About PhD Program,
The PhD is a research degree. The principal objective of graduate training concerns the development of professional skills in historical research, and the principal source of professional employment for a holder of the PhD in history is teaching. The department seeks to prepare doctoral students for research and teaching, but we are also dedicated to preparing students for a variety of other careers, including public history and archival management.
The program for the Ph.D. degree provides a framework within which students can acquire the following training and experience: (1) broad exposure to a general area of interest and to its current literature and controversies; (2) more intense training in the special field in which the student intends to conduct research and do his or her primary teaching; (3) a sound but more limited introduction to a second field; (4) training in research procedures and methods; (5) appropriate linguistic competence; and (6) the completion of a dissertation judged to be a significant piece of historical research and writing.
PhD Program Degree Eligibility with GPA,
Ph.D. students must complete 72 points of course work (equivalent to 18 4-point courses). In each of the first three years, students must complete 24 points of course work, by August 15 at the latest. Students must maintain a GPA of 3.5 or above. All students must take the course Approaches to Historical Research and Writing I, HIST-GA 3603, as well as their major area Literature of the Field course in their first year. The following major fields are available: Africa, African Diaspora, Atlantic World, East Asia, Medieval Europe, Early Modern Europe, Modern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, South Asia, and the United States. In addition, students must complete a research seminar and research paper by May 15th of the first year.
Each doctoral student must designate a major field, within which the subject of the student’s dissertation falls and presumably the field in which the student expects to be principally involved as a writer and teacher. Major fields should be broad enough so that they can prepare students to teach an upper-level undergraduate course or a graduate colloquium, but narrow enough so that students can develop professional competence in a body of literature.
PhD Funding Coverage,
History doctoral students receive full funding support for five years (four for students entering with an M.A. who choose to count those credits) through the Henry M. MacCracken Program. The MacCracken Program is a fellowship that covers tuition, registration, service fees for your degree program, student health insurance, and a 9-month stipend towards expenses. For the 2022-2023 academic year, the MacCracken amount is $31,070. In addition, students receive summer funding as outlined in their admissions offer letter.
The Graduate School views teaching as a vital part of any doctoral degree. It has resonance for a student’s intellectual development and professional preparation, especially for students pursuing academic careers or indeed, any career in which you must clarify ideas and speak about them persuasively. If you choose to participate in our teaching program, you will be compensated for each teaching opportunity into which you enter. This compensation is in addition to your MacCracken award.
Application Requirement,
- Online Application
- $110 Application Fee
- Statement of Purpose (1-2 pages double-spaced)
- Resume or CV
- 3 Letters of Recommendation
- Academic Transcripts (please note, GSAS prefers that you scan a copy of your official transcript and upload it into your online application. But before matriculating all students must submit official transcripts in hard copy form)
- Official test scores for the TOEFL if the applicant is not a native English speaker (NYU GSAS code: 2596. Department code closest to your field of study or 99.)
- Writing Sample (all programs exceptArchives and Public History): An academic writing sample is required and should not exceed 35 pages double-spaced.
- Writing Sample (Archives and Public History): An academic writing sample is required. It may consist of a published article, an academic paper, and archival finding aid, or some other appropriate item and should not exceed 35 double-spaced pages.
Application Deadline,
Dec 15, 2024
Application Fee,
- $110 Application Fee
