Áù¾ÅÉ«ÌÃ : History

History - HIST

Contact Information

Location: Social Sciences Building, Room 656
Faculty Number: 403.220.3839
Fax: 403.289.8566
E-mail address: histgrad@ucalgary.ca
Web page URL:

1. Degrees and Specializations Offered

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Master of Arts (MA), course-based and thesis-based

Candidates should apply to the program of their choice, indicating the area of specialization (see section 5 below).

2. Admission Requirements

In addition to the requirements of the Faculties of Graduate Studies and Arts, the Department requires:

Master of Arts

a) Normally, a four-year undergraduate program with honours or a major in history. Usually this entails at least seven full-year History courses (or fourteen half courses). Credit may be given for up to two half courses in other disciplines, if appropriate for the proposed area of study.

b) A minimum admission grade point average of 3.40 on a four-point scale over the final 10 full-course equivalents of the undergraduate degree.

c) A copy of a historical research paper, preferably graded, normally at the senior undergraduate level.

d) A 250-word (minimum) statement of research interest including research topics in the major field and the reasons for pursuing a post-graduate degree in history.

e) Two reference letters.

Doctor of Philosophy

a) Normally, a completed four-year undergraduate program with honours or a major in history and a completed Masterâ€™s degree or the equivalent in history or in a related discipline.

b) A grade point average of 3.70 on a four-point scale in history at the graduate level.

c) A detailed statement of research interests, career goals, and ideas for the thesis topic.

d) A sample of written work, normally a Masterâ€™s thesis chapter or a major research paper completed at the Masterâ€™s level.

e) Two reference letters.

3. Application Deadline

Deadlines for the submission of complete applications:

January 15 for September admission and funding
April 15 for September admission only

4. Advanced Credit

The applicant must make advanced credit requests as part of the admission process. Credit will not be given for course work taken as part of another completed degree/diploma or for courses taken to bring the grade point average to a required level for admission.

5. Program/Course Requirements

In addition to the Faculties of Graduate Studies and Arts requirements, the Department requires:

Master of Arts (thesis-based)

a) A minimum of one year of full-time study at the Áù¾ÅÉ«ÌÃ.

b) Three full-course equivalents (including History 690) in two semesters of course work. Masters students will complete their coursework through regularly offered History seminars.
Areas of faculty research interests include: Canada, Europe, Israel Studies, Latin America, United States, Britain, China, Atlantic History, History of Science, Intellectual History, Military-Diplomatic History, Political History, Popular Culture, Religious History, History of Gender and Sexuality, Social History, and Western Canada/Borderlands/Frontier.

Students in the Departments of History, Political Science, Religious Studies and the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies may choose an interdisciplinary specialization in Israel Studies. For further information on the Israel Studies (Interdisciplinary) specialization, see the separate listing in this Calendar.

In cooperation with the Department of Philosophy, the History Department offers a Masters of Arts degree in the History and Philosophy of Science. Students who choose this concentration are required to take courses in the relevant departments. Candidates enrolled in the Department of History are expected to work with more than one instructor in History.

Students must take one half course seminar in a field unrelated to the student's research interests. In instances where there are no seminars being offered in the student's research field, students may, with permission of the chair of graduate studies, take one 500-level undergraduate seminar but on the understanding that extra course work will be required.

c) A thesis of 80 to 150 pages, including notes, charts, tables and appendices, but excluding bibliography. Students begin thesis preparation as they undertake their course work and may fulfill the requirements for their Master of Arts degree in twelve months.

d) A demonstration of reading knowledge of a second language related to the major field of study prior to the oral thesis defence.

Master of Arts (course-based)

There is no full-time requirement for this program.

a) A minimum of six full-course equivalents; two may be senior undergraduate courses at the 500 level, two must be graduate seminars and at least two are to be graduate seminars in a secondary field.

b) Completion of History 690 in the first year and History 651 and 653 in the final year of program.

c) A 50â€“60 page research paper prepared in the final year and defended in an oral examination.

d) A demonstration of reading knowledge of a second language related to the major field of study before the oral examination.

e) Completion of at least one half course per semester.

Doctor of Philosophy

a) A minimum of two years of full-time study at the Áù¾ÅÉ«ÌÃ.

b) Three full-course equivalents at the graduate level, including courses in the primary, secondary and cognate areas. Doctoral students are required to complete 2.5 FCE in History coursework at the graduate level, of which at least 1 FCE must be completed in the primary area and one half course in the secondary area. Doctoral students must also complete one half course outside of History in a cognate area. The areas will be defined in detail by the supervisor and the student in consultation with the Supervisory Committee and must be approved by the Department Graduate Studies Committee. During the candidacy examination, the student will demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the primary and secondary areas as well as his or her particular field of research. The secondary area will be selected from an area of history outside of the primary area. The cognate course will consist of a non-history discipline or thematic history subject. The length of the reading list will be 100-150 titles for the primary area (with the understanding that the three articles or stand alone chapters in essay anthologies is the equivalent of one book), and 50-75 titles for the secondary area. The availability of secondary areas and cognate/thematic courses will depend on faculty members' expertise. Each of a student's areas must be taught by a different faculty member or as defined by the committee.

