Doctor of Philosophy in History (History, Classics, and Religion)

Coursework (12-16 units)

Course requirements depend to some extent on the student’s previous training and the student’s anticipated needs for the chosen area of concentration.

The course requirements must normally be completed by the end of the fall semester in the student’s second year in the program

• HIST 602  if not previously taken
• One of the following if the student does not hold credit in equivalent courses acceptable to the Department: 
  • HIST 603  
  • HIST 604  
  • HIST 605  
• HIST 606  
• HIST 700  
• HIST 701  
• one 3-unit 600-level HIST course or other graduate course with Department approval.

Thesis

• Registration in 900-level THES. After completing the candidacy requirement students are required to complete a thesis, the text of which should normally be 250-400 pages in length.

Comprehensive examinations

After completing their coursework, students are required to complete an oral comprehensive examination in their major and minor fields. By the end of the first term in the program, students will declare their fields and submit reading lists to the Department for approval. Students can select one major and two minor fields, or two major fields. The major field can be geographic or thematic but, in combination, the doctoral fields must include both geographic and thematic fields. A single oral comprehensive examination covers all the fields. If the candidate passes the comprehensive examination, they will then be permitted to proceed to the candidacy examination.

Candidacy examination

The candidacy examination will be based on a written thesis proposal and will normally be held by May of a student’s second year. Requirements and expectations for the comprehensive and candidacy examinations are detailed on the Department website.

Ethics Requirement

Students fulfill three hours of the GPS Ethics Training Requirement  through HIST 602  if it is taken as part of their doctoral program. Students must complete the GPS Graduate Ethics Training course and any additional required hours.

Professional Development Requirement

Students fulfill four hours of the GPS Professional Development Requirement  through HIST 602  if it is taken as part of their doctoral program. See the Department website for a guideline of Department resources to fulfill PD hours.

Language Requirement

Students must demonstrate competence in a language other than English according to the procedures specified in the Departmental Language Requirement.

The specific language requirement(s) will be determined in consultation with the student’s supervisor. In addition, the student may be required to pass a second language examination, but the Department never requires any student in this program to pass examinations in more than two languages other than English.