Graduate Field
History
Program Description
To encourage flexibility, general requirements are kept to a minimum. These include: taking seven graduate-level seminars (of either 3 or 4 credits) including 7090, Introduction to the Graduate Study of History; demonstrate proficiency in one or two languages other than English (see below); completing the Graduate School’s residence requirement of 6 semesters of full-time study at a satisfactory level of accomplishment; teaching for at least one semester (normally as a teaching assistant); passing the “Q” examination in the second semester of study; completing one research paper by the end of the second year; the written and oral “Admission to Candidacy” examination after completion of formal study (the “A” exam); turn in an approved dissertation prospectus within three months of the “A” exam; and completing the doctoral dissertation and defending it in a final examination.
For students in African, English/British, and American history, proficiency must be demonstrated in one foreign language before a Ph.D. candidate is eligible for the Examination for Admission to Candidacy (“A” exam). Students in all other fields are required to demonstrate competence in at least two foreign languages. Language proficiency is determined at the discretion of the special committee and in consultation with the DGS. The general minimal expectation is that students be able to pass a non-introductory placement test in the relevant foreign languages(s), but depending on the student’s research, much higher levels of proficiency will be expected. Substitutions for the foreign language requirement may be petitioned.
Incoming Ph.D. students who hold a master’s degree from another university must still complete the requirements listed above. No formal transfer credit is given, but the special committee normally takes previous graduate work in history into account, which may speed the student’s regress toward the doctorate.
Concentrations
- African history
- American history
- American studies (minor)
- Ancient Greek history
- Ancient history
- Ancient Roman history
- Early modern European history
- English history
- French history
- German history
- History of science
- Korean history
- Latin American history
- Medieval Chinese history
- Medieval history
- Modern Chinese history
- Modern European history
- Modern Japanese history
- Modern Middle Eastern history
- Premodern Islamic history
- Premodern Japanese history
- Renaissance history
- Russian history
- South Asian history
- Southeast Asian history
Program Information
- Instruction Mode: In Person
- Location: Ithaca, NY
Program Requirements
- Minimum Semesters for Degree: 6
Graduate School Milestones
- Responsible Conduct of Research Training: Required
- Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID): Required
- Student Progress Reviews (SPR) begin: Second Year
- Examination for admission to candidacy (A Exam): Spring of third year
- Defense of Dissertation (B Exam): By the end of the seventh year
Field Specific Milestones
- Qualifying Examination (Q Exam): Spring of first year
- Field progress review conducted every year
- One semester teaching assistantship required
Course Requirements
Additional course requirements may be set by the student’s Special Committee. Program specific requirements that apply to all students are included below.
- HIST 7090 Introduction to the Graduate Study of History, taken in the first semester
University Graduation Requirements
Requirements for All Students
In order to receive a Cornell degree, a student must satisfy academic and non-academic requirements.
Academic Requirements
A student’s college determines degree requirements such as residency, number of credits, distribution of credits, and grade averages. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the specific major, degree, distribution, college, and graduation requirements for completing their chosen program of study. See the individual requirements listed by each college or school or contact the college registrar’s office for more information.
Non-academic Requirements
Conduct Matters. Students must satisfy any outstanding sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed or agreed to under the Student Code of Conduct (Code) or Policy 6.4. Where a formal complaint under the Code or Policy 6.4 is pending, the University will withhold awarding a degree otherwise earned until the adjudication process set forth in those procedures is complete, including the satisfaction of any sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed.
Financial Obligations. Outstanding financial obligations will not impact the awarding of a degree otherwise earned or a student’s ability to access their official transcript. However, the University may withhold issuing a diploma until any outstanding financial obligations owing to the University are satisfied.
Learning Outcomes
When students complete the Ph.D., they should be able to:
- Make an original and substantial contribution to the discipline, producing publishable scholarship.
- Have a broad knowledge of theory and research across three concentrations/sub-fields (which may include one minor concentration from another discipline outside history).
- Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of one major historical concentration/subfield.
- Communicate research findings effectively in written and in spoken presentations.
- Demonstrate effective skills in undergraduate teaching.
- Uphold professional and ethical standards in the discipline.
