Particular emphasis is placed on teaching the student to work with and understand the importance of primary sources that can be used to understand the narrative of an event (a letter written by the subject of a biography, or a survey from an archeological project, for example). It is necessary for the student of History to learn how to recognize the unique biases of each source and understand how and why it tells a different story than another piece of evidence would tell. For example, a letter written by a Confederate private to his family would paint a different picture of the American Civil War than official correspondence between two Union generals. Learning to recognize both the biases within the sources and your own bias is a vital part of being a History Major.

This becomes an increasingly important aspect of History Research as the student moves into upper-division courses at WOU, though it is an element of introductory classes, as well. It is a principal focus of the Senior Thesis 499 project at the end of the undergraduate History program, when the student chooses a topic of interest to study in depth to produce a twenty to thirty page paper. Primary source analysis and secondary sources (books, journal articles, etc. written by other historians) are the central element of this project.

As you move on into a Graduate program, primary and secondary source analysis becomes even more important. As a professional historian, you will be working with these sources and forming your own theories from your History Research. Although the step toward original research and developing your own theories about events seems like a huge, terrifying leap from Studying History at the undergraduate level, by the time you begin working in a graduate program, it is actually a natural step. As you become more accustomed to reading and writing at the graduate level, it becomes easier to form your own interpretations of source material and bring a unique perspective to the topic.

It is also worth mentioning that it is important to plan the coursework you will study with your Advisor in the Western Oregon History Department. History Research becomes significantly more enjoyable if you can plan to take courses that interest you. You will want to carefully consider the different Fields of Study offered by Western's faculty.

For most students, the problem is not finding courses that interest them; more often students find it difficult to limit the number of courses they want to take in order to fulfill graduation requirements. This is where consulting your advisor and planning out which courses to take becomes so important. With sequences alternating years, it can be very frustrating, while Studying European History at WOU, to fit the courses you are most interested in taking into your schedule. When in doubt, ask your advisor which professor offers a particular class listed in the catalog that interests you and go ask the professor how often the course is offered. In most cases for European history, the sequences are every other year, though some courses only get offered every three or four years, so you can see how important planning for these courses can be.

My European History Studies at WOU and my 499 Senior Thesis Project focused on Medieval Europe, so I can testify to the importance of studying several geographic areas relevant to the time period you are considering for your final project. Taking a variety of University European History courses will reveal the interdependency of events and give you a broader understanding of your topic. Thus, it is important to develop possible topics of interest for your Senior Thesis as early as possible in your studies at WOU.

If you want to focus on European History Studies at Western, you will want to decide if you are more interested in a particular era or a geographic area. For example, if your primary interest is in studying Ancient History, you will want to take Roman and Ancient Mediterranean courses with the Middle Ages and some Early Modern courses to understand how Europe developed out of your focus field. If you were more interested in a particular geographic area, you might study English History, with the Reformation, Early Modern Germany, and Late Medieval courses for context. These are the kinds of decisions that your advisor will be able to help you make, if you are uncertain which courses will most benefit your studies.

The fields of Latin American and Asian history are paired at the graduate level at WOU, but are independent of each other for undergraduates. As with the European field discussed above, the courses in these fields are divided by geographic area and the era of study for the course; sequences in these fields are also typically offered in alternating years, so you will need to plan accordingly. In Asian Studies, there are sequences looking at the history of China and Japan. The Popular Culture in Japan and China courses examine the lifestyle differences between America and Asia to give students a better understanding of the region. The Latin American Studies courses look at topics such as the history of Mexico and the Caribbean since independence, or Pre-Columbian Latin America. There is also a course looking at Chicano/a history and the impact that Latin America has had on North America and the United States.
An American History Degree focuses on events within and involving the United States. The U.S. History courses at WOU are generally focused on very specific periods of time and topics, such as the Challenges of Progressive Era America course that examines the early twentieth century and social problems facing America. There are two Sub-Fields within the Western Oregon University American History Department, Gender Studies and Environmental History, that are used by the faculty to target specific issues in American history.

While there is not a specific Gender Studies Degree, if you are interested in studying Women's History, there are a wide variety of courses that emphasize this aspect of Social History. Contrary to common understanding, a University Gender Studies course is not solely a class looking at the history of women. Rather, these classes look at conceptions of gender in society and how the ways in which a culture reacts to these ideas. Consider, for example, your conception of manhood: what does it mean to be "manly?" Is it the same as being "masculine?" Gendered analysis asks questions like these while looking at primary source documents to determine how gender roles in society shaped the document, thereby gaining an understanding of how gender roles have shifted over time. Do Americans today have the same concept of "manhood" that they had during the Civil War? There is also a Gender Studies sequence available in the Asian field of study, which looks at the roles of women in China and Japan. Similarly, there is a course on the role of women during the Middle Ages offered periodically for the European field. The majority of courses dealing with postmodern gendered analysis, however, are offered by the American History faculty.

