By ALYSSA WYANT
eCampus Marketing/Communications
KEARNEY – Some say history repeats itself. At the University of Nebraska at Kearney, it’s more about taking a program that works well and extending it to more students who need it.
Starting next spring, UNK’s existing on-campus Bachelor of Arts in History degree will also be available in a fully online format. Undergraduate students with a passion for the past can study history online through UNK while remaining in their local communities.
UNK’s Department of History is no stranger to online programs, having launched a successful, longstanding online Master of Arts in History program in 2010. Since then, enrollments in the graduate program have remained steady despite competition in the online market. To date, more than 200 degrees have been conferred, and the program continues to have representation from students in over 40 states. The natural next move was to garner online program success at the undergraduate level as well.
Vern Volpe, graduate chair, helped transition the M.A. in History from an on-campus format to its successful online format. While students can still come on campus to complete the degree, it opened a new world of possibilities for students unable to do so.
“By offering challenging and engaging courses, the UNK Department of History has been able to attract many enthusiastic and well-qualified graduate students from virtually every state in the nation, including an impressive number of U.S. military personnel,” Volpe said. “We hope that expanding offerings in similar undergraduate topics will provide many opportunities for others to pursue or complete their B.A. degree in a convenient online setting.”
Like all online programs at UNK, the same faculty who teach on campus will teach online courses, providing students with the same expertise and education as a face-to-face setting.
The program consists of 120 total credit hours: 45 credit hours of general studies, six credit hours to meet the B.A. language requirement, nine credit hours of unrestricted electives, 36 credit hours of major courses, and 24 credit hours in a second major or minor. Students can choose advanced elective courses from Advanced U.S. History, Advanced European History or Advanced Non-Western History.
The online B.A. in History program prepares graduates to pursue a variety of careers in history. Opportunities may include positions as public historians, museum historians, history teachers, community college professors, archivists, editors, and publishers.
UNK is currently accepting applications for spring 2018. Take the next step in preserving the past by getting started in the online Bachelor of Arts in History or an online minor in history through UNK eCampus.
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