MA/PHD Program Descriptions
MA and PhD Program Descriptions
- Master of Arts in History
- Doctor of Philosphy in History
- Appendices: General Information
- Graduate Forms
- Graduate Program Brochure
Download a PDF version of the Graduate Handbook
MASTER OF ARTS IN HISTORY (30-39 hours)
Three courses of study are available to students enrolling in the MA in
History program: (1) General Option, (2) Thesis Option, and (3) Public History Option.
All students accepted into the MA program in History are assigned to a Supervising Professor [SP] or to a preliminary adviser who will offer advice in choosing a Supervising Professor. The Supervising Professor will advise the student in plotting a provisional Graduate Student Permanent Program Master’s Level and in fulfilling the requirements of the option the student has selected. One copy of this provisional Graduate Student Program shall be forwarded to the DGS, who shall place it in the student’s file. At the recommendation, or with the permission, of the Supervising Professor and the Director of Graduate Studies, students may change from one program option to another during the course of study.
Graduate Student Permanent Program (MA level): At the end of the second semester of residence or no later than after the successful completion of 12 hours of graduate course work, all MA candidates must meet again with the SP and the DGS to review their progress and to approve their Graduate Student Permanent Program Master’s Level. This Program form, available from the DGS or online http://www.wmich.edu/history/graduate, will identify courses to be taken by the student. This GS Permanent Program form will then be filed with the DGS and with the Graduate College and the Registrar. Thereafter an annual review of the student’s progress will be made by the departmental Graduate Studies Committee [GSC], in consultation with the Supervising Professor. Students may be called on to meet with the Committee as part of this review.
When the student has completed the course of study, and passed the MA Examination or defended the Thesis, the Graduate Student Permanent Program Master’s Level form shall be reviewed by the student, the Supervising Professor, and filed with the Registrar, the Supervising Professor, and the DGS (Department).
Minimum degree requirements for all Masters’ students are set out below. The Supervising Professor and GSC may recommend or require additional courses. Additional requirements are listed under the three options available.
Requirements for all M.A. candidates
Theory and Methodology: Historiography (HIST 601, 3 hours) is required of all students in the MA program. At least one course (over and above 601) in historical theory and methodology is required.
Readings and research course work. A minimum sequence of one reading course and research seminar at the graduate level is required of all MA candidates; additional sequences may be required by the Supervising Professor and Committee. Students may register more than once for the same umbrella readings course and research seminar, provided that the subject headings differ; students are encouraged to enroll in courses taught by various faculty members. As a guideline, reading courses focus on building bibliographic knowledge; a seminar is focused on the production of an original piece of research.
Course Levels: MA candidates are eligible to register for 5000, 6000, and some 7000 level courses. At the 6000 and 7000 levels, students are expected to be capable of original research, which may include research in languages other than English. Some 400-level courses, if taught by members of the Graduate Faculty, may be applied toward fulfillment of MA requirements with the prior written permission of the SP and the DGS.
Independent Study Courses (History 6200, 6500, 7100, 7120, 7350): Independent Study Courses are available to enhance students’ programs of study. They should be carefully planned and agreed on by the student, the instructor, who must be a member of the Graduate Faculty, and the student’s Supervising Professor. To register for these courses students obtain a form from the DGS and complete it with all required signatures. Copies of the form are distributed to the Department office, the instructor, the student’s file, and the student. The actual registration is done in the History Department office. Make every effort to register for these courses well before the semester or summer session begins.
Transfer credits: With the prior approval of the Supervising Professor and the DGS, courses taken outside the History Department may be applied to program. Up to six transfer credit hours from other universities may be applied to the M.A.
Incompletes: These are temporary grades intended to indicate that illness or other circumstances beyond the student’s control prevented completion of course requirements by the end of the semester or session. If the incomplete grade is not changed within one calendar year, it automatically becomes a failing grade. Graduate students should avoid incomplete grades except in cases of emergency. The accumulation of such grades can seriously impede progress in the graduate program. The Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Studies Committee carefully monitor the progress of students who accumulate two or more incompletes.
