The Program in History
This handbook is designed to provide guidance in your graduate study at the University of Pennsylvania as well as to answer frequently asked questions about the program.*
(Effective September 1, 2006)
THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
GRADUATE GROUP IN HISTORY
The Ph.D. Program
The purpose of the Ph.D. program is to train professional historians who are both scholars and teachers. During your years of study here you will acquire the scholarly tools you need for such an academic career: systematic knowledge of at least three broad historical fields, rigorous training and experience in scholarly research, familiarity with the most influential approaches to historical explanation, genuine awareness of what are truly significant historical problems, and engagement in interdisciplinary approaches to history drawn from other social sciences and humanities. You will also receive in the course of your graduate study in History valuable teaching experience. The Ph.D. program is a demanding one, so you should be prepared to devote full time to your studies throughout the academic year and during the summer.
Summer Preparation
Incoming, first-year graduate students should use the summer before enrolling to prepare for graduate study in the following ways:
- Read widely in the philosophy of history, the history of historical writing, and research methods.
- Read carefully several important works of history in your general field of interest. You may seek the advice of a faculty member in your field of study about a reading list. Done without the pressure of going to classes and writing research papers, such preliminary reading provides valuable background knowledge and enables incoming Ph.D. candidates to decide early on what kinds of historical problems they wish to investigate.
- Consider the lecture courses and seminars you want to take during the first year of graduate study, and to the shape of your eventual examination fields. A list of courses to be given by the Department of History during the coming academic year is normally available in late spring.
- Prepare to pass a reading examination in at least one or two foreign languages in September. The Graduate Faculty offers language courses in select modern European languages and sometimes Latin during May and June for matriculated Ph.D. students who need to gain knowledge of the language; however, funding is not available for these courses. It is best to have reading competence in two languages before beginning the program.
First Semester Registration
In the summer, all incoming students will receive important information concerning registration and fees.
Students should plan to be at the University during the three days after Labor Day in order to meet with academic advisors to confirm summer registration or plan other courses for the fall semester, and to attend a meeting of all new graduate students in the Department of History. At this meeting, usually held on Tuesday or Wednesday after Labor Day, the Graduate Chair will extend an official welcome, explain procedures required for course selection, and answer other questions.
Before the initial meetings with academic advisors, students should have made tentative decisions concerning probable fields of study and how requirements for additional language and/or other technical competencies may be met. If advisory meetings suggest that changes are needed in summer pre-registration, these may be easily done during the "Drop and Add" period at the beginning of the semester.
Advisors and Advisory Committees
The graduate history program at the University of Pennsylvania stresses flexibility and allows maximum choice to students in designing academic programs to fit particular interests and needs. Because of this, a close student-advisor relationship is essential. During the summer before arriving at the University every Ph.D. candidate in History will be assigned to an academic advisor who will supervise the first year of graduate study. In many cases these advisors will continue to serve during subsequent years and will function as dissertation supervisors for students who have completed their course requirements and passed their Ph.D. oral examinations. Students may ask the Graduate Chair to assign them different advisors, however, if their fields of historical interest change or other problems arise. The advisor must be a member of the standing faculty in the Department of History.
Early in the spring term of the first year, each student will select, in consultation with the academic advisor and subject to the approval of the Graduate Chair, two other faculty members to form the advisory committee. These professors will assist the principal advisor in supervising the remaining years of the student's academic program and will normally serve as members of the student's Ph.D. examining committee. Each advisory committee shall consist of at least three faculty members, of whom two must be members of the Graduate Group in History. Committee members may be replaced by petition of the student if the change is approved by the remaining members and the Graduate Chair.
Ph.D. candidates will meet at least once a year with their advisory committees to discuss remaining course requirements, determine precise fields of study, specify language and/or other technical competency requirements, and schedule a tentative examination date. The advisory committees will also evaluate the academic performance of graduate students and make recommendations for financial aid. In the first year, this evaluation will be based on the committee's review of the student's course evaluations and a progress report (form available below) submitted by the student to each committee member at least a week before the meeting. For second- and third-year committee procedures, see below, "Ph.D. Qualifying Evaluation" and "Ph.D. Preliminary Examination." Advisory committees should meet by 1 February each year.