The University Environmental History courses offered at Western primarily focus on the acceleration of changes to the environment during the late nineteenth, twentieth, and early twenty-first centuries and America's central role in that process. Thus, Environmental History is closely tied to Economic History, the study of the growth of business and the corporate model in American history. The lessons taken from these courses can easily be applied to any other fields of study in history, granting insight into the relationship between urbanization and the environment.

These sub-fields are a very specific focus that can be used to draw generalizations into other topics. For example, you may find that your work with gendered analysis or environmental studies gives you a new perspective on the topic you are working on for your 499 Senior Thesis project on Ancient Rome, allowing you to utilize another series of sources to strengthen your work. This is a useful skill that you will want to develop as a historian, particularly if you are considering History Graduate Studies to further your education.

A Graduate History Degree at WOU is, by necessity, more broad than the undergraduate degree. Western's small faculty offers two to three 600 level courses each term, with each professor teaching roughly one of these seminar courses each year. Thus, the topics for the 600 level courses differ significantly from term to term, making it difficult to maintain a narrow focus. 400/500 level courses, where graduate students are integrated into an undergraduate class, are your best option for continuity in subject matter, but the 600 level courses will better prepare you for continued studies. You will need to take courses that are outside your specialization and in fields of study that you probably have little background. The faculty understands this and will offer any assistance you need to understand the material.
If you are considering working on an MA History, you should be aware of the kind of work you will be doing. Although it can sound impossible, you will be surprised how quickly you adapt to a graduate workload. There are two types of 600 level courses at WOU: 600 Seminars and 610 (Europe), 620 (World), or 630 (U.S.) Historiography courses. The Seminar courses are primarily research classes where you will choose a topic within the theme of the course and write a journal length paper, around twenty pages. Essentially, the process is similar to condensing the 499 Senior Seminar course for undergraduates into one term. The Historiography courses are intended to accelerate you through a selection of the scholarship in the topic field. Typically, there is not a research paper in these classes, but the student will produce a series of book reviews (1,000 words each) as the class reads and discusses monographs chosen by the professor. On average, these courses will cover a book each week, though that pace varies with the density of the material.

The only 600 level course that each student will need to take during the History Graduate Program is HST 698: Methods, Research, and Writing. Undergraduates at WOU will already be familiar with HST 420: Philosophies of History, which asks students, "What is History?" 698 is similar to 420 in structure, but with a graduate workload and requiring a higher level of critical thinking. This course follows the guidelines for a 600 level Historiography course, as above, but the students also write a fifteen page paper looking at the development of a particular topic. What have historians written about it? How has the discussion changed over time? Why? The best part of this paper is that the topic is chosen by each student, meaning that you can research and write about anything that interests you, so long as there is enough material for the paper. Whichever term you are taking 698, be careful about your class load. While it is not significantly more work than the other 600 level courses, you could find yourself overwhelmed if you have a heavy load.

It might sound clichéd, but the best way to keep the graduate workload balanced is careful time management. Where you might have gotten away with procrastination in your undergraduate degree, putting off term papers until a couple of days before they were due, the accelerated nature of the History Master's program and the higher standard for grading means that you need to work on research papers as early as possible. As a chronic procrastinator, I can tell you that it is not feasible to wait until the last minute as an MA History student. That being said, I will recommend scheduling time off for yourself during each week. Especially during your first term in the program, it can easily feel like you need every minute to catch up on reading, but you will be much more productive if you take breaks from your work periodically.
Cost is the other concern you should be thinking about while applying to a History Graduate Program. Graduate school can be expensive, but you should ask your history department and financial aid office about scholarships and other assistance that is available to you. WOU offers scholarships that are only available to students in the History Master's program. You will also want to apply for a Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA), which will not only help you with the cost of school, but also give you teaching experience that will give you insight into how professors manage their classes.

The WOU free concert series includes local music school groups from singer songwriter combos, to jazz combos, to big band, early music, and more traditional symphony orchestra - all free concerts.

In addition, Western Oregon University brings some of the best touring acts to campus at a fraction of the cost of seeing these groups in other venues.

You can also register for the online Concert newsletter to get FREE tickets to an upcoming concert (Smith Fine Art Series excluded).