Annual Graduate Student Activities Report: All students enrolled in the MA program are required to submit by October 15 of each year an Annual Graduate Student Activities Report, following guidelines indicated on p. 11 of this handbook. The report shall include all relevant activities undertaken in the previous calendar year and will identify progress in the course of study outlined in the Graduate Student Permanent Program. In the case of funded students it should also include a report of academic and employment obligations in addition to those required by the award. The purpose of such reporting is to enable the Supervising Professor, the DGS and the GSC to better monitor funded students’ progress through the program and to facilitate timely completion of degrees. Two copies including the signed cover sheet shall be submitted--one copy to the students’ Supervising Professor and one to the Director of Graduate Studies for inclusion in the student’s permanent file.
Annual Review: The Graduate Studies Committee assesses the progress of each student annually. As part of its annual assessment of Students’ progress in the program, the Graduate Studies Committee reviews the student’s grades, Activities Report and teaching evaluations when appropriate. Students may be called on to meet with the Committee as part of this review.
General Option (33 Hours)
Language Requirements: The Supervising Professor and Examination Committee may require any student to demonstrate facility in a language appropriate to that student’s course of study. Students specializing in Medieval History are required to demonstrate facility in reading Latin or one apposite modern language.
MA Examination: Students in the General Option MA program must, at the conclusion of their studies, pass an MA examination on materials covered in their course work. This written examination may be taken only after the completion of at least 24 hours of course work and may, if the Examination Committee so mandates, be followed by an oral examination.
Examination Committee: The Examination Committee, to be formed in consultation with the Supervising Professor and the DGS, shall consist of at least three members of the Graduate Faculty; if appropriate to the student’s course of study, Graduate Faculty from outside the Department may be included. This Committee, chaired by the Supervising Professor, guides the student in preparing for the examination. Students should consult their Supervising Professors as early in their program as possible on the composition of this Committee. Final selection of the Examination Committee shall take place early in the second semester of residence and no later than at the completion of 15 hours of graduate course work. Once the Examination Committee has been formed, the student is responsible for filing with the DGS an MA Examination—Committee Form signed by all Committee Members. This form becomes part of the student’s permanent record.
Examination Registration: Registration is required for the MA Examination. Students may register for the examination after completing HIST 601, the readings/research seminar sequence, and at least 18 course hours applicable to the Master of Arts degree. Examination registration forms are available from the DGS and must also be initialed by each member of the examination committee, as well as by the DGS, who will, as part of the registration application, verify the student’s eligibility to sit the examination. Registration for the examination must be filed with the DGS and the Graduate Studies Committee at least one month prior to the date of the MA examinations. Computers are available for use but must be reserved in advance. Disks and blue books are provided by the department.
Examination: Examination questions are prepared by the Supervising Professor in collaboration with members of the Committee. Exams are usually composed of three sections, each containing a choice of questions. Three hours is the typical length of exams. All committee members evaluate the written examinations. The Chair of the Examination Committee shall provide results in writing to the student and to the DGS, usually within one week of the examination. At the committee’s discretion, an additional one-hour oral examination may be scheduled within thirty days of the written examination. Each examiner assigns a grade of high pass, pass, low pass, or fail. A single faculty evaluation of “fail” necessitates that the student retakes the entire examination. The examination may be retaken once; a second failure will result in dismissal from the program. The same evaluation system, and provision for repeating in the event of failure, applies to oral examinations as to written examinations. The Director of Graduate Studies Examination reports the results to the Graduate College and the Registrar.Thesis Option (30 Hours)
Foreign Language Requirement: For the MA thesis degree, proficiency in at least one foreign language must be demonstrated prior to filing a thesis prospectus. In consultation with the faculty in major field areas, the Supervising Professor sets the specific foreign language requirements each student must meet, and notifies the DGS, who records this requirement in the student’s file. Students choosing medieval history as their major field are required to demonstrate a reading ability in Latin and in one modern foreign language. In all cases in which more than one foreign language is required proficiency in one language muse be demonstrated by the end of the first year of graduate study.
Language proficiency is to be demonstrated by the attainment of a grade of B or better in a 2010 or 5010 course in the appropriate language department, or by a language/translation examination to be administered by that department. For those foreign languages not offered by WMU departments, language experts will be identified and asked to administer language/translation exams.
Course requirements:
Major Field (9-12 Hours): Major field designates a broad field of specialization developed around a sequence of lecture and readings courses and research seminars. At least two readings courses and at least one research seminar in that field are required. The Supervising Professor will advise the student in the selection of appropriate field courses and more.