Progress Report (PDF)
A report on each advisory committee meeting is completed by the presiding academic advisor and placed in the student's open file. Within two weeks of the first- and second-year committee meetings, the advisor or another designated faculty member will also write a letter to the student evaluating her/his progress to date based on the self-report, discussion at the meeting, the committee's evaluation form, course evaluations by instructors, and other contents of the student's file and (for second-year students) portfolio. The purpose of the letter is to offer clear and honest feedback about the student's strengths, weaknesses, and status in the program, and also to satisfy the Graduate Group in History's and the SAS Graduate Division's need for regular and systematic evaluation of graduate students during their first two years in the program. A copy of the letter will be submitted to the Graduate Chair for review by the Graduate Committee and for inclusion in the student's file. Students may also review the course evaluations and advisory committee reports contained in their files.
Courses
The University requires that every Ph.D. candidate complete a total of 20 units of course work with passing grades before taking the preliminary examination, beginning dissertation research, and registering for dissertation term fees rather than full tuition. Recognizing the need for maximum flexibility in meeting the course requirement, the Graduate Group in History encourages students to work closely with their advisors and advisory committees to tailor the curriculum to meet their needs.
History 700
The Department of History requires only one two-unit course of all students, History 700. This course focuses on historical method, practice, and research. It combines theoretical, methodological, and substantive materials. It is designed to span the geographical and chronological fields represented in the Graduate Group and may be taught by more than one faculty member. During the fall semester the Seminar concentrates on historiographical and theoretical literature. During the spring term each student will undertake specialized individual research on a particular aspect of the general topic that falls within his/her major field, and at the end of the term will submit a substantial seminar-length paper presenting his or her findings. Such papers will be jointly supervised and graded by the seminar instructor(s) and the academic advisor of each student. The student should submit the 700 paper to the Graduate Coordinator for inclusion in her/his file as soon as it is completed.
The Second-Year Research Requirement
In the second year, graduate students are required to write another original, primary-source based research paper. This paper may be completed as part of the requirements of a graduate course or a graded independent study. Graduate students' advising committees will certify that the second-year research requirement has been met by reviewing the paper. Students must place copies of their second-year papers in their files by September of the third year. Students entering the program with an MA in history should try to produce a second research paper in the first year or fall term of the second year.
The Summer Dissertation Proposal Workshop
Each summer the department conducts a dissertation proposal workshop in which students conceptualize dissertation projects and write several drafts of their research proposals. The workshop's initial sessions are in May and June; it reconvenes in September and October. During the intervening period, participants visit archives to canvass materials. Each student receives a small stipend to help defray research expenses. The department prefers that students take the dissertation proposal workshop at the end of their second years of study (after the first year for students who enter the program with a year of graduate work already completed). A student may, however, defer the workshop to the following summer with the written permission of his or her advisor. With the approval of the advisor, the workshop may be taken for credit as a graded independent study. A student must have the advisor's approval of a topic before entering the workshop. By the end of the workshop in October, each student submits a final prospectus for approval by the advisor. Discussion of the prospectus will figure in the Ph.D. preliminary examination.
Colloquia and Research Seminars
Each year the department will offer 500-level and 600-level colloquia and 700-level research seminars. Although primarily intended for advanced undergraduate students, 400-level courses may be taken for graduate credit by satisfying additional requirements set by the instructor.
Colloquia are reading and discussion courses on special topics or covering broad chronological periods or geographical areas; they are designed to give students command of relevant historiographical literature. Colloquium instructors always require some kind of written work in these courses as well, such as a historiographical essay, an annotated bibliography, or a series of analytical book reviews.
