Course Syllabus

Learn about the political, economic, social, and technological transformations in world history, with a special emphasis on global interactions.

This course includes the following units:

• Unit 1: What is History?
• Unit 2: Trade in East Asia and the Indian Ocean
• Unit 3: Early Modern Africa and the Wider World
• Unit 4: The Islamic World
• Unit 5: Foundations of the Atlantic World
• Unit 6: Colonization and Economic Expansion
• Unit 7: Revolutions in Europe and North America
• Unit 8: Expansion in the Industrial Age
• Unit 9: Life and Labor in the Industrial World
• Unit 10: World War I
• Unit 11: The Interwar Period
• Unit 12: The Causes and Consequences of World War II
• Unit 13: Cold War Conflicts
• Unit 14: The Contemporary World and Ongoing Challenges

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Assess how global trade networks shaped the economic development of Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas during the 17th and 18th centuries;
• Identify the origins of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation in Europe and assess the social and political consequences of these movements for the peoples of Europe;
• Identify the origins of the Enlightenment and assess how its ideas led to political and social revolutions in Europe and the Americas;
• Identify the origins of the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions and assess how they altered social, political, and economic life across the globe during the 18th and 19th centuries;
• Compare how European imperialism affected the states and peoples of Asia, Africa, and the Americas in the 19th century;
• Identify the origins of World War I and analyze how the war's outcome altered economic and political balances of power throughout the world;
• Identify the origins of totalitarian political movements across the globe in the 1920s and 1930s and assess how these movements led to World War II;
• Analyze how World War II reshaped power balances throughout the world and led to the emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as global superpowers;
• Assess how decolonization movements in the 1950s and 1960s altered political, economic, and social relationships between the United States, the nations of Europe, and developing countries throughout the world; and
• Assess how the Cold War led to political and economic realignments throughout the world and how the growth of new global markets and systems of trade and information exchange shaped the 21st century.

Throughout this course, you will also see learning outcomes in each unit. You can use those learning outcomes to help organize your studies and gauge your progress.

This course's primary learning materials are articles, lectures, and videos.

All course materials are free to access and can be found in each unit of the course. Pay close attention to the notes that accompany these course materials, as they will tell you what to focus on in each resource and will help you understand how the learning materials fit into the course as a whole. You can also see a list of all the learning materials in this course at this link.

Some parts of this course may have been created or reviewed with the support of artificial intelligence (AI). To make sure you receive accurate, high-quality, and academically sound learning materials, all AI-assisted content is carefully checked and approved by Saylor Academy's faculty and subject matter experts.

Only the final exam is considered when awarding you a grade for this course. To pass this course, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on the final exam.

Your score on the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. Be sure to study in between each attempt! If you do not pass the exam, you will not complete this course or receive a certificate of completion. You can attempt the exam as many times as you want.

There are end-of-unit assessments in this course that are designed to help you study and do not factor into your final course grade. You can take them as many times as you want until you understand the concepts they cover.

You can see all of these assessments at this link.

The certificate earned by passing this self-paced course displays the program hours you completed and continuing education credits (CEUs). CEUs document successful completion of courses that are designed to improve the knowledge and skills of working adults. Many industries value CEUs, and now your certificate reflects them clearly, and they may be used to support career advancement or to meet professional licensing standards. This course contains 5.0 CEUs.

HIST103: World History (1600–Present) is a self-paced course, meaning you can decide when to start and complete the course. We estimate the "average" student will take hours to complete. We recommend studying at a comfortable pace and scheduling your study time in advance.

Learning new material can be challenging, so here are a few study strategies to help you succeed:

• Take notes on terms, practices, and theories. This helps you understand each concept in context and provides a refresher for later study.
• Test yourself on what you remember and how well you understand the concepts. Reflecting on what you've learned improves long-term memory retention.

This course is delivered entirely online. You will need access to a computer or web-capable mobile device and consistent internet access to view or download resources and complete auto-graded assessments and the final exam.

To access the full course, including assessments and the final exam, log into your Saylor Academy account and enroll in the course. If you don't have an account, you can create one for free here. Note that tracking progress and taking assessments require you to log in.

For more details and guidance, please review our complete Technical Requirements and our student Help Center.

Optional Saylor Academy Mobile App

You can access all course features directly from your mobile browser, but if you have limited internet connectivity, the Saylor Academy mobile app provides an option to download course content for offline use. The app is available for iOS and Android devices.

This course is entirely free to enroll in and access. All course materials, including textbooks, videos, webpages, and activities, are available at no charge. This course also contains a free final exam and a free course completion certificate.