Cognates: All MA candidates in the Thesis Option are required to take one graduate course on the theory of, or research in, an allied social science or humanities discipline: e.g., Anthropology, Sociology, Women’s Studies, English, Geography, Comparative Religion, Political Science, Economics or another discipline consonant with the student’s major field of study. Before registering for a course in another department to fulfill this requirement, students must obtain written authorization from the Supervising Professor and Director of Graduate Studies.
Thesis: (6 Hours) A thesis represents original research and a substantial investigation of a subject within the student’s major field of study. At the beginning of their second term, students should consult their Supervising Professors on the formation of a Thesis Committee. This Committee consists of a Chair (ordinarily the student’s Supervising Professor) and at least two other Graduate Faculty who have expertise in the major field or in related fields. If appropriate to the thesis subject, Graduate Faculty outside the department may be members of the Committee. Overall direction of the thesis lies with the Chair of the Thesis Committee. If the Supervising Professor is not to be the chair of the Thesis Committee, the supervisory role is ceded to the Chair of the Thesis Committee.
Thesis Prospectus. Once a thesis topic has been chosen in consultation with the Supervising Professor and the Thesis Committee, the student is required to submit a written thesis Prospectus. This shall be done by the end of the student’s second semester of residence (after successfully completing 15 graduate hours) or, at the latest and without exception, by midterm of the third semester of enrollment.
The Prospectus shall consist of a narrative and a bibliography. The narrative portion should be roughly three thousand words in length, and must include: a statement of the thesis; a survey of scholarly work on which this thesis will build; a description of the methodology to be followed; and a statement of the contribution the thesis is intended to make to scholarly research. The preliminary bibliography shall be created by the student in consultation with the Supervising Professor and Thesis Committee. The Prospectus shall be submitted in writing to members of the Thesis Committee, who may require changes. Once the Prospectus has been approved by all members of the Committee, the student is required to make an oral presentation of the proposal to the Committee; this presentation is to be announced to the Department at large and is open to all faculty and students. The Thesis Committee may request modifications at the conclusion of the presentation. At the end of a successful presentation, or acceptable revision, one copy of the Prospectus with the Thesis Prospectus Cover Sheet, indicating approval by the Committee, shall be attached to a copy of the Notice of Appointment to a Dissertation, Project, or Thesis Committee form of the College of Arts and Sciences. This form, which is initialed by all committee members, is forwarded to the DGS, who shall place one copy in the student’s permanent record, and forward one copy to the Graduate College. Filing the packet together with the Application for Permission to Elect (see below) indicates approval of the proposal by the Thesis Committee and permission for the student to register for the first time for HIST 7000. Failure to produce an acceptable Prospectus, failure to present the thesis Prospectus to the Department at the time specified, or failure to file this packet within the third semester of residence will result in the student’s transferal to the General Option track. Any appeal for re-admittance to the thesis option must be made in writing to the GSC, whose decision is final.
Thesis Registration: A student who’s Prospectus had been approved may register for HIST 700 MA Thesis. Permission to register for the thesis requires the submission of two forms: an Application for Permission to Elect form to be submitted to the Supervising Professor, the Departmental Chair, and the Graduate College; and a Registration Form for Graduate Individualized Courses, to be submitted to the DGS. One copy of these forms shall be placed in the student’s permanent file. Having once registered for the thesis, the student must re-register each fall and spring semester until the thesis has been completed, and must be registered for the semester in which the degree is awarded. Six and only six thesis hours count toward the degree.
See APPENDICES for important information on Thesis Mechanics and Human Subjects Institutional Review Board.
Thesis Defense: A final draft of the thesis must be submitted to and approved ay all members of the Thesis Committee before an oral defense may be scheduled. Any major changes requested by any Committee member must be incorporated into the thesis and accepted by all Committee members before a defense may be scheduled. Additional minor corrections may be requested at the conclusion of successful defense; corrected text shall then be submitted to the Committee Chair before recommendation to award the degree is forwarded to the Department. No defense may be scheduled, and no degree recommended, without the unanimous agreement of the Thesis Committee.