Courses in Other Departments
We encourage graduate students to take courses in other departments at Penn, when pedagogically appropriate. Many of our faculty are involved in interdisciplinary research, belong to cross-departmental centers, and appreciate the value that study in the methods, theory, and practice of other disciplines can bring to history. In addition, there are many non-departmental historians and historically-oriented scholars in departments as diverse as English, Sociology, Comparative Literature, Political Science, Anthropology, Law, Social Work, Education, Art History, Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, Religious Studies, Architecture and Planning, and many others. Many graduate students participate in the Urban Studies and Women's Studies graduate certificate programs. Students who wish to enroll in courses outside the Department of History should consult with their advisors about courses that may be relevant to their courses of study.
Graded Independent Studies
Many graduate students meet their course requirements by enrolling in graded independent study courses. These provide the opportunity to work closely with a faculty member on a topic not covered by regularly offered courses or to conduct research outside of the setting of a formal seminar. History 910, 920, and 930 designate graded independent studies in American, European, and trans-regional or other regional history, respectively. Within these categories, independent studies may be given titles to reflect the content of the course. All 910, 920, and 930 courses require the instructor's written permission.
Graded independent studies normally involve:
- completion of a specific reading or research project
- regularly scheduled tutorial sessions with the instructor during the semester
- submission of a substantial paper at the end of the term in which the course is taken
Preceptorials
In certain fields, it makes pedagogical sense for a student to attend an appropriate undergraduate course taught by a supervising faculty member. The student will also meet separately on a regular basis with the faculty member and submit graduate-level written work, including a substantial paper. Enrollment in a preceptorial requires the permission of the supervising faculty member. Students wishing to arrange preceptorials should discuss the option with faculty members well before the beginning of the semester.
Ungraded Independent Studies
The purpose of ungraded independent studies, designated as HIST 999, is to award credit for the extra reading, study, and research that graduate students pursue outside their regular courses. Students in the Ph.D. program may take an ungraded, unsupervised 999 each semester in the first two years with the written approval of their faculty advisors. Students may take up to five ungraded, unsupervised 999s in the third year (or four in the second year, if admitted with approved graduate transfer credits from an M.A. program). The grade "S" (Satisfactory) is normally given in such courses. Under no circumstances may a student take more than eight 999s, or five in the case of students who enter the program with a History M.A.
Discussion and Reading Groups
Graduate students prepare for Ph.D. preliminary examinations and for careers as professional scholars by more than just taking courses. They are encouraged to take an active role in their own training by deciding independently what kinds of topics interest them most and what they should do on their own to learn more about them. Small student-organized discussion groups are ideal for this purpose as well as for developing scholarly and professional outlooks in a professor-free environment. On occasion, faculty members may also organize non-graded, informal reading groups for interested graduate students.
Incomplete Course Work
It is in the interest of graduate students and faculty alike that all work be completed by the end of the semester in which a course is taken; some professors in fact require this. There are severe penalties -- including ineligibility for financial aid -- for students who do not complete course work within a reasonable length of time. In any event, the Graduate Faculty requires that for all courses (except History 999s), grades of "S" (satisfactory progress, usually assigned provisionally for the first semester of a year-long course) or of "I" (incomplete) be changed to letter grades of A, B, C, etc. within a semester and a summer (effectively, about eight months) after the end of the term in which the course was originally taken.
Language and Technical Competency Requirement
The Graduate Group recognizes that the language, quantitative, and other methodological training needed by particular Ph.D. candidates will vary widely. It is usual, however, that European history students must demonstrate competence in at least two major European languages, while Americanists may do so in two languages other than English or in one foreign language and a technical methodololgical skill discipline such as statistics, geographic information systems, digital systems, or demography. Students in the history of other parts of the world must demonstrate competence in at least two languages other than English. All students must in any case demonstrate to the satisfaction of their advisors and other committee members -- via certification of language examiners or completion of relevant courses -- that they have achieved research competence in these technical areas by January of the third year of study (second year for students entering with history MAs). Preliminary examinations cannot be scheduled until both language requirements have been satisfied. Note that continuation of a student's fellowship depends on taking the preliminary examination at the time designated below.
