Graduate Degree Requirements

The Department of History offers M.A. concentrations in medieval and modern European history, U.S. history, Latin American and Latino history, Global history, and Gender. The Ph.D. degree, described further below on this page, is available in medieval and modern European history, U.S. history, and Latin American history.

M.A. Degree

All M.A. students are required to complete 30 credits of course work, normally eight classes. The degree normally requires one year of full-time study, with three courses in the fall and spring semesters and two courses in the summer. A minimum of six courses must be taken within the Department of History. All M.A. students must show reading proficiency in one foreign language (e.g. Spanish, French, German, Latin or another language relevant to the student's research interests). For their major degree requirement, students have the option of writing an M.A. thesis or passing an M.A. examination, but students intending to continue on for the Ph.D. must write a thesis.

A "B" (3.0) average must be maintained in courses taken for the Master's Degree.

The Department offers students the possibility of completing an M.A. degree with or without a concentration. The unconcentrated M.A. degree requires students to take two courses in each of three minor fields, which are defined geographically (e.g. medieval Europe, U.S. history) and thematically (e.g. religion, social history). Two of the eight required courses will be electives. This course of study is suitable for students who do not wish to pursue a Ph.D. and especially suitable for prospective secondary school teachers. 

Students may choose to concentrate in one of the following areas: Gender, Global, Latin America, Medieval Europe, Modern Europe, or United States. Students wishing to concentrate normally take five courses in their concentration and also need to complete a minor field consisting of two courses. There is one elective. This course of study is suitable for students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. at Fordham or elsewhere. Students intending to do so should complete an M.A. thesis.

The department also offers a certificate in documentary editing in conjunction with the M.A.

The requirements for the concentrations vary slightly from one area of study to the next. Please consult the sections below. One notable difference is that students in the American, medieval European concentrations are required to take a proseminar/seminar sequence, students for the M.A. in Latin America, Gender, and Global do not; instead, students writing an M.A. thesis in Latin American or Global history must take a research tutorial (HSGA 8999), while those concentrating in Gender history must take a tutorial or a proseminar/seminar sequence (see below) 

Checklist for M.A. Concentrations

Medieval European History

• The year-long proseminar/seminar sequence (8 credits).
• Three additional courses in medieval history (12 credits).
• One more history course in any area (4 credits).
• Two additional history courses in a minor field outside medieval history (8 credits). With the approval of the department, students may take one or both of these courses in another department provided the courses are of a historical nature.
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in one foreign language, including any relevant ancient or modern language

Modern European history

• The year-long proseminar/seminar sequence (8 credits).
• Three additional courses in modern European history (12 credits). One of these courses may be research seminar leading to an M.A. thesis.
• One more history course in any area (4 credits). Those who wish to continue to the Ph.D. program are strongly encouraged to take this course in modern European history.
• Two additional history courses in a minor field outside modern European history (8 credits). With the approval of the department, students may take one or both of these courses in another department provided the courses are of a historical nature.
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in one foreign language.

U.S. history

• The year-long proseminar/seminar sequence (8 credits).
• Three additional courses in U.S. history (12 credits).
• One more history course in any area (4 credits).
• Two additional history courses in a minor field outside American history (8 credits). With the approval of the department, students may take one or both of these courses in another department provided the courses are of a historical nature.
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in one foreign language.

Latin American and Latino history

• Students are encouraged to choose an advisor in the first semester who will help in identifying a research project leading to the M.A. thesis.
• Five courses in Latin American and Latino subjects (20 credits), including a independent graduate tutorial (HSGA 8999) leading to the M.A. thesis. At least three must be taken in the History Department.  * With the permission of the Director of Graduate Studies, students may fulfill one of these course requirements by taking an undergraduate elective in Latin American or Latino history. Students wishing to pursue this option will need to register for a tutorial (HSGA 8999) with the instructor and will need to do additional reading and writing assignments given by the instructor.  * Students are also encouraged to take advantage of the graduate courses in other departments cross-listed through the Latin American and Latino Studies Institute (www.fordham.edu/lalsi ).
• One more history courses in any area (4 credits)
• Two additional history courses in a minor field outside of Latin American history (8 credits).
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, or French.

Global History

• One course in European history (4 credits).
• One course in U.S. history (4 credits).
• One course in Latin American history (4 credits).
• Two courses in global or transnational history (8 credits). Courses may include any aspect of Latin American or Caribbean history, Atlantic history, or any courses taught by European or U.S. faculty members that have a substantial non-western history component. 
• Three more history course in any area (12 credits). With the approval of the department, students may take two of these courses in another department provided the courses are of a historical nature.
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in one foreign language.