All thesis defenses shall be announced to the Department at least two weeks in advance of the date of the defense; all defenses are open to faculty and students within the department. All committee members must be present for the defense unless excused for compelling reasons by the Director of Graduate Studies. Successful defense of the thesis shall be noted on the Thesis Approval Form required by the Graduate College, one copy of which shall be deposited in the student’s permanent record. One copy of the final and approved thesis must be submitted to the Graduate College and one to the Department of History.
Thesis Rejection. Students who fail to produce a satisfactory thesis may apply course work successfully passed (expect HIST 7000) toward a General Option MA degree and will be required to sit for an MA examination. Students already admitted to the doctoral program who fail to produce an acceptable MA thesis will be dismissed from the doctoral program, but will be allowed to sit for an MA Examination for a General Option MA degree.
Thesis Awards: Theses are eligible for the Department’s Robert Russell Writing Award, presented annually. By February 1, students competing for this award must submit to the DGS one copy of the completed, approved thesis for consideration by the GSC.
Public History Option (39 Hours)
In addition to the general MA requirements listed above, MA candidates in Public History must take 3 hours and may take up to 12 hours of course work outside the Department of History. To be applicable to the degree, this course work must be approved in writing by the Supervising Professor and the Director of Graduate Studies prior to registration.
MA-PH Examination: Students in the Public History MA program must, at the conclusion of their studies, pass an MA-PH examination based on courses included in their program of study. No fields are declared. Students may register for examinations after completing HIST 601, the readings//research seminar sequence, and at least 24 hours of course work applicable to Master of Arts degree requirements.
Examination Committee: The examination Committee, formed in consultation with the Supervising Professor and the DGS, shall consist of at least three members who should be faculty with whom the student has had course work. Prior to registering for the Examination students should meet with each member of the Examination Committee for additional reading or study requirements in preparation. Final selection of the Examination Committee shall take place in the second semester of residence and no later than at the completion of 15 hours of graduate work. Once the Examination Committee has been formed, the student is responsible for filing an MA Examination Committee Form signed by all Committee Members and by the DGS, who will file it in the student’s permanent record.
Examination Registration: Registration is required for the MA-PH Examination. The MA Examination Registration Form, available from the DGS, must be filed at least one month prior to the date of the examination. As part of the registration application, the DGS will verify the student’s eligibility to sit for the examination. Computers are available for use but must be reserved in advance. Disks and blue books are provided by the department.
Examination: Examination questions are prepared at least one week in advance of the examination by the Supervising Professor in collaboration with members of the Examination Committee. Written examinations are evaluated by all committee members. Each examiner assigns a grade of high pass, pass, low pass, or fail. A single faculty evaluation of fail necessitates the student’s retaking the entire examination. The Chair of the Examination Committee shall provide results in writing to the student and to the DGS, usually within one week of the examination. At the committee’s discretion, and additional one-hour oral examination may be scheduled within thirty days of the written examination. Examinations may be retaken once; a second failure results in dismissal from the program. The same evaluation system, and provision for repeating in the event of failure, applies to the oral examination as to the written examination. Examination results are reported by the DGS to the Graduate College and Registrar.
Internship: (6 Hours) MA candidates in Public History must complete an internship or field experience (HIST 6400 or 7120) for a minimum 6 hours. The Internship requirement is ordinarily satisfied after successful passage of the MA Examination. An internship shall consist of one full semester or two summer sessions of full-time work (40 hour week) at a museum or in some other public history program. Before beginning an internship, students must consult with the Coordinator of Internships, Dr. Kristin Szylvian; complete a Registration Form for Graduate Individualized Courses; and present a letter from the hiring agency listing the student’s duties and signed, as approved by the student’s supervisor. A copy of the form and the letter shall be placed in the student’s permanent file.
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN HISTORY (75 hours post-BA; 45 hours post-MA)
The Department of History offers doctoral work in a number of fields. Prospective students are encouraged to consult the Western Michigan University Catalogue and the History Department Website (www.wmich.edu/history) to determine potential areas of concentration, and to contact professors in the areas of their interest before applying to the program.