It is in all cases preferable that technical competency requirements be satisfied during the first year of graduate study. Ph.D. candidates who require language or methodological skills in addition to these defined minima in order to carry on research in their main area of specialization must satisfy their advisory committees that they have acquired these no later than the date of their Ph.D. preliminary examinations. Students in non-US history can be expected to read texts in the languages of their major fields in their coursework from the first semester on.
Field Requirements
In constructing their course plans, students should keep in mind that they will need to prepare for preliminary examinations in three fields:
- a general field defined by a long time span and a national or regional geographic framework, meant to enable graduates to teach standard survey courses (e.g., Modern U.S., Early Modern Europe);
- a primary specialty field carved from the general field, defined more specifically either geographically, chronologically, or topically (e.g. Modern French Political History, American Women's History, Twentieth Century African Labor History); and
- a secondary field that has a theoretical, methodological, or cross-cultural emphasis (e.g. Issues and Methods in Demographic History, Comparative Race Relations in Historical Perspective).
The precise scope of general, primary, and secondary fields, the linkage between them, and the program of study for their completion (course work and independent reading) will be worked out by each student in consultation with his/her advisory committee; decisions in all these areas are to be clearly spelled out in the reports of these meetings that are placed in the student's academic file. For the third field, students are encouraged to look for course work outside the Department of History.
Teaching Requirement
The Department expects that all Ph.D. students gain experience as teachers in preparation for their future careers. All History Ph.D. students must teach for at least one year during their time at Penn. The terms of University Fellowships and Awards may require additional teaching. Most Ph.D. students will meet the teaching requirement by serving as teaching fellows (generally called teaching assistants) during their second and third years of graduate study. Teaching assistants will be closely supervised by their faculty supervisors, who meet with them regularly to discuss course materials and assignments and provide them with instruction and advice on pedagogical matters. Instructors with teaching assistants are expected to visit the TAs' discussion sections at least once a semester and to provide a written evaluation of their teaching assistants' performance.
Teaching assistants will be assigned by the Graduate Chair, bearing in mind course needs and faculty and graduate student preferences. Preliminary assignments will be made by the end of the semester preceding the TA assignment, with final assignments to be determined no later than the first week of classes based on course enrollments and other pedagogical needs.
The Ph.D. Qualifying Evaluation
The Ph.D. qualifying evaluation is a second-year assessment conducted by the student's advisory committee in its January meeting and reviewed by the Graduate Committee later in the spring term.
At least a week before the committee meets, the student will submit a progress report (PDF) to each member. Committee members are expected to review this and the student's course evaluations before the meeting. The second year review also includes an assessment of the student's portfolio, which will include the 700 paper and at least one other significant paper from the first year, along with a transcript of the student's graduate work done at the University of Pennsylvania. It is the student's responsibility to submit copies of these papers to the Graduate Coordinator at least four weeks before the committee meeting.
At the advisory committee meeting, after preliminary discussion among the faculty members, the student will be admitted for discussion of academic progress to date and plans for future study. The advisor will prepare a signed report of the meeting for inclusion in the student's file. This report will include a clear recommendation about the student's continued financial aid. The advisor will then write the evaluation letter to the student, with a copy to the Graduate Chair (see above, "Advisors and Advisory Committees"). The Graduate Committee's spring review of these letters and other relevant materials and its final recommendation about the student's continuation in the program will complete the Ph.D. Qualifying Evaluation.
The Ph.D. Preliminary Examination
Ph.D. preliminary examination may not be scheduled until all University and Graduate Group courses and technical competency requirements have been met. This means that for students whose entire graduate study careers have been at the University of Pennsylvania, these examinations will take place some time during the third year of graduate study. For Ph.D. candidates who enter the Penn graduate history program with an M.A. degree from another institution already in hand, such examinations should take place at the end of the second year of study.
