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Student ID:__________________________ Student Name:_______________________ Adviser Name:_______________________ Bulletin: 2026-2027 Undergraduate Bulletin Program: Public History Microcredential Minimum Credits Required:__________________

Public History Microcredential

College of Liberal Arts >> History department 

9 hours

The public history microcredential serves the community by introducing individuals to current research, methods, and tools used across diverse public history settings including museums, archives, historic sites, and libraries. Students benefit from this microcredential by gaining insight into professional practices in historical interpretation and community engagement, while developing hands-on experience at public history sites through the required internship. For individuals already employed in the public history sector, the microcredential offers opportunities to deepen their methodological knowledge, engage with current scholarship, and enhance their professional credentials. Those who wish to complete the microcredential must be introduced to the field in the required Introduction to Public History course, complete an internship at a site of their choice, and choose an elective that explores a specialized area of public history such as administration, archives, museum studies, or digital history. 

Learning outcomes include:  

  • Analyze the storied and controversial history of public history as a field, evaluating the evolving relationships between historians, communities, and cultural memory.
  • Explore diverse career pathways in history beyond academia and teaching.
  • Examine and assess the practical, ethical, and interpretive challenges inherent in historical work across various settings including historic sites, museums, archives, digital platforms, and other public history venues.
  • Apply public history methods through hands-on projects both inside the classroom and in-situ.

Undergraduate Microcredential Requirements

  • The total number of credit hours required for an undergraduate microcredential may vary by academic discipline but must require a minimum of 6 credit hours and not more than 9 credit hours.
  • At least 50% of the microcredential requirements must be earned at USI.
  • Coursework taken more than 4 years before the microcredential is awarded cannot be applied.
  • Credit hours earned for a microcredential may be applied toward another degree program. A microcredential, therefore, can be embedded within a larger (e.g. certificate, minor, or major) undergraduate degree program. Academic departments may determine whether coursework taken to complete a microcredential can also be applied to a degree program.
  • Microcredentials may be stand-alone or linked to an existing degree program, allowing for stackability with other microcredentials and certificates toward a degree (i.e., certificate, minor, or major) program.
  • Students earning an undergraduate microcredential are not eligible to participate in commencement exercises, but the credential will be added to their official transcript record.

Required Courses (6 hours)

Course NameCredits:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
HIST 225 - Introduction to Public History
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
HIST 490 - Internship/Special Studies in History  (3 hours required)
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 1-3

Elective (3 hours)

Choose one course

Course NameCredits:Term TakenGradeGen Ed
HIST 321 - Introduction to Historic Preservation
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
HIST 322 - Introduction to Historical Administration
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
HIST 324 - Museum Studies Practicum
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
HIST 326 - Digital History
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
HIST 330 - Topics in Public History
Term(s) Offered: Irregularly offered		 Credits: 3
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