The degree Doctor of Philosophy in History prepares students for careers in higher education, applied research, and historical administration. To qualify for a Doctorate of Philosophy in History, students must successfully complete 75 hours beyond the Bachelor of Arts degree; or 45 hours beyond the Master of Arts degree; present a Dissertation Proposal; and complete and defend an acceptable dissertation. No student shall be admitted to the PhD program, except on probationary status, before having completed all work and examinations requisite to the MA degree.
Residency Requirement: Students must successfully complete thirty hours of graduate study on the Kalamazoo campus before being admitted to candidacy.
Supervising Professor: Each incoming student is assigned to a Supervising Professor whose field of expertise corresponds to the student’s interest. Students should meet with the Supervising Professor at the following times: as soon as they arrive on campus, to draft a Provisional Program; at the end of each Fall Term, to discuss progress and the annual Student Activities Report; at the end of the second semester of residence to discuss the membership of the Comprehensive Examination Committee; and at any time when the student has questions on the program. The Supervising Professor continues to direct the student until the student is assigned a Dissertation Director, who then takes over this role.
Graduate Student Permanent Program in draft (PhD level): The Supervising Professor will advise the student in fulfilling the program requirements and in selecting classes. By the end of the first year of residency, and no later then after the completion of 18 hours of graduate work, the Supervising Professor, the student, and the Committee will together plot a draft of the Graduate Student Permanent Program -PhD level. The Program form, available from the DGS or online www.wmich.edu/history/graduate will identify the major, minor, and outside fields of the student; list requisite courses in historical theory and methodology in these fields; and specify subject courses to be taken by the student. The form, once signed by the student and the Supervising Professor, will be forwarded to the Director of Graduate Studies, who will place it in the student’s permanent file and file it with the Graduate College and the Registrar. Alterations to this draft of the Permanent Program may subsequently be made by agreement between the student and Supervising Professor.
Annual Graduate Student Activities Report: By 15 October of each year all students enrolled in the PhD program are required to submit an Annual Graduate Student Activities Report, following guidelines indicated on p. 11. The report shall include all relevant activities undertaken during the previous calendar year, and will identify progress in the course of study outlined in the Graduate Student Permanent Program. In the case of funded students it should also include a report of academic and employment obligations in addition to those required by the award. The purpose of such reporting is to enable the Supervising Professor, the DGS and the GSC to better monitor funded students’ progress through the program and to facilitate timely completion of degrees. Two copies including the signed cover sheet shall be submitted--one copy to the students’ Supervising Professor and one to the Director of Graduate Studies for inclusion in the student’s permanent file.
Annual Review: The Graduate Studies Committee assesses the progress of the student within the program at the end of the first, and each subsequent, year of study. As part of its annual assessment of students' progress in the program, the Graduate Studies Committee reviews the student’s grades, Activities Report and when relevant teaching evaluations. Students may be called on to meet with the Committee as part of this review.
Instructor of Record Teaching Observations/Evaluations: Graduate students who are Instructors of Record should have at least two observations/evaluations done of their classroom teaching over the course of their entire graduate career. The first of these should occur during their first year (first two semesters) of teaching. The graduate student or the observing faculty member may suggest additional observations (more than two) in order to improve the graduate student’s teaching. One of these two required observations must be completed by the graduate student’s Supervising Professor. For the second the graduate student may request any member of the faculty, including the Supervising Professor, to serve as observer/evaluator. It is the graduate students’ responsibility to approach a faculty member with a request to serve as observer/evaluator. Once the graduate student and the faculty member arrange an appropriate time, the graduate student should supply the faculty member with a syllabus for his or her course. The faculty member should meet with the graduate student following the observation and a written evaluation must be submitted. Preferably, the evaluation should be given to the graduate student one week after the observation. A memo of several paragraphs should be sufficient in most instances. It can be addressed to the Director of Graduate Studies. As with TA evaluations, the graduate student should sign off on the evaluation. In the case of some disagreement about the evaluation, the graduate student has the option to submit a written statement. A copy of the evaluation, signed by the faculty member and the graduate student, should then be given to the Director of Graduate Studies who will place the evaluation in the student’s file. Any dissenting statement by the graduate student will also be placed in the file. The Graduate Studies Committee has produced a simple cover sheet which can be requested from the Director of Graduate Studies.
