Mar 29, 2024  
2013-14 Graduate Catalog 
    
2013-14 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

History, Public History Concentration, M.A.


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Pippa Holloway, Program Director
(615) 904-8149
Pippa.Holloway@mtsu.edu

The History Department  offers the Master of Arts in History, Master of Arts in History with a concentration in Public History, and a Ph.D. in Public History. The Public History concentration offers specialized education in one of four tracks: historic preservation, museum management, cultural resource management, and archival management.

For the most current information about the program, department policies, and admission standards, please visit the department website at www.mtsu.edu/history.

Please see undergraduate catalog for information regarding undergraduate programs.

Admission Requirements


Admission to the Master of Arts in History with a concentration in Public History program requires

  1. an earned bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college;
  2. an acceptable grade point average in all college work taken;
  3. completion of at least 18 semester hours of undergraduate history courses;
  4. completion of the Graduate Record Exam with acceptable scores.

Modifications to the above requirements may be made with the permission of the department’s director of graduate studies and the department’s graduate committee.

Application Procedures


All application materials are to be submitted to the College of Graduate Studies.

Application deadline for the M.A. program is March 15 for Fall admission and October 15 for Spring. The History Department does not consider graduate students for Summer admission.

Applicant must

  1. submit application with the appropriate application fee (online at www.mtsu.edu/graduate/apply.php);
  2. submit official scores on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE);
  3. submit official transcripts of all previous college work;
  4. submit letter of intent, explaining why you wish to pursue graduate education in History and why you wish to pursue those studies at MTSU;
  5. submit writing sample (preferably a lengthy research paper that demonstrates your writing and research skills);
  6. submit three letters of recommendation from professors or professionals that address the applicant’s potential to successfully complete an M.A. program in History.

Degree Requirements


Candidates for the Master of Arts in History with a concentration in Public History may choose between a thesis and a non-thesis option. All public history students must complete an internship off campus.

Thesis Option


Once admitted to the program, candidate must

  1. complete 33 hours of graduate-level history and public history courses, all at the 6000 level (see Curriculum section below for specifics);
  2. fulfill a research skill-set requirement by choosing one of the following options:
    1. demonstrate a reading competency in a foreign language by passing the specific reading examination administered by the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department;
    2. in consultation with their advisors, students can elect an alternative research skill, such as oral history techniques, linguistic analysis, quantitative analysis, GIS, feminist methods, historical theory (general or particular, such as Marxist or postmodern), 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 research skill. 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 research skills 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 preliminary examinations.
  3. maintain satisfactory progress toward completion of the degree each semester;
  4. 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;
  5. submit and successfully defend an acceptable thesis.

Non-thesis Option


Once admitted to the program, candidate must

  1. complete at least 36 hours of graduate-level coursework, all at the 6000-level (see Curriculum section below for specifics);
  2. fulfill a research skill set requirement by choosing one of the following options:
    1. demonstrate a reading competency in a foreign language by passing the specific reading examination administered by the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department;
    2. students, in consultation with their advisors, can elect an alternative research skill, such as oral history techniques, linguistic analysis, quantitative analysis, GIS, feminist methods, historical theory (general or particular, such as Marxist or postmodern), 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 research skill. 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 research skills 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 preliminary examinations.
  3. maintain satisfactory progress toward completion of the degree each semester;
  4. complete comprehensive examinations in the field of public history.

Curriculum: History, Public History


Thesis Option (33 hours)


All M.A. in History with a concentration in Public History candidates pursuing the thesis option must complete 33 hours (all at the 6000 level) in the following course of study:

Required Core Courses (9 hours)


Internship (3 hours)


Public History electives (6 hours)


  • 6 hours selected in consultation with public history faculty

History electives (9 hours)


  • 9 hours outside the public history field

Thesis Research (at least 3 hours)


NOTE:


Students may add a field outside of history toward their master’s programs. Specific provisions on graduate minors are elsewhere in this catalog.

 No more than three hours of HIST 6910 /HIST 6920  may be counted toward graduation.

Non-thesis Option (36 hours)


All M.A. in History with a concentration in Public History candidates pursuing the non-thesis option must complete 36 hours (all at the 6000 level) in the following course of study:

Required Core Courses (9 hours)


Internship (3 hours)


Public History Electives (6 hours)


  • 6 hours selected in consultation with public history faculty

History electives (9 hours)


  • 9 hours outside the public history field, of which 3 must be in a graduate research seminar

Note:


Students may add a field outside of history toward their master’s programs. Specific provisions on graduate minors are elsewhere in this catalog.

No more than three hours of HIST 6910 /HIST 6920  may be counted toward the degree.
 

Program Notes


Candidate must

  1.  file a degree plan with the Graduate Office prior to the completion of 21 semester hours;
  2. file a Notice of Intent to Graduate form in the College of Graduate Studies within the first two weeks of the term in which candidate intends to graduate.

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