The M.A. in History requires the completion of 32 points of course work, of which at least 24 must be within the Department of History. No more than 8 points may be transferred from other graduate schools. Students must take the M.A. Proseminar, HIST-GA 2022, Approaches to History (MA), HIST-GA 1005, and three courses in a defined thematic area. Available thematic areas are: Women and Gender; Society, Economics, and Politics; Culture and Ideas; Science, Technology, Environment, and Medicine; and Race and Migration. The MA Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) will make available to students a list of what course offerings satisfy each of the thematic areas each term. The pursuit of thematic areas outside of the suggestions listed above are reviewed on a case by cases basis and are approved at the discretion of the MA DGS.
Students also choose two elective courses which may be from within or beyond the department, and may include literature of the field courses for students seeking to gain geographic specialization.
Students must also enroll in History M.A. Thesis, HIST-GA 3019, and write an M.A. thesis (normally determined by the end of the first semester) expanding on the research paper they complete for the M.A. Proseminar course. Each student’s paper from the M.A. Proseminar course will be read by a relevant faculty member who will compose a report, based on the professional model of a “revise and resubmit” peer review. Students will use that feedback as the basis for revising their Proseminar paper into their thesis, which should be article length essay suitable for submission for publication or use as a writing sample for further applications. The faculty reviewer will serve as the thesis adviser and students will register for the History M.A. Thesis, HIST-GA 3019, in the final semester.