History and Politics and Governance Double Major

Applicants interested in the double major program in History and Politics and Governance must apply for admission to one of the ten major programs (Criminology, English, Environment and Urban Sustainability, Geographic Analysis, History, Language and Intercultural Relations, Philosophy, Politics and Governance, Psychology or Sociology), or to Undeclared Arts. Students are not admitted directly to a double major.

The Faculty of Arts accepts applications for transfer to a double major program in the second semester of studies. Approved transfer students commence studies in the double major program in second year.  Further details on the process will be provided by the Faculty of Arts during the first semester.

Students in the History and Politics and Governance double major will learn to evaluate and analyze political decisions, administrative practice, and policies that emerge from a variety of sources, and to consider these in historical perspective. Using a range of sources and texts, the History and Politics & Governance double major will develop students’ proficiency in critical thinking, and enhance their ability to question, research, argue, understand, and communicate. Students will learn to evaluate and analyze political decisions, administrative practice, and policies that emerge from a variety of sources, and to evaluate them on a range of criteria, including empirical, theoretical and ethical bases, and examine these in historical perspective. They may explore the formation of societies in the ancient world, or contemporary problems in historical perspective, or the great diversity of themes in the centuries between as well as explore the five traditional sub fields of Political Science: Canadian, Comparative, Global, Policy, and Theory.

All of these skills are vital in enabling them to succeed in a wide range of careers and participate in the life of the world around them as informed citizens. This program offers a high degree of choice regarding the electives that students complete to fulfill their degree requirements. They might wish to explore the formation of societies in the ancient world, or contemporary problems in historical perspective, or the great diversity of themes in the centuries between. Within the Politics and Governance component of the degree, students choose electives from the five traditional sub fields of Political Science: Canadian, Comparative, Global, Policy, and Theory. Students may choose depth in a small number of thematic categories, or choose breadth by sampling in several such categories. Within the History component, students will have a wide range of course choices covering multiple time periods, geographical foci, historical themes and methodological approaches.

The core goals of the double major are to graduate students who will be able to:

• Discuss and demonstrate a coherent understanding of the intellectual and other foundations of historical and modern societies, including the interconnectedness of people, ideas, things, and places;
  
• Identify key historical issues from a diverse spectrum of regions, cultures, and time periods, and distinguish and evaluate overlapping, and sometimes competing, narratives;
• Apply historical knowledge, drawn from a broad range of sources to help interpret contemporary events and issues, whether local, national, or global in character; and
• (For those engaging in experiential learning components in heritage management and public history) apply theoretical knowledge and practical skills in the contextualization, interpretation presentation, and preservation of historical artifacts in a professional setting.
• Apply those perspectives and skills to analyze and address contemporary societal needs as global citizens and emerging leaders.
• Discuss and explain how important decisions are made in today’s society – at the international, national, provincial and local level – by both governmental non-governmental organizations and informal political institutions.
• Evaluate and analyze political decisions, administrative practices, and policies that emerge from a variety of formal and informal institutions.
• Employ a variety of empirical, theoretical and normative approaches to evaluate and analyze global, national, and local political processes and events.
• Understand how global, national, and sub-national political institutions function.

Graduates of the double major in the History and Politics & Governance program will be able to pursue careers in a variety of capacities in any of the public, private, or third (voluntary and nonprofit) sectors. These may include becoming a policy analyst for the federal, provincial, or municipal government, a decision-maker in an NGO or a position in the private-sector, with a company that has extensive interactions with government, or that conducts public research. It might also include positions in international governmental organizations (such as the UN and World Bank), or non-governmental organizations [such as UNICEF or Médicins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders)]. Graduates may also pursue careers in museums, the heritage sector, community development, public affairs, human resources, research, teaching, marketing, media research, consulting and the arts. Graduates may also pursue further education through law school, education, social work, or in graduate studies in disciplines such as Political Science, Public Administration, Public Policy, or in History.

Students enter the History and Politics and Governance double major program in their second year of study. The program builds on a first year that is common to the single major programs in the Faculty of Arts (i.e., Criminology, English, Environment and Urban Sustainability, Geographic Analysis, History, Language and Intercultural Relations, Philosophy, Psychology and Sociology), with specialized study in Politics and Governance and History in the following years.

Semesters One and Two: Prior to transferring into the double major program, students take two courses in each of Politics and Governance and in History. In addition to these four courses, students must complete two courses teaching key skills in Critical Thinking and Academic Writing and Research. For breadth, students select three to four courses from social science and humanities disciplines on Table I, and one to two courses from disciplines outside the Faculty of Arts.

Semesters Three and Four: In second year, in three required courses, students will delve into the qualitative and quantitative research methods necessary to advance through a BA effectively. They also choose two of five introductory courses to the sub-fields in Politics and Governance (exploring the actors and institutions of Canadian government, the emerging institutions and practices of global governance, controversial policy topics, western political thought, and comparative politics), and complete two History courses from a wide array of courses. Students round out their second year by taking an elective, and two Liberal Studies courses.

Semesters Five and Six: In their third year, students choose four Politics and Governance electives, while to meet their History requirements, they take two courses on research methods and two History electives. Their final two courses are upper-level Liberal Studies which can be taken from any discipline outside of History and Politics & Governance.

Semesters Seven and Eight: In their final year, students take four electives from the Politics and Governance offerings, three of which should be from the most advanced level. In History, students may take an advanced seminar and three History electives. The final two courses are upper-level Liberal Studies which can be taken from any discipline outside of History and Politics & Governance.  

In order to transfer to History and Politics & Governance from any of Criminology, English, Environment and Urban Sustainability, Geographic Analysis, History, Politics and Governance, Language and Intercultural Relations, Philosophy, Psychology, or Sociology, students must:

1. have a CLEAR Academic Standing at the end of the Winter term of their second semester of studies; and
2. must have successfully completed one HIS course numbered between HIS 100 and HIS 490 as well as POG 100 or POG 110. It is strongly recommended that, in first year, students complete two HIS courses numbered between HIS 100 and HIS 490 as well as POG 100 and POG 110.
3. HST courses may be substituted for HIS courses with departmental approval.
 

Students must take two lower level liberal studies courses and four upper level liberal studies courses to graduate. Students must not choose courses that are restricted for their program or major.

Please refer to the liberal studies chapter of this calendar for more information on the Liberal Studies Policy. Further information on liberal studies can also be found at the Faculty of Arts' Liberal Studies website (opens in new window) .

Table A - Lower Level Restrictions
History and Politics & Governance courses and PHL 214 are not available for credit.

Table B - Upper Level Restrictions
History and Politics & Governance courses are not available for credit.
 

Students may pursue any Minor offered by Toronto Met (with some exceptions). Please refer to the Minors chapter of this calendar for further information on individual Minor requirements and exclusions.

Undergraduate students wishing to pursue a continuing education certificate program should be aware of possible program exclusions. Please refer to the Certificate Registration section of the Curriculum Advising website (opens in new window)  for complete details.

A Program Advisory Council (PAC) is a group of volunteers that provides expert advice to a school or department on program related matters such as curriculum, program review, technology and trends in the industry, discipline or profession. For more information, see Senate Policy #158 (Program Advisory Councils).