University of Pittsburgh: Department of History

Graduate Program

PhD Program

The coursework portion of the PhD program should normally take two years beyond the MA. Admission is based on departmental approval, in the case of students who received an MA from the department, and on the decision of the Graduate Committee, in the case of students with an MA from another institution. The Department of History aims to provide broad training to students while encouraging expeditious fulfillment of PhD requirements. The University requires 48 credits of course work beyond the MA for the PhD. Major hurdles include passage of the preliminary exam for students with outside MAs; the PhD comprehensive examinations; and the doctoral overview.

Preliminary Examination

Students entering the Ph.D. program with an M.A. from another institution must sit a preliminary examination. This hour-long oral exam will take place in April at the end of the student’s first year in the program. The exam will cover two areas: coursework done by the student during that first year, and his/her plans fordissertation research (topic, relevant literatures, and possible sources). The student's advisor chairs this committee, plus two other faculty members including, where appropriate, one from outside the Department.

The committee will make a recommendation to the department on whether or not the student should be permitted to continue in the Ph.D. program. The candidate shall be informed of the committee’s judgment immediately after the exam, and a written report will be submitted within a week of the examination. That report will become part of the student’s graduate record after review by the student. This evaluation will be presented at the earliest opportunity to the department, which will vote on whether to approve or reject the committee’s report.

PhD Comprehensive Examinations

The PhD comprehensive exams mark the culmination of general professional training and preparation for teaching. Students will be required to take 9 additional credits in history seminars between the MA and the PhD comprehensive exams. All research tool requirements, determined by regional field (Europe, United States, Asia, and Latin America), must also be fulfilled before the PhD comprehensive exams.

The exam is divided into a written and oral component. The student will prepare with members of the graduate faculty for written exams in three subjects: a transnational/thematic field; a regional field (Europe, United States, Asia, Latin America); and a specialized/external field that is dissertation related. Students are expected to have prepared a maximum of 50 books (or their equivalent) each for the thematic and regional fields and a maximum of 40 books (or their equivalent) for the specialized/external field.

The examination for each field will take place on a separate day within a week; the questions on the exam will not be disclosed beforehand to the student; and the student will have three hours in which to write the examination on a computer provided by the department. The student will write on one question for each field, out of two or three questions posed. All three examiners will read the three exam essays and agree that the student may proceed to the oral examination. Read procedural issues for more details.

The oral examination will be a maximum of two hours in duration and take place no later than seven days after the submission of the final exam paper. The oral exam should focus on integrating the three fields covered in the written exam. The examiners may award Distinction, High Pass, Pass, or Fail in evaluating the student's performance. Students will be informed of the results of the examination immediately after the exam.

Doctoral Overview

The doctoral overview should follow quickly, no later than six months after the comprehensive exams. This is the final stage before entering formal PhD candidacy. In it, students work with their major advisor to select a thesis committee and to prepare a written prospectus of their proposed dissertation. This will be an essay of approximately 10 pages that describes the purpose, scope, significance, sources, and methods to be employed in the proposed dissertation. The overview is designed to help students improve their research plan by the committee that will ultimately evaluate whether or not the student should be awarded the PhD.

Students should form a thesis committee of four persons, one of whom must be from outside the Department of History. All members must belong to the graduate faculty. The members of the committee need not be identical to the members of the comprehensive exams. When the chair of the thesis committee (the student's major advisor) agrees that the student's prospectus can be presented for the overview, copies will be distributed to all members of the committee, and the graduate secretary will schedule the examination. The thesis committee may approve the prospectus or recommend changes and request a further overview before final approval.

Once the student has passed the doctoral overview and has been admitted to PhD candidacy, the student should meet once a year with the thesis committee to report on progress and receive suggestions/comments on the evolving research design. These annual reports from the student and the committee are required by the University and will form part of the student's academic record.

Defense of the Dissertation

The doctoral defense will be called when the student's thesis committee chair decides that the thesis is ready for a final defense. Students must be enrolled during the semester in which the defense is scheduled. The student is responsible for ensuring that the format of the manuscript conforms to the regulations of the University and Arts and Sciences, for paying certain fees, and for otherwise fulfilling the requirements for graduation.

The student will distribute copies of the thesis to committee members, and the graduate secretary will schedule the doctoral defense. The thesis committee will determine whether or not to approve the thesis and award the PhD. They should also advise the candidate on prospects for publication.