Primary Areas: Canada; History of Science, Latin America; Medieval and Early Modern Europe; Military/Diplomatic; Modern Europe and Britain; United States; World.

Secondary Areas (to be chosen from outside of Primary Area): Canada; History of Science; Latin America; Medieval and Early Modern Europe; Military/Diplomatic; Modern Europe and Britain; United States; World.

Cognate Course: Students will complete one half course of graduate level coursework in an area outside of History. A student's cognate course will be determined in consultation with the supervisor.

c) A thesis normally of 400 pages, including notes, charts and tables, but excluding bibliography and appendices.

d) A reading knowledge of one language other than English.

e) Written and oral candidacy examinations in primary and secondary areas. The Supervisory Committee consists of the primary and secondary area supervisors with the third member being a faculty member whose area of expertise is in the field of study for the student. The History Department urges candidates to take candidacy examinations within 16 months of first registration. Examinations must be completed within 20 months of first registration.

The doctoral program consists of two terms of coursework relevant to the primary and secondary areas, and cognate course. During the third and fourth terms, students read for the candidacy examinations. Four to five terms of thesis preparation will normally follow. Students who have not taken History 690 or its equivalent will be required to take it as part of their program in the first year and in addition to the requirements above.

6. Additional Requirements

None.

7. Credit for Undergraduate Courses

Students enrolled in the part-time course-based Master of Arts program may take two of the required six full-course equivalents at the 500 level.

Students enrolled in the Master of Arts thesis program may apply for no more than one 500-level course for graduate credit, subject to the approval of the Department. Graduate students taking a 500-level course for graduate credit will be required to complete additional assignments.

8. Time Limit

Expected completion time is 12 to 20 months for the Master of Arts thesis program, and four years for the doctoral program. Maximum completion time is four years for the Master of Arts thesis program and six years for the course-based Master of Arts and doctoral programs.

9. Supervisory Assignments

Upon acceptance into the program, students are assigned an interim supervisor. Each student should select a permanent supervisor, subject to the consent of the faculty member, within three months of entering program. Admission to the Masterâ€™s and the doctoral programs is dependent upon the agreement of a faculty member to supervise in an interim capacity.

The supervisor establishes a doctoral supervisory committee in consultation with the student. The Supervisory Committee consists of the primary and secondary area supervisors with the third member being a faculty member whose area of expertise is in the field of study for the student. The supervisory committee must be selected within three months of the supervisorâ€™s appointment (no later than March of the first year of a program).

10. Required Examinations

Doctoral candidacy examinations have a written and an oral component and are taken upon completion of all course and language requirements. Students will write exams for their primary and secondary areas. There will be a closed-book exam in each field. (Primary area closed book format will require that the student write a three-hour exam on campus with no sources, answering two questions from a range of questions provided by the primary area supervisor. Secondary area closed book format will require that the student write a two-hour exam on campus with no sources, answering two questions from a range of questions provided by the secondary area supervisor). Area supervisors will decide whether to emphasize historiography or teaching in setting exam questions. The supervisory committee, in consultation with the student, sets the subjects. A level of general knowledge consistent with teaching an introductory survey course is expected for each area. The oral candidacy examination is taken no later than twenty calendar days after the last written examination. The department strongly recommends that students take their candidacy examinations within 16 months of their first date of registration. Examinations must be taken within 20 months of first registration.

Final thesis oral examinations are open.

11. Research Proposal Requirements

Each doctoral student is required to submit a Dissertation Proposal to their graduate supervisory committee no more than four weeks after the oral examinations. The proposal will be approximately 2500 words in length, with three pages for the bibliography. Within two weeks of receiving the dissertation proposal, the supervisory committee will have a meeting of up to one hour with the student to discuss it. The date for the proposal meeting will be set prior to the filing of the Notice of Candidacy. All of the members of the supervisory committee will sign off on the studentâ€™s research proposal following the meeting, should they consider the proposal satisfactory. To be considered as making satisfactory progress in the PhD program, students must have their supervisory committee sign off on their dissertation proposal. Elements of a successful proposal include the problem or question that the research seeks to answer; the historiographic significance of that problem; a hypothesis as to how the problem might be addressed; a method for exploring that hypothesis; and an inventory of the most relevant evidence for the method. The proposal should also include a bibliography of three pages listing the most relevant primary and secondary work for the thesis.

12. Special Registration Information

Students should plan their courses in consultation with their supervisors, complete the Course Registration Form supplied by the department, obtain the supervisorâ€™s signature, and bring their course program to the Graduate Program Director for approval before registration.

13. Financial Assistance

Financial assistance may be available to qualified students. For information on awards, see the Awards and Financial Assistance section of this Calendar.

Students applying for scholarships must submit their online applications to the Department by February 1.

14. Other Information

Since resources are limited, the Department may, in any year, admit fewer applicants than those who are qualified to undertake graduate studies.

15. Faculty Members/Research Interests

The research interests of current faculty can be found at: .

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