COURSE CURRICULUM

Cal Lutheran’s History major with the Single Subject Matter Program (SSMP) is a comprehensive, credential-certified degree designed for students who plan to teach history or social science at the secondary level in California. The program requires a minimum of 70 credits, including at least 33 upper-division credits, and includes a broad interdisciplinary curriculum that fulfills both academic and state credentialing requirements approved by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.Students begin with foundational history courses, including World Civilization to 1500, World Civilizations Since 1500, United States History to 1877, and United States History Since 1877. Additional core history courses include Historical Geography, California History, Medieval Europe and the Mediterranean World, and U.S. Society, Law, and Culture. The program culminates in a capstone course, History and Historians, where students engage in advanced historical research and analysis.To ensure a broad and global historical perspective, students are required to choose one course from each of the following categories: Modern Europe (options include Modern Europe: 1500 to Present; Europe and Empire; War and Conflict in 20th Century Europe), United States topics (such as Colonial America, the Civil War, or United States Women's History), and Non-Western regions (including the History of Modern China, the Islamic World, South Asia, or East Asia).The program also includes supporting coursework in economics, political science, psychology, sociology, and ethnic studies to prepare students for teaching social sciences. A required education course, Teaching and Learning, introduces students to instructional methods. Students must also complete a math requirement, Finite Math or a higher-level course, to build analytical skills. Altogether, this program offers a well-rounded and efficient path to becoming a credentialed history or social science educator in California.