Gender History

• Four courses in gender. At least two must be taken within History. At least one and not more than two must be approved courses offered in other departments within the University (14-16 credits).
• Four additional courses in history. These may include a proseminar/seminar sequence in any field as long as it results in a research paper focusing on gender, or a research tutorial leading to an M.A. thesis (16 credits).
• M.A. thesis or M.A. exam.
• Reading proficiency in one foreign language.

Ph.D. Degree

Students without an M.A. in History who wish to pursue a Ph.D. at Fordham University should enter into the M.A. program (see requirements above) and then submit a second application for the Ph.D. program in the following year. The Ph.D. program requires an additional eight courses (30-32 credits) beyond the M.A. degree. Students applying for the doctoral program who have received an M.A. in History from another university can be admitted straight into the Ph.D. program but may be required to take some additional courses to make up for any deficiencies in academic preparation. Upon completion of course work and language requirements, Ph.D. students will take a comprehensive examination. Reading lists for the examination are developed by the student in conjunction with the student's mentor and examination committee. Within a year after the comprehensive has been passed, the candidate must then present a dissertation prospectus for the approval of the mentor and dissertation committee. After the completion of the dissertation, its oral defense and submission to the dean, the Ph.D. is awarded. 

Checklist for Ph.D. Degree Programs

The concentrations vary slightly in their requirements. All require a previous concentration in that field and a minimum GPA of 3.5.

Medieval European history

• Eight courses (minimum 30 credits) beyond the M.A. degree.
• Two of these eight courses must consist of the one year-long proseminar/seminar sequence.
• Reading proficiency in two modern languages as well as Latin or another language of research.
• Comprehensive oral examination in four fields, at least three of which must be in the area of concentration; the fourth field may be in any other historical field or in another discipline, such as art history, literature, medieval studies, philosophy, political science, or theology.
• Dissertation proposal development (1 credit) and acceptance (3 credits) to be completed within one year of comprehensive examination.
• Dissertation and defense

Early and Late Modern European history

• Eight courses (minimum 30 credits) beyond the M.A. degree.
• One of these courses must be a second research seminar.
• Reading proficiency in two foreign languages (including statistics/databases).
• Comprehensive oral examination in four fields, as listed below. Each part of the exam will be based on a reading list of 40-50 items (books and articles) developed by the student in collaboration with faculty mentors in each field. 
  • Early Modern Europe
  • Late Modern Europe
  • A research field intended to provide a context for the dissertation. This field is to be defined by the student in collaboration with her/his adviser.
  • A field outside Modern Europe.
  With the consultation and approval of faculty members, a student may elect to substitute one of the modern European comprehensive fields with a thematic, interdisciplinary or national concentration.
• Dissertation proposal development (1 credit) and acceptance (3 credits) to be completed within one year of comprehensive examination.
• Dissertation and defense.

Latin American history

• Eight courses (minimum 30 credits) beyond the M.A. degree.
• One of these courses must be a research tutorial that results in a substantial research paper.
• Reading proficiency in two foreign languages (including statistics/databases).
• Comprehensive oral examination in four fields. Two of the fields must be mentored by faculty in the concentration. One of the fields must be taken in another concentration. The fourth field consists of a dissertation prospectus which must be submitted in writing.
• Dissertation proposal development (1 credit) and acceptance (3 credits) to be completed within one year of comprehensive examination.
• Dissertation and defense.

United States history

• Eight courses (minimum 30 credits) beyond the MA
• One of these course must be a second research seminar. The paper for this seminar should grow out of the student's work in a previously taken course.
• Additional Reading proficiency in one foreign language beyond that shown for the M.A. Students may either demonstrate proficiency in a second language (including statistics/databases), or show deeper proficiency in the same language.
• Comprehensive oral examination in four fields, as listed below. Each part of the exam will be based on a reading list of 40-50 items (books and articles) developed by the student in collaboration with the examiners in each field.
  • Colonial to 1877
  • 1877 to present
  • A research field intended to provide a context for the dissertation. This field is to be defined by the student in collaboration with her/his adviser.
  • An outside field. This may be another discipline, but students are encouraged to use it to achieve proficiency in a non-US area of history.
• Dissertation proposal development (1 credit) and acceptance (3 credits) to be completed within one year of comprehensive examination.
• Dissertation and defense.

Modified, December 20, 2007 3:10 PM , Any questions about the History webpage can be sent to aacosta@fordham.edu.