The Ph.D. examination board normally consists of three faculty members -- the candidate's principal academic advisor and the other two members of his/her advisory committee. In some cases, however, the advisory committee may decide to request the addition of a fourth faculty person. The examination may consist of both oral and written parts, although its specific format in each case will be determined by the student's committee. The examination must include the principal field of the candidate's dissertation research. It may be based on the following materials:
- Reading lists drawn up by the candidate in consultation with the members of the advisory committee.
- A list of historical problems agreed upon by the candidate and the advisory committee and that has been used as a guide in choosing courses and preparing for the examination.
- Essays on the literature of specified historical problems that have been submitted by the candidate prior to the examination and used by members of the examining committee as the basis for their questions.
- A particular approach or emphasis within primary and/or secondary fields.
- An acceptable dissertation prospectus completed before these exams.
In order to pass the preliminary examination for the Ph.D. a candidate must secure the unanimous agreement of the members of the examining committee. The committee chair must file a written evaluation of the candidate's performance that includes an unambiguous statement of whether the candidate passed. In cases where unanimity does not exist, the student may have a re-examination of one or more fields, at the examiners' discretion, within twelve weeks of the original examination. Students who have been denied a re-examination may appeal this decision to the Graduate Committee. If, upon re-examination, one member of a committee of three (or two members of a committee of four or more) votes the examination a failure, the student's candidacy for the Ph.D. degree is terminated. So that the possibility of arbitrary veto of the candidate may be prevented, however, all of the other members of the examining committee may jointly petition the Graduate Chair to grant a final re-examination with a substitute faculty member competent to examine in the failed field or fields. Their petition must be unanimous.
The Dissertation
Ph.D. candidates are expected to begin full-time research on their dissertation projects immediately upon passing their comprehensive examinations. During the third year of graduate study (or in the case of students with M.A.s, in the second term of the second year) candidates will submit a dissertation proposal to and receive the approval of all members of their advisory committees. The principal academic advisor of a Ph.D. candidate will direct the research and supervise the writing of the dissertation while other members of the committee may read preliminary drafts and suggest changes where appropriate. In all cases the dissertation must be read and approved by the candidate's advisor as first reader while another member of the committee must serve as second.
When candidates are ready to have the final drafts of their dissertations printed, they should obtain from the Graduate Faculty office a set of University of Pennsylvania rules governing the form in which dissertations are submitted. This is very important, for that office will refuse to accept theses with too-narrow margins, incorrect pagination, or other flaws, thus delaying the awarding of Ph.D. degrees. Doctoral candidates in the final stages of their dissertation writing should also be sure to consult the Graduate Division of the School for Arts & Sciences website in order to know the various deadlines for applying for the degree, submitting finished dissertations to their first and second readers for their approval, and depositing the completed thesis at the Graduate Faculty office. Either the candidate in person or his/her advisor should "deposit" the dissertation. It is not the responsibility of the Graduate Chair, any other faculty member, or the department administrative staff to do this.
The doctoral dissertation must be submitted and accepted no later than six calendar years after the preliminary examination was passed, ideally within two or three years. A candidate may with the approval of the advisory committee petition the Graduate Committee for an extension of one or two years. Should the dissertation not be submitted and accepted within eight years after passing the doctoral examination, however, the student will be dropped from Ph.D. candidacy.
The Dissertation Defense (PDF) provides an opportunity for public presentation and recognition of completed doctoral work and for formal discussion and evaluation of the dissertation.
Fellowships and Financial Aid
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. 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. To be assured of receiving full consideration for University fellowships and scholarships, applicants should be sure that their applications and supporting documents (transcripts, letters of recommendation, and Graduate Record Examination scores) are received no later than December 15 of the application year. Applicants should file their applications and supporting material as early as possible to allow time for the most careful consideration.
