Family History

Foundational Courses

In all four cases you will begin with Religion 261, Introduction to Family History (Genealogy) which will provide an initial foundation both in doctrinal and basic research concepts, and fulfills part of the University religion requirement, as well. All Family History students should then take History 400: Family and the Law in American History, as their introductory class, providing fundamental family history research skills, set against introductory background in legal and social history. Family History Majors and Minors are also required to take History 200: Historian=s Craft, in their first or second semester in the program. Family History Majors are also required to take either History 220 or 221 and it is recommended that they take History 201 and 202 as part of their GE requirements.

Selection of a Geographic Area of Emphasis and Related Courses

Students should then select a geographic area of interest (i.e., United States (Midwest, New England, Southern States and Mid-Atlantic), British, Southern European, Germanic, Scandinavian, Latin American etc.). This geographic area will be the center of concentration in terms of classes and projects selected throughout their experience as a family history participant. As you choose source and handwriting classes, social history classes and area history classes, you will select from those that correspond to your geographic area of emphasis. For example, if your geographic area of interest was United States research, the following core courses would be a possible selection: Hist 400, 378, 401, 403, 421, 220, and 433. The geographic area of emphasis might also follow a migration pattern such as New England to the British Isles so that the core courses would be Hist. 400, 220, 401, 412, 421, 322 and 433. An interest in French Louisiana or Spanish Texas might result in a core course sequence like this: Hist. 400, 251 (or 252), 404, 411R (or 410R), 421, 424 and 433. In selecting the geographic area, you should look at your personal interests, language experience and/or, perhaps, from where your own ancestors came. This selection will shape what you study and ultimately what type of work you may do after completing the program, so think carefully and pray about the decision. For help in making that decision you can take one or more of the Religion geographic area/language family history courses (Religion C262-269). You should also meet with the Family History Coordinator in the History Department , as well as a faculty member who teaches courses in that geographic area.

Once the selection of a geographic area is made, you must take two source classes (History 401 through 419)and a handwriting and document class (History 420-426) in the selected geographic/language area. If you are a Family History Major or a Bachelor of General Studies student, you will also need to take a regional or area history class and a history of the family or social history class, each relevant to your geographic area of study. If your geographic area was Southern States in the U.S., you might take History 365: History of the American South, and History 377: American Social History, or History 378: American Family History. Family History Minors and Certificate Students will take one course selected from a list drawn from courses taught in these areas.

Capstone Courses

To fulfill our mission of providing our family history graduates with rigorous academic training in fundamental research skills, as well as advanced methodologies and analytical and evidentiary skills in family history and genealogy, set within a solid background of traditional historical training, there are several capstone courses that are offered . These should be taken during the last year (two semesters and a term) in the program. Only occasional exceptions should be made to this and then only based on unique, relevant and extensive personal experience of the student. The capstone courses required Family History Majors are:

History 433: writing narrative, biographical family history;

History 480: emphasizing, by hands-on case studies, advanced methodologies, including research report writing used by professionals in family history and genealogical research;

History 496: practical internship experience, related to the geographic/language area, and

History 482: senior seminar in research emphasizing analytical and evidentiary skills and culminating in the preparation of a paper setting out a four generation family history (with a report on key research methodologies and sources used and a locality history). These papers are then defended orally before the class and a board of three faculty members or Accredited Genealogists from their geographical area..

Family History Minors must select one of the last three capstone courses listed above, Bachelor of General Studies students must take History 433 and 482 and may also select one of the others as part of their elective hours. Certificate Candidates elect two courses from these or one of these and one from the area histories list.

Family History Majors will also take in their last three semesters in the program two additional capstone courses required of all History Majors: History 485: Junior Tutorial and History 490: Senior Writing Seminar emphasizing researching and writing an expository paper developing and proving an historical thesis. With the completion of History 433, 482 and 490, the Family History Major will have been exposed through hands-on experience to three important and different writing formats that are used by professional genealogists and historians.

Internships

As part of our commitment we also work with student interns. All of our majors must complete an internship (History 496R) which provides exposure to the real working world of the family historian/genealogist. In all cases, they work under direction of a librarian, archivist or professional genealogist who mentors their experience along with a faculty supervisor. Many serve in an excellent program at the Family History Library in Salt Lake, the world's premier genealogical research venue. As all internships must relate at least in part to the geographic area of emphasis, in recent years interns have served in England, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal Switzerland, Germany, Mexico and other countries all over the world. Each year for four years we have placed a student as a paid intern at the prestigious New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston.

The selection and planning of the internship is the individual responsibility of each student. Planning should begin early in the Family History career in consultation with the faculty member who teaches in that students area of emphasis and the Family History Coordinator. With advanced planning, the student can arrange funding (where needed), take appropriate classes and plan for the concentrated time necessary for an internship. That type of planning will make the internship an integral part of the total educational experience in Family History.

For more information concerning internships, click here.

• BA Family History
• Minor in Family History
• BA General Studies
• Family History Certificate