Drive a short distance from anywhere in Northwester Oregon to enjoy free concerts with high quality entertainment at Western Oregon University.

 SPRING TERM 2009 CONCERT CALENDAR

Updated 4-13-09

The Portland Baroque Orchestra present Monica Huggett (violinist - who also doubles as the Portland Baroque Orchestra Music director) and Bruce Dickey (cornetto). The music for the evening will be the "The Magical Music of Venice." The improvisation and wit of historically informed performance practices add freshness, clarity, and vitality to the music of Buxtehude, Corelli, Purcell, Scarlatti, Bach, Telemann, Couperin, Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven and many others, linking us directly to a rich and vital past. PBO's artistic excellence places it squarely within the ranks of the best baroque orchestras in North America and Europe.

Portland Baroque Orchestra

All performances begin at 7:30 p.m. in Rice Auditorium on the campus of Western Oregon University.

To purchase tickets for the events, please click here.

Thursday April 9 2:30 - Smith Hall

Thursday April 9 4:30 - Smith Hall

Thursday April 9, 7:30p.m. - ITC Auditorium
Guest Composer: Robert Coburn

Friday April 10 10a.m. - Classroom
Master Class with Robert Coburn

Friday April 10 noon - Classroom
Robert Coburn Max/MSP/Jitter talk

Friday April 10 2p.m. - Smith Hall
Featured Artist: Adam Bates

Friday April 10 4p.m. - ITC Auditorium

Friday April 10 5:30p.m. - ITC Auditorium

Friday April 10 7:30p.m. - ITC Auditorium
Sound Image Sound: Concert of Surround Sound Video Works

Often, an Associate's degree program does not offer the depth of education that students want. In fact, students frequently transfer into Western Oregon's program after acquiring their Associate's. A four-year degree offers more time to learn sign language and the strategies of the profession.

Western Oregon University's program offers the option of either a BA or BS degree, so the student is able to choose their set of required courses and credits. Being a four-year program, the interpreting program at Western Oregon offers quality required curriculum as well as a variety of electives for the discipline. Since ASL/English interpreters are used in many situations, the school offers training in areas where the interpreter would benefit from specialized knowledge.

While the degree is acquired over the course of four years, the program-specific classes begin in the first term of the student's junior year. Until that time, the student takes sign language classes, general education courses, and the two program prerequisites. S/he applies for program admission in the winter of sophomore year. When s/he is accepted to the program, the student becomes a part of the close-knit community made up of interpreting majors on Western Oregon's campus.

For those signing students that do not wish to become interpreters. Western Oregon University also offers a BA or BS in American Sign Language studies. This degree offers the future options of many sign language jobs and allows students to study ASL and Deaf culture without aspiring to be an interpreter.

For both the ASL/English interpreting program and the ASL studies program, Western Oregon provides higher education and higher credentials. An interpreter who can present a Bachelor's degree leaves an impression with potential employers. Whether it is a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts, the four-year degree gives a student better education and a better sense of accomplishment. The potential results of a Bachelor's degree are highly beneficial.

The impressive point of this accomplishment is that the award was competitive. A monetary award was given as well as a physical trophy, and WOU's program was the applicant that earned the award. More impressive still, the award was available for two qualified applicants, but Western Oregon University was the only recipient of the award for 2008. In other words, WOU is not only one of the best programs; it is highly set apart from the other interpreter education programs that applied for the award. Because of the quality sign language classes, the effective curriculum, and the overall quality of education, Western Oregon's is among the most prestigious interpreter training programs in the nation. WOU holds its students to standards about professionalism and language skills. The program encourages development in both signing American Sign Language and speaking English. The abilities the students gain within their training is immensely helpful for their future profession.

Receiving the award, however, is not only a compliment to the professors and school; it compliments every student who is involved in the ASL/English Interpreting program. The students show excellent caliber by committing to a high-level BA or BS major. Since the students can continue through an in-depth, cutting-edge training process, they prove that Western Oregon students are capable of learning to be prestigious professionals. The award of excellence is an award to prove the quality of the school. However, it also proves the excellence of WOU students.

The money, which has already been mentioned, is being used to further the progress of the program. The professors wish to use the money to better the quality of training and the benefits for students of ASL/English interpreting. The already excellent interpreter education program, with the award it won for that very excellence, is not allowing itself to find a rut; it will continue to grow and become the best education program that it can be.

In addition, WOU is one of only three universities in the country to offer a bachelor degree program in ASL and English Interpreting.