Since awards are made for the purpose of accelerating study toward advanced degrees, all fellows must register for full-time programs (i.e., four course units per term for credit in the first year, three in the second and third years) unless they have already completed the courses necessary for their degrees, in which case the awardee then registers for dissertation tuition. All award holders must maintain good academic standing according to the standards set by the individual graduate group, and a grade average of B+ or better. The amount of an award is subject to possible adjustment in the event that the recipient also receives another fellowship award.
Beyond the fellowship package awarded at acceptance, a variety of other fellowships are available through the department and the University to assist in summer research, provide an extra dissertation writing year, allow for further language study, or otherwise expand opportunities for doctoral study. Competition for these fellowships is generally announced by email to the graduate student listserve.
Teaching and Research Fellowships
Research fellowships are also available to eligible graduate students. In addition, the Department of History often assigns graduate students to teach College of General Studies (CGS) evening offerings or Summer Session courses. Those wishing to be considered for these positions should contact the undergraduate chair. For CGS assignments in particular, inquire early, since course offerings are determined far ahead of time. Advanced graduate students are also eligible to apply for teaching positions through the Critical Writing Program and the Communication within the Curriculum Program.
Need-based Financial Assistance
Educational loans and Federal Work-Study Grants may be available for students with financial need. Contact Penn Student Financial Services for applications and information (215 898.1988).
Policy on External Fellowships
Applicants and students with outstanding academic records are strongly urged to apply for external fellowships in their fields of interest. There are numerous prestigious fellowships, many of which are more lucrative than institutional awards. For ready access to the vast resources on funding opportunities available on the internet, see Penn Career Services web site. The Department of History also maintains a file of current fellowship opportunities and announces them by email to the graduate student listserve.
Students receiving an award from a source external to the University are expected to accept the award and notify the graduate group chair. The University does not permit fellowship packages simply to be added together. When a student has received offers of both an external and a University fellowship, the University award is adjusted (usually by postponement) to assure that the student's efforts are rewarded.
Evaluation and Certification of the English Fluency of Graduate Teaching Assistants
Pursuant to the requirements of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's English Fluency in Higher Education Act, the University requires that all personnel, including graduate teaching assistants, who have instructional contact with undergraduates (which includes teaching, lecturing, tutoring, laboratory instruction, leading recitation or discussion sections, holding office hours, etc.) be evaluated and certified as fluent in the use of the English language in the classroom before undertaking any instructional duties involving undergraduates. Prospective graduate teaching assistants with questions regarding the evaluation or certification of their English fluency in the classroom should consult with their department or graduate group chairperson, or the English Language Programs staff (21 Bennett Hall, 215 898.8681).
Extracurricular Activities
All graduate students in history are urged to become active members of Clio: The History Graduate Student Group. In addition to social gatherings, the Club arranges lectures and discussions of historical topics, pedagogical issues, and professional development. Its members are represented on the Graduate Committee and play an important role in suggesting and implementing constructive changes in the Graduate History program.
A variety of interdisciplinary seminars are available at the University for faculty and graduate students. Students should consult with their advisors about seminars that will be particularly useful to them.
Placement
Most graduate students in History expect to pursue professional careers as teachers and academics, and the University of Pennsylvania has been very competitive in helping its newly-minted History Ph.D.s realize this ambition. Realism demands that graduate students should be alert to other career possibilities--archival and library work, journalism, government service, museum appointments, business, consulting, etc.-- and should consider tailoring their graduate study to give themselves valuable flexibility. Similarly, versatility in teaching a wide range of courses can be very useful in securing entry-level teaching positions.
In September of the year they expect to enter the job market, Ph.D. students establish a credentials file (including a transcript and letters of reference) at the University Placement Service. At the same time, job seekers should consult regularly with the departmental placement officer -- a faculty member who receives release time to assist in job searches -- and follow online job listings.
