MA Requirements

The MA program at the University of Oklahoma introduces students to the expectations and opportunities of the history discipline. Challenging them to excel, MA students participate in seminars with PhD students while honing their research, writing, and analytical skills in a vibrant intellectual community.

The department of history offers two programs leading to the M.A. degree. A student planning to pursue doctoral work will take the thesis program. The non-thesis program is primarily for the student--for example, a secondary school teacher--who is not planning to pursue history graduate work beyond the master's level. Completion of the thesis program does not automatically qualify a student for admission into OU’s PhD program.

ENROLLMENT AND REGISTRATION
ADVISING
TIME TO DEGREE 
THESIS PROGRAM
NON-THESIS PROGRAM
LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT
FORMS

ENROLLMENT AND REGISTRATION

Specific courses, course numbers, course descriptions, and special offerings will be emailed to the graduate students by the Graduate Program Administrator (Janie Adkins) each semester prior to enrollment for the following semester. For tuition waivers, qualifying students must be enrolled in a minimum of 5 credit hours to qualify unless it is their final semester, and they are defending. Students must enroll in their own courses but require special permission for individual courses through Ms. Adkins. Students must include their OU ID number and the correct course numbers/section numbers for the corresponding course desired. Once they are granted permission, students must enroll in courses as instructed by email.

If a student is a GA enrolling in less than 5 hours your final semester, they must complete A Graduate Assistant Final Semester Declaration online form. This allows qualifying graduate assistants to declare their final semester and enroll in fewer than 5 hours and still be considered full-time for the purpose of maintaining eligibility for a tuition waiver and FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) tax exemption. This helps students avoid paying fees for coursework beyond the hours needed for completion of their degree.

ADVISING

Provisional Advisor

In a student’s first year, a member of the graduate committee will serve as their provisional advisor. The student will consult with the Director of Graduate Studies to determine who should serve in this role. The provisional advisor will advise the student about program requirements, coursework, and research plans and formally evaluate the student’s progress in the program at the end of the spring semester of their first year.

MA Advisor

We strongly recommend that the student consult with the Director of Graduate Studies to determine who the student would like to ask to serve as their MA advisor before Spring Vacation in their second semester to insure that the student and the advisor can develop a reasonable research strategy. The advisor must agree to serve as the student’s advisor.

Once selected, the MA adviser will meet with the student every semester to monitor academic process and to help select courses. The adviser will formally evaluate the student’s progress in the program at the end of each spring semester, including an assessment of grades and other developments. The Graduate College requires that the graduate student receive a copy of this evaluation no later than two weeks after the end of the spring semester. The Graduate Administrator will prepare the template and distribute it to advisors by March 1. Other faculty members who teach the student also may prepare evaluations, with copies going to the student, the advisor, and the Graduate Studies Committee.

The MA advisor will guide the student through the thesis process if they have chosen this option, or through the written examination process if they have chosen the non-thesis program.
 

TIME TO DEGREE

The department expects students to complete the master’s degree within two years. To meet Graduate College regulations, the student must complete all work for the M.A. degree within 5 calendar years after enrollment in the graduate program.

THESIS PROGRAM

Coursework

Students must complete 30 hours of graduate work, earning at least a 3.0 (B) average. M.A. students must take at least 5 graduate seminars (3 hours each) for a total of 15 hours. Americanist MA students should take at least one pre-1865 U.S. history seminar and one post-1865 seminar. Latin Americanist MA students should take both a colonial-era and republican-era seminar when these are offered. In addition, each student must take 9 hours of other coursework (upper-division courses for MA credit or directed readings). Of these 24 hours (15 + 9), 12 credits, or 4 courses, must be in a major field of study, 1 course should be in a research seminar when possible, and 9 credits, or 3 courses, in a comparative field can be in elective courses or seminars. All seminars and coursework are chosen in consultation with the student’s adviser.

During their first semester, every incoming MA student also must enroll in the one-hour HIST 5001: Navigating the Historical Profession. This course does not count as one of the required seminars or other graduate-level courses.

HIST5050, Directed Reading Courses

These are letter graded. The sections of 5050 can have a title besides Directed Readings, if needed. The student and the major professor will need to agree to one and let Ms. Adkins know. (The name of the course cannot be longer than 27 characters, including spaces, and punctuation. The course name must be approved by classroom management). Students MUST obtain permission by email from their professor and send the verification to Ms. Adkins prior to enrollment.

