The Master of Arts degree in history may serve as a terminal degree or as a bridge to more advanced study. It is designed to accommodate both full- and part-time students. In addition to a complete daytime schedule, late afternoon and evening courses also are available.

Of the numerous excellent M.A. theses completed in recent years, the following are particularly good examples of the quality of research produced by our M.A. students:

• Ann-Marie Wambeke, "Faculty Confrontation and Consensus: The University of Michigan Teach-In and Its Aftermath."  Winner of OU's 2011 Outstanding Thesis Award. 


• Jennifer Laam, "Flirting With Power: Women and Political Identity in the Early Republic."  Winner of OU's 2009 Outstanding Thesis Award.


• Merry Ellen Scofield, "The Fatigues of His Table: The Politics of Presidential Dining During the Jefferson Administration," published in the Journal of the Early Republic 26:3 (Fall 2006): 449-469.

Admission

Admission to the Master of Arts program in history is selective. The department will consider applicants who hold a bachelor's degree in history from an accredited institution, although the department reserves the right to waive the requirement of a history degree for students with outstanding undergraduate records. In addition, the applicant's credentials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, must give evidence of academic distinction. Of the letters of recommendation, at least one should be from a current or former professor of the applicant.

The application materials also must include a detailed statement of purpose or justification for entering the graduate program and an academic writing sample (preferably a history research paper). A GPA of 3.5 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate history courses and a GPA of 3.2 in all undergraduate work will ordinarily be considered the minimum standards for admission.

Students of superior promise but with deficient preparation may be admitted on condition of completing additional undergraduate history courses or earning grades of 3.5 or above in each of the first two graduate history courses. The department reserves the right to waive any of its requirements in exceptional circumstances with the concurrence of the vice provost for Research and Graduate Study.

Students may be admitted at four different times: fall semester, winter semester, summer sessions I or II.