When a job opening is announced in a candidate's area of specialization, the student should direct the Placement Service to send a copy of the file to the hiring institution. A personal letter of application, vita, and dissertation abstract should also be sent under separate cover. The primary objective is for the job candidate to secure an interview at the annual meeting of the American Historical Association, which is currently held during the first week of January. This is extremely important: almost all tenure-track academic positions in History are ultimately filled by someone who was originally interviewed at the AHA convention. On the other hand, although many jobs are advertised at this meeting, it is not usually very productive to attend this convention for employment purposes unless specific job interviews have been arranged in advance. Opportunities in one-year positions, usually to fill in for a faculty member on leave, generally develop later in the spring.
A Graduate Career
What follows is a year-by-year normative description of what the Graduate Group in History expects Ph.D. candidates to accomplish during their first three years at the University of Pennsylvania. The fourth and fifth years are devoted to dissertation research and writing, and application for post-doctoral fellowships and/or teaching and research positions. All Ph.D. students will be required to take History 700 (the first-year proseminar); at least one introductory colloquium or independent study in the region of specialization; and, during the second year, one course with a significant research component (such as a research seminar or a research-oriented independent study). In addition, all students must participate in the Summer Dissertation Proposal Workshop, ordinarily in the summer after their second year of study.
Important supplements to regular courses include special lectures and pre-circulated papers offered by History (for example, in the Annenberg lectures series) and other departments. These are announced to the graduate student listserve. Ph.D. students are expected to attend talks relevant to their areas of interest. The wealth of interdisciplinary seminars available at Penn also provides exciting new approaches to doing history. Students will find especially interesting the seminars on the History of Material Texts, Atlantic Studies, Ethnohistory, Global Gender Forum, Women in Islamic Law, Urban Studies, and Economic History. Consult the list of centers for additional interdisciplinary seminars. Students should ask their advisors for assistance in getting onto the appropriate listserves for these seminars.
First Year
All full-time students will take History 700 and at least two other substantive courses during each semester of their first year of graduate study. The fourth course in each term may, with the advisor's approval, be an ungraded independent study (History 999). By the end of the first academic year of study, all full-time first year Ph.D. candidates should have accumulated a total of eight course units.
Second Year
Full-time students will take three courses during each term of their second year of graduate study, one of which may be a 999. One course must include a significant research component, resulting in an article-length research paper. One course each term may be an ungraded independent study (History 999) with the approval of the student's advisor. In addition, students will gain valuable experience as teaching assistants. TAs, by the terms of their fellowships, may take no more than three credit units each semester. They are entitled to a seventh credit unit of tuition for the immediately following summer session. By the end of the second year all of their technical competency requirements, and most of their field requirements should have been met. Those who entered the Penn Ph.D. program with M.A. degrees from other institutions should have completed all course requirements for the Ph.D. by the end of their second year of study here.
At the end of their second year (first year for students with M.A. degrees from other institutions) students will participate in the Summer Dissertation Proposal Workshop (described above).
Third Year
Ph.D. candidates with M.A. degrees from other institutions and who completed their course requirements in the second year will have undergone their Ph.D. preliminary examinations at the end of that year, so that the summer following may be devoted to dissertation research. All other full-time students may take up to three graded courses per semester, so that by the end of their third year of study, they will be prepared for their prelims and ready to conduct dissertation research in their area of specialization.
Graduate Committee Policies and Procedures
1. Composition
The Graduate Committee will consist of the Graduate Chair and six other faculty members, each appointed for a term of three years; terms will be staggered if possible so that two new appointments are made each year. Appointments are made by the Graduate Chair in consultation with the Committee. The Committee membership will represent the Department's various areas of interest.
Two graduate students, chosen by Clio: The History Graduate Student Group, will serve on the committee. One of these students should be in the second year, the other ABD. The graduate student representatives on the Committee will have the same rights and responsibilities as the faculty members in deliberations on all matters concerning educational policy. They will not participate in deliberations on matters related to particular students (e.g., admissions and financial aid, or student academic reviews).
