Application
The Department of History welcomes your application to our program. For more information about the requirements and structure of the Graduate Program in History, please consult the Program Guidelines.
Application Details
The Penn Department of History admits a small class of highly qualified students to the doctoral program each year. We also admit a select number of students for the terminal M.A. program. Admissions to the Department is highly competitive. In recent years, we have admitted approximately ten percent of all applicants. When reading applications, we consider every element of the application carefully, in particular:
- The match between the applicant's intellectual interests and the strengths of our faculty.
- The academic record, with close attention to grades in history and related subjects.
- The recommendations of three faculty members who have taught you in history or related subjects who know you well and who can attest to your intellectual abilities, qualities in the classroom, and writing skills. Recommendations from employers (unless they are in history or a related field) are seldom useful.
- GRE scores. GRE scores are considered with the totality of the application. Alone, they rarely determine the admissibility of a student. We do not expect students to take the subject test in history. (UPenn GRE - 2926)
- TOEFL/TSE scores, if applicable.
- Ability to write clearly and intelligently.
All applications to the Penn Department of History must be submitted no later than midnight of December 15th, for admission into the Master's or Ph.D. program for the Fall term (beginning in September) of that year. Applicants are urged to file their applications and supporting material as early as possible to allow time for the most careful consideration.
There is no spring or summer admission in History.
Students are notified of their admission status in mid- to late March.
Writing Sample
A writing sample of not more than 10 double-spaced pages is a required part of the Graduate Application in History. We prefer that the writing sample demonstrate your skills as a historian, but particularly strong papers written in related subjects are acceptable.
All writing samples should be sent directly to the Department of History. They must be postmarked by December 15. Send samples to:
Joan Plonski
Department of History
University of Pennsylvania
College Hall 208
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6379
We will not consider your application if it does not include the writing sample.
Financial Aid
The Penn Department of History offers a generous program of financial aid to the great majority of its graduate students. Nearly all History Ph.D. students are recipients of four or five year fellowships awarded by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences upon admission. Those fellowships include tuition, fees, health insurance, and an annual stipend of $18,300 for the 2007-2008 academic year.
Application for fellowship and scholarship awards (except where otherwise specified) is made simply by checking the appropriate box on the first page of the application for admission. Students in the terminal M.A. program are usually not eligible for departmental fellowships, but may fund their studies through a combination of loans, work-study, and outside funding.
