The study of history at Holy Cross not only seeks to understand the past; it also offers deep personal enrichment for a thoughtful, even passionate, engagement in the challenges of the present. Among the most encompassing academic disciplines, history is informed by economics, sociology, anthropology, political science, the arts and literature.
Working with innovative faculty experts, students explore a diverse range of interests and a broad selection of topics from “Traditional” East Asia to Modern Latin America, Gilded Age America to Imperial Russia. Students learn how politics, social and economic developments, and cultural life interact.
Students of all interests, passions, and goals study history at Holy Cross. Graduates use their training to pursue careers in law, medicine, government service, business, teaching and a host of other vocations.
Program Highlights
Students enrolled in history at Holy Cross explore their major and gain depth in a particular aspect of history through a global concentration. Spanning geographic locations and time, students select from the following themes:
- Colonialism and Empire
- Gender in Public and Private Life
- Race and Ethnicity
- Resistance, Revolution, and Reaction
- Knowledge and Belief
- War and Memory
With 18 full-time professors, the department is one of the largest history departments among liberal arts colleges.
Find out what students can do with a history major, and check out the careers of some recent alumni.
History News
How does money make the world go ’round?
In the newly launched docuseries “Hi$tory” on CuriosityStream, Edward O’Donnell, associate professor of history at Holy Cross, explores that question by highlighting some of America’s greatest turning points, such as Watergate, the Civil War, the introduction ...
