Doctorate In History

Overview

Our Ph.D. program specializes in transatlantic, transnational, and global approaches to history. Our award-winning faculty teach graduate courses that cover a wide variety of topics and geographic areas, with a particular focus on the United States, Europe, and Latin America, as well as borderlands, transatlantic, and transnational history.

About The Program

The Ph.D. in history prepares our graduates to work in a variety of careers, both within and outside of academia—as researchers, teachers, writers, and thinkers. Along with traditional colloquia and seminars focusing on a variety of geographic and chronological topics, we offer graduate certificates in archival administration and public history. Those interested will also find skill-developing workshops and coursework on topics such as college teaching, digital humanities, and Geographical Information Systems. Full-time Ph.D. students take a full course load (nine hours per term) and are expected to complete the program in six years, although we also accept part-time Ph.D. students who may take longer. Applicants should have either a BA or MA in history or at least 18 hours in upper-division undergraduate history courses.

Career Opportunities

• University faculty
• History instructor at secondary and community college level
• Museum professional
• Archival administration specialist
• Careers requiring high-level research, analysis, and writing
• Work in government and nonprofit sectors

Why Choose Us?

• Cutting-edge scholars in transatlantic and transnational history
• North America's only specialized track in the history of cartography and access to the world-famous Garrett Map Collection
• Geographic Information Systems instruction, with emphasis on geographic humanities
• The only archival administration certificate program in the DFW Metroplex
• Small classes and individual attention
• Participation in the Transnational History Student Organization and its annual International Graduate Student Conference on Transatlantic History

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Degree Plan

Required Courses

• HIST 5339 --- Historical Theory and Methodology --- 3
• HIST 5363 --- Reading Colloquium in National Histories --- 3
• HIST 5364 --- Reading Colloquium in Transnational History --- 3
• HIST 6363 --- Seminar in National Histories --- 3
• HIST 6364 --- Seminar in Transnational History --- 3

And two of the following:

• HIST 5340 --- Issues and Interpretations in U.S. History --- 3
• HIST 5341 --- Approaches To World History --- 3
• HIST 5350 --- History of Cartography --- 3

Full-time doctoral students are expected to take nine hours each semester. Part-time students are required to take at least six hours each semester. Each semester a student must consult the Graduate Advisor before he/she can be cleared to register.

Recommended Course of Study for Full-Time Students

First Year

• HIST 5339 --- 3
• HIST 5341, 5340, or 5350 --- 3
• HIST 5340, 5341, or 5350 --- 3
• HIST 5364 --- 3
• HIST 5363 --- 3
• One colloquium --- 3

Second Year

• HIST 6363 --- 3
• HIST 6364 --- 3
• One colloquium --- 3
• One colloquium --- 3
• One colloquium or seminar --- 3
• One colloquium or seminar --- 3

Third Year

• One colloquium --- 3
• HIST 6990 --- 9
• One colloquium or seminar --- 3
• One colloquium or seminar --- 3

Fourth Year

• Comprehensive Exam HIST 6699 --- 6
• The dissertation proposal is due HIST 6990 --- 9

Fifth Year

• HIST 6699 --- 6
• HIST 6699 --- 6

Sixth Year

• HIST 6699 --- 6
• HIST 7399 --- 3

Total Hours: 90

Admission Requirements

Unconditional Admission

The criteria for admission below are used, without specific weight, as positive indicators of potential success in the program.

• A prior academic degree (B.A. or M.A. in History or related fields) from an accredited institution (verified by transcripts from each college or university previously attended sent directly from the registrar of that institution to Graduate Admissions).
• A minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 in the course of completing a B.A. degree in History or a related field from an accredited institution (verified by official transcripts from each college or university previously attended sent directly from the registrar of that institution to Graduate Admissions).
• An academic writing sample (e.g. research essay) from a previous course assignment.
• A letter of intent, describing the student's historical interests and how they intersect with the faculty and strengths of the Ph.D. program.
• Three letters of recommendation (from university or college professors) were mailed directly from the recommenders to the History Ph.D. Advisor.
• A score of 156 or higher on the verbal section and a score of 5 or higher on the analytical writing section of the GRE aptitude test (verified by official GRE scores sent to Graduate Admissions). However standardized test performance is not the sole criterion for admission or the primary criterion to end consideration for admission.

Provisional Admission

An applicant unable to supply all required documentation (e.g., GRE scores) prior to the admission deadline but who otherwise appears to meet admission requirements may be granted provisional admission. Provisionally admitted students must adequately satisfy any incomplete documentation by the end of the semester in which they are admitted. If the applicant fails to do so, the student will be dropped from the program. He or she may seek readmission when provisional requirements are complete.

Probationary Admission

An applicant whose credentials approximate but do not meet minimum admission standards, maybe granted Probationary Admission subject to the condition that the candidate must earn no grade lower than a B in his/her first 12 semester hours of graduate work taken at UT Arlington.

Deferral or Denial

If two or more of the criteria have not been met satisfactorily, the applicant will not be admitted on any of the three levels above but will receive deferral or denial. A deferred decision may be granted when a file is incomplete or when a denied decision is not appropriate.