The Doctoral Program in History focuses on the study of religion and culture in the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Great Britain. The department accepts 3-4 highly qualified students per year who have interests in these areas, as well as in other areas supported by faculty. Additional departmental strengths include women’s and gender history, military history, and the history of race and ethnicity. Baylor History prioritizes the professional development of our students, including offering a pedagogy methods and practice course. Our goal is to produce not only top scholars but also top teachers. Faculty excellence in scholarship and teaching combined with our commitment to faith manifests in our focus on forming historians as whole people who thoughtfully bring their own ethical commitments to their vocations. We are able to fully fund our PhD students, including full tuition and competitive stipends.

Admission Requirements

1. GPA predictive of success in the program
2. Three Letters of Recommendation
3. Personal Statement outlining why the student wants to study in the Ph.D. program, what research and teaching interests the student intends to pursue, and which faculty he or she intends to have as a mentor and eventual dissertation advisor
4. Brief writing sample—undergraduate or master’s-level paper at least fifteen pages in length
5. Transcripts
6. Interview with proposed major professor before admissions deadline is recommended

These minimum requirements do not ensure that an applicant will be accepted into the program. The graduate committee will consider each applicant individually in light of several factors including the student’s academic preparation, proposed area of interest and suitable faculty mentor willing to take that student, the applicant’s recommendation letters, university funding and availability of financial support, and the quality of the applicant pool in a given year.

Requirements for a PhD in History

Students Entering with a Bachelor's Degree

Students without a prior master's complete requirements for the non-thesis track of the MA in History on the way to completing the PhD.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Required Courses
HIS 5369	The Historian's Craft	3
HIS 5370	Advanced Graduate Research and Writing	3
HIS 5391	History Pedagogy	3
Electives
39 hrs. of graduate HIS electives		39
6 hrs. of additional electives in HIS or related areas 1		6
Exam Preparation
HIS 6V85	Preliminary Readings	6
Dissertation
HIS 6V99	Dissertation	12
Additional Requirements
Comprehensive Exam
Intermediate proficiency in a modern language 2
Total Hours		72

Students Entering with a Master's Degree

Note: A petition must be submitted to the graduate school to assign appropriate students to this shortened track.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Required Courses
HIS 5369	The Historian's Craft	3
HIS 5370	Advanced Graduate Research and Writing	3
HIS 5391	History Pedagogy	3
Electives
24 hrs. of graduate HIS electives		24
6 hrs. of additional electives in HIS or related areas 1		6
Exam Preparation
HIS 6V85	Preliminary Readings	6
Dissertation
HIS 6V99	Dissertation	12
Additional Requirements
Comprehensive Exam
Intermediate proficiency in a modern language 2
Total Hours		57

¹

Students may take up to 6 hrs. in a related department, subject to GPD approval.

²

Intermediate proficiency may be demonstrated by one of the methods listed in the Specific Degree Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree.

Additional Information about PhD Sequence and Requirements

Students are expected to spend at least 3 years in residence (minimum on-campus time).

Coursework

All entering PhD students will be required to take HIS 5369 The Historian's Craft and HIS 5370 Advanced Graduate Research and Writing during their first year. They must also complete HIS 5391 History Pedagogy in their first or second year.

Students must write at least 3 research papers as part of coursework.

Length of course work differs for students entering with a master's degree vs. bachelor's degree.  (See course requirements above.)

Preliminary Exam     

Following course work, students will enroll in 6 hours of HIS 6V85 Preliminary Readings. Students will develop three prelim reading lists in consultation with a professor on the student’s reading list committee. The lists should comprise the following fields:

• Primary Field: approximately 125 books
  • geography and time period in which student's research concentrates
• Dissertation Field: approximately 125 books
  • topical field within the primary field in which the student anticipates their dissertation work
• Outside Field: approximately 50 books
  • must be in different area of the world than student’s primary field, subject to GPD approval

Dissertation                      

The capstone of the PhD degree is the dissertation.  Students will enroll in a total of 12 hours of HIS 6V99 Dissertation as they write the dissertation.  The dissertation must make an original scholarly contribution to the student’s chosen area of study. The student will be required to orally defend the written dissertation to a dissertation committee composed in accordance with Graduate School regulations.