Policies

The student must maintain a grade point average (GPA) in History courses of 2.0 or higher.

Students who transfer to Stanford with sophomore status may petition for up to four courses taken outside of Stanford to count toward the History major. 

Students who transfer to Stanford with junior status may petition for up to six courses taken outside of Stanford to count toward the major.

Please note that the following major requirements are not transferable:

• Sources & Methods Seminar

• Doing History Colloquium

• Research Seminar for Majors (History 209S)

• Capstone

 Transfer students should refer to the External Credit Policies for guidance regarding transferring coursework at their previous institution toward the Stanford degree. Advanced Placement credits do not fulfill any major requirements.

Advising: Completion of the major requires planning. History majors should plan to meet with their faculty advisors twice yearly, once in the Autumn and once in the Winter or Spring quarters. These meetings should occur within the first three weeks of the quarter, before the final study list deadline.

Course and Unit Requirements:

• Students must complete at least 13 courses and 63 units in the major.

• At least 11 courses must be taken from the Stanford Department of History and carry the HISTORY designation or, alternately, be courses that the Stanford History Department has officially cross-listed. Transfer students and those who study abroad may be granted exemptions from this requirement at the discretion of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

• One HISTORY299S Undergraduate Directed Research and Writing taken for 3-5 units and for a letter grade may be applied toward the 13 courses required for the BA in History.

Petition Policy for Stanford Courses: A maximum of 10 units of history-related coursework taken outside of the department may be petitioned to count toward the major. Unless otherwise specified, all coursework requires a syllabus and petition form to be submitted to the History Department for review. Please see the History Department website opens in a new tab for the relevant petition form. Transfer students and those who study abroad may be granted exemptions from this policy at the discretion of the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Transfer students should refer to the External Credit Policies for guidance regarding transferring coursework at their previous institution toward the Stanford degree.