Crafting Your Historical Pathway at Illinois Wesleyan

This is the text that describes the visuals in the diagram Crafting Your Historical Pathway at Illinois Wesleyan:

Start by learning the historian's craft in HIST 290: The Theory and Crafting of History.

During your time at Wesleyan, take four total .25-credit units of HIST 390 to equal one full credit – HIST 390: ARCHES (Archiving and Reflecting on Your History Education and Signature Experience).

Choose one of these pathways:

1. Media and the Arts
   This path is for students who want to take history to a more imaginative place, transforming history into:
   • Documentary film
   • Digital history
   • GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and Historical Spatial Analysis
   • Non-fiction historical journalism
   • Historical fiction
   • Dramaturgy (historical research for theatrical productions)
     
     
   For this path, in the fall of your senior year, take HIST 451: Media and the Arts Seminar.
   
   
2. Public History
   The Public History path is perfect for students who envision themselves working in archives, museums, or historical societies, or who enjoy designing historical exhibits or working as an historical interpreter. Assignments Include:
   
   • Designing museum exhibits
   • Analyzing public historical memory in museums or monument sites
   • Creating oral histories
   
   For this path, in the fall of your senior year, take HIST 452: Public History Seminar.
   
   
3. Collaborative Projects
   This path is for students who want to explore a significant historical issue in collaboration with:
   • History students
   • Students in other disciplines
   • Faculty members
   These projects can take the format of any of the other paths listed here, as long as students are working cooperatively with others in their historical research.
   
   Take the class that is appropriate for your the path you choose: HIST 451, 452, 453, or 454.
   
   
4. Historical Research
   If you love to research compelling questions, analyze and synthesize information into a beautifully written argument, and craft a traditional research paper, then this path is for you.
   
   These students will begin consulting with a mentor early on to identify areas of interest—or better, passion—to create an educational path that reflects this interest while still leaving room to explore broadly.
   
   For this path, in the fall of your senior year, take HIST 453: Historical Research Seminar.
   
   
5. Secondary Education
   Students who want to teach high school will follow this path, which emphasizes: 
   • Broad historical contexts and arguments
   • Encounters with living history and historical artifacts
   • History of education, formal or informal, in various periods and places
   • Acquiring the breadth of historical knowledge necessary to teach tomorrow's youth
   
   For this path, in the spring of your junior year, take HIST: 454 Secondary Education Seminar.

Finally, no matter which path you follow, in the spring of your senior year, take HIST 490: Capstone Seminar in History.