2. Admission
The Graduate Committee, in consultation with the Graduate Dean, determines the number of qualified students to be admitted into the M.A. and Ph.D. programs. The Committee will determine the qualifications of applicants on the basis of their grade point average, GRE scores, specific training in history, personal statements of professional interests, writing samples, and references. In all cases where an applicant indicates a desire to work in a specific area represented on the Graduate Group Faculty, the professors in this field must approve the applicant's admission before the student is accepted. No student -- however well qualified -- will be admitted if the Graduate Committee judges that the candidate's needs cannot be met by the Graduate Group.
3. Financial Aid Procedures for Continuing Students
Fellowships for continuing graduate students are awarded solely on the basis of each student's academic performance. Recipients must be in good academic standing and their records clear of incompletes from the previous academic year. Recommendations for renewal of fellowships are made by the Graduate Committee, guided by advisory committee reports, advisors' letters to students, course evaluations, and the results of the Qualifying Evaluation and Preliminary Examination. The Committee will normally not override the recommendations of those faculty members most familiar with the student's work.
Ph.D. candidates in good academic standing generally receive a total of four or five years of support by the Department (depending on whether the student entered with the MA in history or not), so long as present levels of funding for graduate education are maintained by the University. These need not be chronologically continuous. Thus, a student resourceful enough to secure outside funding in the fourth year of study, for example, remains eligible for departmental funding in the fifth year of study.
4. Grievance Procedures
Students who feel that they have been the victims of violations of the department's regular procedures may file a formal written grievance with the Graduate Chair, who will then convene a joint meeting of the Graduate Committee, the aggrieved student, the student's advisory committee, the senior representative of Clio: The History Graduate Student Group (at the aggrieved student's discretion), and the department chair in order to arrive at a mutually satisfactory resolution of the complaint. In the event of failure, the matter will, at the discretion of the student, be referred for decision to the Dean for Graduate Studies and/or the University Ombudsman.
5. Change in Policies and Procedures
The Graduate Committee will periodically review its policies and procedures and recommend any necessary substantive changes to the departmental faculty. Changes will take effect if the faculty approve them and shall go into effect in the September following their approval.
M.A. Degree in History
The M.A. in History is designed for students with specific objectives such as community college or secondary school teaching, journalism, archival administration, library or public sector work, personal gratification, etc -- students who normally neither require nor desire a Ph.D. degree. For students completing the M.A. degree, admission to the Ph.D. program will be considered on the same basis as that of new applicants. There is normally no funding for M.A. candidates.
The Graduate Committee provides a program for M.A. candidates distinct from the Ph.D. program. Master's candidates are required to do the following:
- Complete a minimum of eight courses, which must include at least two 600-level courses and four additional graduate courses in the Department of History or other departments appropriate to their career objectives.
- Write a Master's thesis oriented to their specific skills and career plans.
The University of Pennsylvania requires no formal certification of language skills for the M.A., degree; however, certain technical competency requirements (including language) may be appropriate in the M.A. programs of particular students. In such cases they will be determined by the candidate in consultation with his/her academic advisor.
Special Resources, Research Facilities, and Programs
There are many local collections of records in the city of Philadelphia and its environs that afford fine opportunities for original research. In addition, resources for historical study at the University of Pennsylvania stretch far beyond the Department. In seeking courses and advice, History graduate students should look beyond the confines of the Department, and in many instances faculty from allied areas of interest should be involved in preparation for the secondary field in the preliminary examinations.
Graduate students in History at Penn will also find it useful to become active in a variety of other special history programs, research centers, forums, and institutes at Penn. Many of these centers offer special lectures, courses, and occasionally aid packages that are of interest to History graduate students.
Graduate students have 24-hour access to a graduate student lounge and computer lab in College Hall.
Graduate Division Regulations
Students should consult The Graduate Division of the School of Arts & Sciences for additional guidelines to M.A. and Ph.D. studies.
*All policies and procedures are subject to change by the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences, and the Graduate Committee of the Department of History.
