Doctor of Philosophy in History
Admission Requirements: Current Degree Status
The History Department requires students to have completed an MA in History to be eligible to apply for our PhD program. Thus, students holding a BA in History must apply for our MA program. Upon completion of our MA program, students wishing to continue on to the PhD may request promotion to our doctoral program.
Admission Requirements: Basic Criteria
- Completion of a strong Masters program in History.
- Usually a GPA of 3.5 (A-) or above, particularly in History and related subjects.
- Ordinarily a score in the 80th percentile or higher on the verbal portion of the General Aptitude Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
- Evidence of genuine intellectual ability and interest beyond the routine performance of academic tasks.
- Reading knowledge of at least one language in addition to English
is required for all graduate degrees. It is not a requirement for admission
to the graduate program, but qualified applicants with knowledge of
at least one foreign language may be favored over those who lack such
knowledge. Moreover, and applicant who proposes to work for a degree
in Greek, Roman, European, Russian, Medieval, Modern European, Latin
American, Middle Eastern, or Asian history is expected to have begun
to acquire a working knowledge in the foreign languages essential to
research in the field.
While the several components of an application ensure that no single component is decisive in determining whether or not an applicant is offered admission, the following general profile of our entering class of 2008-2009 may help you assess your competitiveness for admission:
| Number of Applicants |
Number Entering Program |
Median Grade Point |
Median Verbal GRE Score |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M.A. |
117 |
7 |
3.81 |
87% |
| Ph.D. |
66 |
8 |
3.91 |
89% |