The School of History specialises in Early Modern and Modern history, with a focus on Western history as a complement to the concentration on Classical, Asian, Pacific and Middle Eastern History elsewhere at the ANU. We offer courses that reflect both the research expertise of staff and areas of contemporary critical, intellectual and public engagement with historical issues.

Our courses range from thematically-informed studies (including terrorism, modernity, gender and sexuality, human rights, indigeneity), to surveys of major historical transitions (imperialism, revolution) and periods (the twentieth century and its wars), as well as more detailed coverage of social, cultural and political change, from Tudor-Stuart England, the rise of the mass media in the United States to Australia in the 1960s, and the commemoration of ANZAC. We offer, to first year students, courses designed as systematic introductions to the study of history as an academic discipline, and to later year and honours level students, courses geared to refining a range of skills and capacities that historians might carry into professional application. We also offer courses that provide a historical complement to students focused on areas of study, including international relations and economics. At the core of all our teaching is the practice of research-led education, and an encouragement to students to test and refine their interests and values through historically-informed inquiry.

Members of the School have won prizes for teaching, supervising and publication, have held visiting positions at leading overseas universities and national institutions, and are regular commentators on local, national and international issues. The School hosts three centres, recognized for their national and international leadership in the areas of Indigenous History, Environmental History, and Biography. We are committed to history as a reflective and creative discipline, and to its centrality to any informed and independent engagement with the challenges of the contemporary world.