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Student Activities and Opportunities

Students interested in history can participate in a range of exciting and intellectually stimulating activities outside the classroom.

History Club

All students are welcome to join the history club at UW Oshkosh. You do not have to be a history major or minor to join or to participate in events. All history enthusiasts are encouraged to attend. For additional information on the history club or upcoming events, please contact us.

Phi Alpha Theta History Honors Society

Phi Alpha Theta, the International Honor Society in History, was founded in 1921. On May 13, 1965 the Wisconsin State University-Oshkosh (now the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh) received a charter for its local chapter, Kappa-Eta. Since its inception, the Kappa-Eta chapter has had more than 350 members–both students and faculty. Although there have been a number of faculty advisors over the years, Kappa-Eta owes a considerable debt to Dr. Joseph Starr who headed the chapter from 1986 to 1993. In 1994 the chapter hosted the Wisconsin Regional Conference of Phi Alpha Theta, and the same year it was awarded a Best Chapter Award for category III by the international organization.

Chapter Requirements

  1. 15 hours of history
  2. 3.1 GPA in history courses
  3. 3.0 GPA overall
  4. Junior or senior standing
  5. History major or minor

Activities

The Kappa-Eta chapter of Phi Alpha Theta hosts a variety of activities that allow history students to broaden their understanding of the field. Recent activities have included speakers from both within and outside the university, student discussion groups and film presentations. In April every year new members are initiated into Kappa-Eta at a year-end banquet.

National Headquarters

For more information about Phi Alpha Theta, visit the national Phi Alpha Theta website.

Internships

The department of history works with a large number of local institutions to provide history majors with hands-on experience.Requirements for internships:

  • Junior or senior status
  • GPA 3.0 or above

General Guidelines:

Each credit hour is earned by working two hours per week during a 14 week semester in the institution. Most students and institutions opt for an arrangement where the student works 6 hours a week to earn 3 credits in a 14 week semester.  Special arrangements can be made for work over the summer or during breaks. Up to six credits can be earned through internships,

Students will also be required to write a five-page paper summarizing their experience and explain how it benefited their historical understanding.

These experiences are meant to develop historical understanding, not to work as an assistant or secretary.

Institutions where students have worked in the past:

  • EAA Museum (Oshkosh)
  • Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame (Green Bay)
  • Hearthstone Historic House (Appleton)
  • History Museum at the Castle/Outagamie County Historical Society (Appleton)
  • Neville Public Museum (Green Bay)
  • New London Public Museum (New London)
  • Oshkosh Public Library (Oshkosh)
  • Oshkosh Public Museum (Oshkosh)
  • Paine Art Center (Oshkosh)
  • University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Archives (Oshkosh)
  • University of Wisconsin Oshkosh History Department (Oshkosh)

This website lists all the Historical Sites/Museums in the State of Wisconsin if you want to try something else.

For further information, contact Gabriel Loiacono, internship coordinator, at loiacong@uwosh.edu, Sage 3615, (920) 424-1409.

Study Abroad

Office of International Education

Other study abroad opportunities. (This is a searchable database containing information on thousands of study abroad programs that might interest you… just pick a country)

Research and Publication

All history majors enroll in a senior research class–History 411, 412 or 413–which yields real-world experience in collecting, interpreting and explaining data.

Some students take the opportunity to engage in research internships.  Others have pursued collaborative research projects with history faculty and staff.  A number of recent collaborative research projects have received statewide and national recognition.

Contact your professors about these opportunities.

African American History Grant

The Department of History and the Office of Student Research & Creative Activity are pleased to announce the availability of new funding to support student research in the field of African American history.

The Thomas J. Rowland African American History Grant will provide up to $600 in support of supplies and expenses incurred for summer research in this field.  Apply online by April 14.  
During a distinguished career at UW Oshkosh, Dr. Thomas Rowland advanced to the rank of Senior Lecturer II on the merits of his high-quality teaching and a successful record of scholarly publications. He was a favorite among students, and the excellence of his instruction was recognized by the university with the Edward Penson Distinguished Teaching Award in 2008. He is the author of several published works, including biographies of Gen. George B. McClellan and President Ulysses S. Grant. The Department of History and the Office of Student Research & Creative Activity thank Dr. Rowland for his generous support of UW Oshkosh and student research.

If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Stephen Kercher, Director of University Research & Creativity.

UWO Department of History

Sage Hall, Room 3003 and 3464
Email: historyoffice@uwosh.edu
Phone: (920) 424-2456

 

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