M.A. Program Degree Requirements

The Public History emphasis offers specialized education in one of four concentrations: historic preservation, museum management, cultural resource management, and archival management. All public history students must complete the seminar for their chosen concentration and an internship off campus.

Once admitted to the program, candidate must:
1. Complete at least 33 semester hours of graduate history and public history courses with at least 70 percent of the hours to be taken at the 6000 level. The 33 hours include:
    a. Core seminar courses (6 hours)
        HIST 6010 Historiography
        HIST 6020 Historical Research Methods
    b. Public History courses (6 hours)
        HIST 6510 Seminar: Public History
        HIST 6570 Public History Internship
    c. Public History concentration option (3 hours)
        HIST 6610 Essentials of Historic Preservation and CRM or
        HIST 6535 Essentials of Museum Management or
        HIST 6615 Essentials of Archival Management
    d. Public History electives (6 hours) selected in consultation with public history faculty;
    e. History electives (9 hours) outside the public history field at the 6000 level;
     f. HIST 6640 Thesis Research (at least 3 hours).

2. Fulfill a skill set requirement by choosing one of the following options:
    a.  Demonstrate a reading competency in a foreign language by passing the specific reading examination administered by the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department; OR
    b.  Students, in consultation with their advisors, can select an alternative tool such as oral history techniques, linguistic analysis, quantitative analysis, GIS, feminist methods, historical theory (general or particular, such as Marxist or post-modern), computer science for history, information technology to develop websites, or other techniques.

    Students, with their advisor’s support, then petition the Graduate Committee to approve an alternative tool. Students are responsible for finding appropriate courses and an expert willing to train them and test competency.  The Graduate Committee will approve petitions for alternative tools of research only if they are directly related to students’ work and if  presented before advancement to candidacy; the skill set must be satisfied before the student can take comprehensives.

3. Maintain satisfactory progress toward completion of the degree each semester.

4. File a degree plan with the Graduate Office before the completion of 21 semester hours.

5. Complete comprehensive examinations in the field of public history, that field to include an examination in the area of American history in which the student will complete the thesis.

6. Submit and successfully defend an acceptable thesis.

Course Descriptions
M.A. Internships
Financial Support
How To Apply
M.A. Public History Student Handbook