Most popular history courses?

This one is a bit off the wall - but I have great faith in the collective knowledge here.

My institution is looking at adding a history class and in trying to be intelligent about it, we're wondering if there are any sources tracking the most popular (in terms of student enrollment) history classes in the US.

The idea is to ID a popular (i.e. in-demand) class topic that we can offer.

Thanks in advance.

 

I'm not sure of a website, but here is a list of possibilities:

1. The PBS People's Century
2. The Civil War
3. The Vietnam War
4. The Cold War
5. The Civil Rights Movement
6. World War Two or anything to do with the Nazi's
7. Native American History
8. Genocide in the 20th Century
9. Totalitarianism
10. Women in US History
11. History of Christianity
12. US Sports History
13. US Military History
14. African American History
15. Middle East History

 

Hmmm, I don't know how one could find the most popular history class, but maybe you can find this out indirectly by looking at history textbook sales? Maybe from Amazon.com?

 

A survey might tell you what courses are most interesting to the students.

 

I teach high school and found the boys really like WWII. My favorite era is the Reformation. Many students are expressing an interest in the 1960's, especially the hippie San Francisco experience. When I was considering a PhD, I thought about researching the Diggers of San Francisco. Just my $.02.

 

Not sure which would necessarily be the most popular individual cource titles, but here are some statistice from the recesses of my memory. I believe that the sources may have been both (1) Educational Testing Services' Guide to Studying for the GRE in History and (2) literature from History Book Club. Of doctoral dissertations in history in the US, 50% were in American History, 40% were in Modern European History, 5% were in Ancient and Mediaeval History, and 5% were in Third World History (Africa, Asia, and Latin America). There must have been some (albeit far less than even 1% each) dissertations in Canadian History and Australian History, as each of those sub-topics were (at that time, anyway) available through 2 PhD programs. Also, half of all history books sold are in American history and half of those are in Civil War History.

Of various typological fields of history, you might try courses in Historic Preservation (historic houses), Historic Archaeology (an historic archaeology professor in my area regularly leads summer-time archaeology digs at Johnson's Island Civil War prison camp, near Marblehead, Ohio), or Family History (geneaology - maybe even with a "Trace Your Civil War Ancestor" theme).

 

What particular aspect of Reformation history interests you the most? Are you still considering the PhD in History? It wasn't so long ago you were asking about dissertation-only doctorates.

 

Another possibility might be a good general survey of Bible History with supporting details from Biblical Archaeology. Another possibility, if residential, would be a Culinary History course that featured a week-by-week evening classes featuring a lecture and a meal. Maybe a popularized non-credit class on getting started in doing Mediaeval Faires and Civil War Re-enactments and the like.

 

Ted,

The geneology course sounds like a winner. My guess is that most people---even those without a liking for history---enjoy learning about their family background.

 

Another possibility might very well be something along the lines of historical roots of current events.

 

As Jim Morgan stated, history instuctors are a dime a dozen. As some research, I discovered there are hundreds of applicants for each position, so my dissertation will be only for my personal benefit and not as a career goal. I enjoy the college environment but I am practical about full-time faculty positions.

If you look at the offerings of the History Channel, you can see how many programs are about WWII. There is much interest in this area. I teach 11th grade U.S. History and this group will soon become potential college students. The highest test scores all year are on the WWII exam, with 90% of the highest scores coming from boys who love that era.

When I began teaching, I thought students would be excited about the Civil War, but found they did not have that much interest compared to other eras.