HISTORY (MA)
Prepare for the future by engaging with the past
Earn your master’s degree in History by exploring the breadth and depth of history with an emphasis on historiography. Historiography looks at how different scholars have approached a topic, what sources and methods they used to explore it, if there are any points of contention and how it has been viewed over time.
Master historical content, while learning
- The multiple levels of history
- How history has been communicated
- Skills to analyze historical argument
- Professional development skills
Courses are offered on weekday evenings at the Lincoln Park Campus and the program can be completed in two years.
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Study in a city with a rich and storied past
Take in global history while studying from your Chicago classroom, where you have access to world-class museums, historical libraries and cultural archives. Explore in an urban environment, while studying ancient and modern civilizations. Use Chicago as your gateway to the world—take what you learn in the classroom and visit cultural icons and historic sites.
Application Deadlines
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. You may begin the program in any quarter.
Admission Requirements
Submit an online application, official transcripts, statement of purpose, writing sample, letters of recommendation and résumé or curriculum vitae.
Required Courses
You’ll take a total of 12 courses, three core courses and nine elective courses.
94%
of History graduates were employed, continuing their education or pursuing other goals within six months of graduation.
Earn your Master’s Degree in History with published faculty
Learn about race, gender, history and the law, African American History, Legal History, Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems, and Urban History from faculty experts like Assistant Professor and Director of Pre-Law Concentration and History of Law Minor Tera Eva Agyepong. She is the author of The Criminalization of Black Children: Race, Gender and Delinquency in Chicago’s Juvenile Justice System, 1899–1945 and her other scholarly articles have been published in the Journal of African American History, Gender & History, and Northwestern Journal of International Human Rights.
“This program gave me the opportunity to leave my career in business and fulfill my dream of studying history at an advanced level. Its varying geographic, thematic, and chronological emphases allowed me to crystallize my interests, become knowledgeable in the field, and enhance my familiarity with important works. My professors’ expertise and guidance further developed my analytical skills and capacity for solving historical problems creatively, which have prepared me to be successful in my current doctoral program.”
Elizaveta (MA ’19)
Alumni Network
Alumni who earn their master’s degree in History are working in a variety of fields, including teaching and research, business and law, archival and library work, public history and museum work, archaeology, journalism, public service and policy.
Scholarships & Aid
The History department offers two graduate fellowships. Learn more about the financial aid and scholarship opportunities available to you.
Admission Requirements
?The department of history incoming applications for the History MA program on a rolling basis. Students may begin the program in any quarter.
To be eligible for admission students must have a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution.
To apply for admission, please submit the following:
- A completed online application
- Official transcripts from all previous college course work
- Letter of application (500 word maximum). Please write a letter of application in which you address the following:
- Why you want to pursue an M.A. in history
- Why you want to study at DePaul University
- Anything else the evaluators should know about your qualifications that is not reflected elsewhere in the application
- Writing sample. An analytical paper of at least five pages in length that you wrote for an undergraduate or graduate history course OR an original essay (five pages) that analyzes a book written by an academic historian.
- Two letters of recommendation. The most useful letters are those written by professors with whom you have worked, preferably in a history class.
- All recommenders should address your writing abilities, analytical skills, motivation and readiness for graduate study, ability to do independent work, and ability to see a project through to completion.
- GRE scores (only required for applicants with a GPA lower than 3.3 in their undergraduate studies; institution code 1165)
How to Apply
Online applications can be submitted at go.depaul.edu/apply.
Transcripts and other required credentials should be mailed to:
The Office of Graduate Admission
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
DePaul University
2400 N. Sheffield Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614.
Application credentials (including official electronic transcripts) also can be emailed to the Office of Graduate Admission .
*Please make sure your legal name is on all submitted documents.
International Students
International students interested in applying should review the international graduate admission page for more information about credential evaluation and document submission, which can be found here: Graduate International Student Admission. For more information about the minimum TOEFL scores required, please contact the Office of Graduate Admission or at (773) 325-7315.
Please note the information provided is current as of February 2016 and is subject to change.
Learn more about Graduate Admission.
Degree Requirements
Course Requirements
The Core
Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
---|---|---|
HST 421 | THE HISTORICAL DISCIPLINE | 4 |
The Graduate Colloquia
All graduate students need to complete 12 courses (48 hours) of graduate work in order to complete the MA. HST 421 is required for all students. For those students who were conditionally admitted, HST 421 is a prerequisite for all 400-level history courses. In addition, students take eleven courses from the list of graduate colloquia. These colloquia share the programmatic emphasis of the curriculum with their emphasis on the historiographical aspects of their respective topic. Note that that every colloquium, when offered, has a subtitle which identifies the specific sub-topic to be addressed that particular quarter. (For example: HST 431: The New Deal. As long as the topics (as reflected in the subtitle) of any colloquium are different, students may take more than one of any of the above courses. In order to ensure that students realize the curricular goals of breadth of exposure to the historical discipline, however, in no case is a student to take more than four colloquia bearing the same number. Thus, at the minimum, students will take courses in at least three different areas (as defined by colloquia titles).
Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
---|---|---|
HST 422 | SEMINAR IN PRIMARY SOURCE ANALYSIS | 4 |
HST 431 | COLLOQUIUM IN AMERICAN HISTORY | 4 |
HST 432 | COLLOQUIUM IN LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY | 4 |
HST 433 | COLLOQUIUM IN AFRICAN HISTORY | 4 |
HST 434 | COLLOQUIUM IN ASIAN HISTORY | 4 |
HST 435 | COLLOQUIUM IN EUROPEAN HISTORY | 4 |
HST 436 | COLLOQUIUM IN ISLAMIC HISTORY | 4 |
HST 437 | COLLOQUIUM IN WORLD HISTORY | 4 |
HST 438 | COLLOQUIUM: SPECIAL TOPICS IN HISTORY | 4 |
With the permission of the Graduate Director, students may substitute up to eight quarter hours of Independent Study or Graduate Internship for two colloquia.
Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
---|---|---|
HST 492 | GRADUATE INTERNSHIP | 4 |
HST 497 | INDEPENDENT STUDY | 4-8 |
In addition, upon consultation with the Graduate Director and with his/her approval, students may count up to eight quarter hours from another DePaul graduate program toward their MA. Such courses would reduce the number of required colloquia by two.
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