understanding and Addressing Contemporary Human Problems | ||
| Foodways | ||
| The American Presidency | ||
| The Legislative Process | ||
| Constitutional Law | ||
| Civil Liberties | ||
| Criminal Justice Procedures | ||
| U S Foreign Policy | ||
| American Political Parties and Interest Groups | ||
| Minority Politics | ||
| Women and Politics | ||
| American Political Thought | ||
| Social Psychology | ||
or PSY 350 | Social Psychology | |
| Introductory Sociology | ||
| Religion in Society | ||
| Social Institutions: Race, Class, and Gender | ||
| Population, Society, and Development | ||
| Diversity in American Society | ||
| Sociology of Globalization | ||
| Economics | ||
| ECON 202 | Principles of Economics (Micro) | 3 |
| ECON 203 | Principles of Economics (Macro) | 3 |
| Geography (at least three hours must be upper division): | ||
| GEOG 110 | World Regional Geography | 3 |
| or GEOG 330 | Introduction to Cultural Geography | |
| Select one of the following not already counted toward the major: | 3 | |
| World Regional Geography | ||
| Our Dangerous Planet | ||
| Our Vulnerable Planet | ||
| Introduction to Cultural Geography | ||
| Geography of Kentucky | ||
| Food, Culture, and Environment | ||
| Global Sustainability | ||
| Geography of East Asia | ||
| Sustainable Cities | ||
| Spatial History | ||
| Total Hours | 51 | |
- 1
United States: HIST 302, HIST 303, HIST 316, HIST 320, HIST 321, HIST 325, HIST 329, HIST 343, HIST 347, HIST 348, HIST 349, HIST 352, HIST 353, HIST 354, HIST 358, HIST 359, HIST 390, HIST 430, HIST 440, HIST 441, HIST 442, HIST 443, HIST 444, HIST 445, HIST 446, HIST 447, HIST 448, HIST 449, HIST 450, HIST 451, HIST 453, HIST 454, HIST 456, HIST 457, HIST 458, HIST 464, HIST 494
- 2
Europe: HIST 305, HIST 306, HIST 307, HIST 308, HIST 317, HIST 318, HIST 322, HIST 323, HIST 324,HIST 334, HIST 335, HIST 338, HIST 340, HIST 407, HIST 419, HIST 422, HIST 423, HIST 425, HIST 426, HIST 428, HIST 438, HIST 439, HIST 463
- 3
Global South: HIST 330, HIST 331, HIST 364, HIST 365, HIST 370, HIST 378, HIST 379, HIST 404, HIST 460, HIST 461, HIST 462, HIST 465, HIST 466, HIST 471, HIST 480
- 4
Ancient to Early Modern: HIST 304, HIST 305, HIST 306, HIST 307, HIST 308, HIST 317, HIST 318, HIST 323, HIST 330, HIST 364, HIST 404, HIST 407, HIST 419, HIST 440, HIST 460, HIST 463
Teacher Education Requirements
The major in Social Studies with Teacher Certification is intended for those seeking certification to teach in grades 8-12. It requires a minimum of 51 semester hours and leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree. No minor or second major is required. Teacher certification requires additional coursework in education specified by the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. A grade of "C" or higher is required in all courses applying to certification. Students seeking Teacher Certification must complete the requirements for the Social Studies major as well as the following professional education courses:
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| EDU 250 | Discover Teaching: Introduction to Teacher Education | 3 |
| PSY 310 | Educational Psychology: Development and Learning | 3 |
| SEC 350 | Clinical Practices in Secondary Teaching I | 4 |
| EDU 350 | Student Diversity and Differentiation | 3 |
| EDU 360 | Behavior and Classroom Management in Education | 3 |
| SEC 481 | Clinical Practices in Secondary Teaching II: Social Studies | 4 |
| EDU 260 | Classroom Assessment | 3 |
| SEC 490 | Student Teaching | 10 |
| EDU 489 | Student Teaching Seminar | 3 |
| Total Hours | 36 | |
Finish in Four Plan
Without Teacher Certification
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST 240 or HIST 241 | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 |
| ENG 100 or COMM 145 | 3 | HIST 241 or HIST 240 | 3 |
| Colonnade Quantitative Reasoning | 3 | COMM 145 or ENG 100 | 3 |
| GEOG 110 or PS 110 | 3 | Colonnade Natural & Physical Sciences w. Lab | 3 |
| Colonnade Arts & Humanities | 3 | PS 110 or GEOG 110 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Upper-Level History Elective | 3 | HIST 102 or HIST 101 | 3 |
| Colonnade Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 | Geography Elective | 3 |
| PS 250 | 3 | ECON 203 | 3 |
| ENG 200 | 3 | Political and Behavioral Sciences Elective | 3 |
| ECON 202 | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Upper-Level History Elective | 3 | Upper-Level History Elective | 3 |
| Political and Behavioral Sciences Elective | 3 | Colonnade Connections Course | 3 |
| ENG 300 | 3 | Colonnade Connections Course | 3 |
| General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Upper-Level History Elective | 3 | HIST 498 | 3 |
| Colonnade Connections Course | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 | General Elective or Course for Optional Second Major or Minor | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||
Teacher Certification
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| HIST 240 or HIST 241 | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 |
| ENG 100 or COMM 145 | 3 | HIST 241 or HIST 240 | 3 |
| Colonnade Quantitative Reasoning | 3 | COMM 145 or ENG 100 | 3 |
| GEOG 110 or PS 110 | 3 | Colonnade Natural & Physical Sciences w. Lab | 3 |
| EDU 250 | 3 | EDU 260 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Upper-Level History Elective | 3 | HIST 102 or HIST 101 | 3 |
| ECON 202 | 3 | ECON 203 | 3 |
| Colonnade Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 | ENG 200 | 3 |
| Colonnade Arts & Humanities | 3 | PS 250 | 3 |
| PS 110 or GEOG 110 | 3 | EDU 350 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Upper-Level History Elective | 3 | SEC 350 | 4 |
| Political and Behavioral Sciences Elective | 3 | Upper-Level History Elective | 3 |
| EDU 360 | 3 | Colonnade Connections Course | 3 |
| ENG 300 | 3 | Colonnade Connections Course | 3 |
| Geography Elective | 3 | PSY 310 | 3 |
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| SEC 481 | 4 | EDU 489 | 3 |
| HIST 498 | 3 | SEC 490 | 10 |
| Upper-Level History Course | 3 | ||
| Colonnade Connections Course | 3 | ||
| Political and Behavioral Sciences Elective | 3 | ||
| 16 | 13 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||
PLEASE NOTE: Many course options in the Social Studies major fulfill requirements in the Colonnade program. Consult with your advisor when selecting electives.