History (B.A.) (2 subjects)

You will acquire a wide range of skills in your history studies.

1. Researching historical events and contexts
2. Analysis of sources as a basis for your own thesis
3. Investigating and reflecting on regional and global interconnections
4. Key skills in presentation and communication
5. Knowledge of material science
6. Taught history in fields related to the profession

The Bachelor's programme in History integrates the subject areas of economic and social history, non-European and Eastern European history from the very beginning.

Over the course of your Bachelor's degree in History, you will become acquainted with various epochs and subject areas.

• Didactics of History
• Theories and methods

  Theoretical reflection on one's own subject is part of studying history in Göttingen from the very beginning.

  Questions about the social and political significance of history as well as about how history is actually made, i.e. written, narrated or filmed, are central to your studies in Göttingen. All courses contribute to this topic. With the area "Theory and Methods of Historical Studies", you have a focus at your disposal that, unlike other universities, supports you to a special degree in effectively developing your skills and knowledge, telling and conveying stories in a meaningful, exciting and scientifically-methodologically secured way.

• Ancient History

  The subject of Ancient History covers the entire history of the ancient Mediterranean region and its civilisations, from the beginning of the written tradition to the middle of the 1st millennium A.D. The focus is on ancient Greece and Rome, but also on their "neighbours" from Britain to North Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula to the Near East.

• Middle Ages

  The history of the Middle Ages is represented in Göttingen by two chairs and their teams. The Early and High Middle Ages (ca. 500 - 1250) by Prof. Dr. Hedwig Röckelein, the High and Late Middle Ages (11th - 15th centuries) by Prof. Dr. Frank Rexroth.

  The Professorship for Lower Saxony Regional History also offers events in the field of the Middle Ages (see Lower Saxony Regional History below). The respective research focuses include: the history of education, gender and religious practices from Late Antiquity to the High Middle Ages, as well as the university and knowledge (society) history of the High and Late Middle Ages.

• Early Modern Times

  The early modern period covers the period from about 1500 to 1800. During this time, profound processes of change take place. These include European expansion and its consequences, the media, scientific and political revolutions. It is also an age of European and global warfare. In Göttingen, we are primarily concerned with the everyday and global history of war and violence, the history of knowledge (society), the significance of dynasties and economies. The founding of the university in the 18th century means that the library has excellent holdings from this period.

  Teaching and research are represented by two chairs and their teams: Prof. Marian Füssel and Prof. Peter Burschel

• Modern Times and Contemporary History

  Three chairs deal with the modern period (from about 1800).

  The long 19th century (from the French Revolution to the end of the First World War) is represented by Prof. Rebekka Habermas and her team. They are interested in, among other things, German colonial history, global interconnections of knowledge, environmental history, history of the religious and the secular, gender history, history of crime and the history of historiography.

  Prof. Dr. Dirk Schumann and his staff deal with topics of the 20th century, above all with the history of violence, especially of war memory and processing, with youth and education in the "long" 20th century, with the history of the Weimar Republic and National Socialism, not least under gender-historical aspects, as well as with the history of (other) states of exception and catastrophes.

  European culture and contemporary history, i.e. the ever-shifting history of the still living, is represented by Prof. Dr. Petra Terhoeven and her team. She is particularly interested in the history of political violence and terrorism in the 20th century, mass media and visuality (in) history, gender-historical perspectives and processes of collective memory.

• Eastern European History.

  In Göttingen, Eastern European History covers the geographical-historical space of the former Tsarist Empire and the Soviet Union from the 18th century to the present, thus reaching into non-European spaces (including Central Asia). In addition, we also offer events on South Eastern Europe. We are interested in the history of these spaces beyond the national. Topics such as sport, violence, gender, war, terrorism, occupation, historical memory and knowledge transfer are of particular interest to us. We often look at them from an everyday historical perspective.

• Lower Saxony Regional History.

  With the Institute for Historical Regional Research, Lower Saxony's regional history is assured an important space also in teaching. Events from the entire period from the Middle Ages to the present are offered, with a focus on the medieval and early modern history of the historical region.

• Indian and Chinese History.

  Modern Indian history is based at the Centre for Modern Indian Studies, while events on modern Chinese history are regularly offered by the East Asian Seminar.

  Thematically, they focus on the social history of maritime labour in South Asia and the emergence of an Indian social policy in the mid-20th century, as well as China's transnational connections in the past and present.

• Economic and Social History.

  This sub-field of historical studies is represented in teaching and research by the Institute of Economic and Social History.

  Main topics of the courses concern the history of business and consumption as well as the history of globalisation in the 19th and 20th centuries.

A good knowledge of English is recommended. Knowledge of Latin is not a prerequisite for the BA programme. However, they can be acquired in the course of the programme with a view to subsequent Master's studies.

• Broad range of topics and methods
• practice-based events
• excellent specialised library with holdings from neighbouring disciplines under one roof
• international exchange programmes
• Contact and exchange with research institutions of the Göttingen Campus

All subjects of the Faculty of Humanities can be combined. Depending on the intended professional field, combinations with subjects from the Faculty of Social Sciences or the Faculty of Law (gender studies, sociology, political science, law) may also be useful.

The BA History qualifies graduates to teach history and culture with reference to historical-political spaces and topics. Graduates have competences for work in cultural institutions and in the field of historical-political educational institutions or with non-governmental organisations. In combination with the consecutive MA programme in History, the BA qualifies students for academic, publishing, diplomatic, journalistic and cultural activities as well as for work in EU institutions, bilateral institutions, funding institutions, cultural and social programmes.

The university offers many events for career orientation and preparation for the labour market.