HIST5110, 5210, 5310, 5410, and 5510

These courses can correspond with an undergraduate class. Students must attend the classes on the days and times indicated on the corresponding undergraduate class and complete the extra assignments given to earn the graduate credit. They must forward a copy of the approval of the professor before Ms. Adkins can give them permission to enroll. These are not Directed Readings Courses. These courses are letter graded.

HIST5980, MA Thesis Hours

Students must take a minimum of 5 thesis hours. Once students enroll in thesis hours, they must be continuously enrolled until they defend. If students have previously enrolled in Thesis hours, they do not need permission to enroll again. Students should enroll in a minimum of 3 thesis hours during the semester in which the thesis is defended. The Graduate Committee recommends that students take at least 2 thesis hours in the semester before the semester that they plan to defend.

If a MA student has turned in her/his Program of Study, they must make sure that their enrollment matches what they submitted on their Program of Study. M.A. students enroll in 5000 series numbered courses, unless they are enrolling in a graduate seminar (course numbers vary by semester).

Thesis

The student must complete a satisfactory thesis, working closely with their MA adviser in selecting a topic, crafting a feasible research agenda, identifying pertinent historical literature, and completing the thesis. While it is not required, the student may share an informal, brief proposal outlining these plans with their MA adviser and/or thesis committee members before the end of the second semester.

The student and adviser select two other professors to serve on the thesis committee. The majority of the committee must be members of the Department of History. This selection should happen one year before the defense is expected to taking place. It is also anticipated that the graduate student will meet will all professors on their committee prior to the defense.

The student must complete a satisfactory thesis, working closely with their adviser. The culminating project of their degree program, the MA thesis examines an original topic, outlines at least one important research question, and demonstrates the student’s mastery of research methods, historiography, and analytical writing. The thesis should make an original argument grounded in primary sources and secondary sources and include both footnotes and a separate bibliography. The minimum length for a thesis is generally 60 pages (or approximately 15,000 words).

Oral Examination

The student schedules an oral examination with the members of their thesis committee. Administered by the thesis committee and usually lasting two hours, the examination addresses the thesis and graduate course work.

Open Access

Per Graduate College rules, theses produced at the University of Oklahoma will be made available at OU’s Open Access site. Students have the option of deferring (embargoing) publication for three years. If you plan to pursue publication and/or an academic job, you will probably want to exercise the embargo option. Make sure you discuss this option with your MA adviser and/or the Director of Graduate Studies before your oral examination. If you wish to embargo your thesis, please choose that option on the “Request for Authority to Defend” form.
 

NON-THESIS MA PROGRAM

Coursework

Completion of the non-thesis program requires 34 hours of coursework with at least a 3.0 (B) average. The student must take at least 5 graduate seminars (3 hours each), for a total of 15 hours.

The student must take a minimum of 18 credit hours (6 courses) in a major field and a minimum of 9 credit hours (3 courses) in a comparative field. When possible, one seminar should be a research seminar. Students must take 3 or 4 courses, or 9-12 credit hours, in a minor or comparative field. All remaining hours can be graduate-level elective courses. At least one elective course (for 3 credit hours) should be in a cognate field (outside the department). There could be more than one if the student elects to take the option of fewer courses in the major or comparative fields.

During their first semester, every incoming MA student also must enroll in the one-hour HIST 5001: Navigating the Historical Profession. This course does not count as one of the required seminars or other graduate-level courses.

The student's MA adviser may allow as many as 9 credit hours toward the degree for work in a cognate field, that is, any degree-granting program at the university that augments the program of study.

Written Examination

All non-thesis students must pass a 4-hour written examination over their major and comparative fields prepared by the 3 members of the student’s MA committee. The exam will test the candidate’s command of all coursework taken in the MA program. The Graduate Studies Committee, working with the Graduate Administrator in the department, will set the date to take the exams. The student should consult with each member of their committee to receive updated reading lists and other materials to prepare for the exams. The committee will grade the overall performance as "pass," "marginal pass," or "fail."

Students who decide that they would like to enter the Ph.D. program in history at the University of Oklahoma after completing the non-thesis M.A. program must complete the requirements for the thesis program before beginning study toward a Ph.D.
 

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT

While there is no formal language requirement for the MA program, a student can be required to demonstrate a reading competency in a language other than English if the student’s MA adviser determines it is necessary. In those cases, competency will be evaluated in the same manner as it is for PhD students (see PhD requirements)

FORMS

When Ms. Adkins contacts you to complete these forms or for any reason, it is essential that you respond to her promptly.