Incompletes: These are temporary grades intended to indicate that illness or other circumstances beyond the student’s control prevented completion of course requirements by the end of the semester or session. If the incomplete grade is not changed within one calendar year it automatically becomes a failing grade. Graduate students should avoid incomplete grades except in cases of emergency. The accumulation of such grades can seriously impede progress in the graduate program. The Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Studies Committee carefully monitor the progress of students who accumulate two or more incompletes.
Independent Study Courses (History 6200, 6500, 7100, 7120, 7350): Independent Study Courses are available to enhance students’ programs of study. They should be carefully planned and agreed on by the student, the instructor, who must be a member of the Graduate Faculty, and the student’s Supervising Professor. To register for these courses students obtain a form from the DGS and complete it with all required signatures. Copies of the form are distributed to the Department office, the instructor, the student’s file, and the student. The actual registration is done in the History Department office. Make every effort to register for these courses well before the semester or summer session begins.
Requirements: During their first year of residency all students must complete with a grade of B or above two core courses: HIST 6010 Historiography and HIST 6980 College Teaching and Professional Activity. These courses are designed to provide students with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed in the profession and to incorporate students into the local community of scholars, both student and faculty.
Major Field (9-12 hours): Major field designates the area in which the student seeks to establish professional competence.
Minor Field (6-9 hours): A minor field designates an area of study, which is related to, or provides skills necessary to, the major field.
Outside field (3-6 hours): The outside field may be constituted by a series of courses within a discipline outside of, but bearing upon, the major field and dissertation topic. With permission of the DGS, a master's degree in a discipline outside history may be used to fulfill this requirement.
Foreign Language Requirements: Foreign languages are research tools requisite in historical study. All doctoral students must demonstrate reading proficiency in at least one foreign language; most major fields require proficiency in two foreign languages. Students in medieval history are required to demonstrate competence in two modern foreign languages and in Latin by achieving a grade of B or better in Latin 5600 (Medieval Latin), or its equivalent. The Supervising Professor and Members of the Examination or Dissertation Committees may set the specific foreign language requirements for each student and shall notify the Director of Graduate Students in writing of their recommendation. The foreign language proficiency requirement must be completed before the student may register for Comprehensive Examinations. If more than one language is required, proficiency in one language must be demonstrated by the end of the first year of graduate study. Proficiency is to be demonstrated by the attainment of a grade of B or better in a 2010 or 5010 course in the appropriate language department, or by a language/translation examination to be administered by that department. For those foreign languages not offered by WMU departments, language experts will be identified and asked to administer language/translation exams.
Comprehensive Examination Committee: The Examination Committee is formed in consultation with the Supervising Professor and the DGS. It consists of at least four members of the Graduate Faculty, two of whom must come from the History Department. Final selection of the Examination Committee shall take place during the third semester of residence and no later the completion of 15 hours of graduate course work. Once the Examination Committee has been formed, the student is responsible for filing with the DGS a Comprehensive Examination Committee form signed by all Committee Members. This form becomes a part of the students’ permanent record. During the semester before and no less than one month prior to scheduled Comprehensive Examinations, all PhD candidates shall meet with their Supervising Professor and with the DGS to review their progress and conduct an audit to ensure that all program requirements have been met, including all required course work and foreign language requirements. The student will ensure that a Graduate Student Permanent Program-PhD form is current and correct, and has been properly signed. The student then submits the signed Permanent Program form to the Director of Graduate Studies, who then files it with the Graduate College and the Registrar. The student is responsible for filing with the DGS a Registration for Comprehensive Examination form initialed by all Committee members.
Comprehensive Examination: Students shall be examined in their major, minor, and outside fields. At a date set by the Department, registered students will sit for the written portion of the doctoral examination. Computers are available for use, but must be reserved in advance; disks and blue books are provided by the department. The written examination usually of 12 hours in length is given over a week-long period and is evaluated by all Committee members. Each member assigns a grade of high pass, pass, low pass or fail. Any faculty judgment of fail requires that the student retake the entire examination. The Chair of the Examination Committee (ordinarily the Supervising Professor) provides results in writing to the student and to the DGS, usually within one week of the Examination. Examinations may be retaken once. A second failure shall result in dismissal from program.
A two-hour oral examination follows successful completion of the written examination, ordinarily within thirty days. The same evaluation system, and provision for repeating in the event of failure, applies to the oral as to the written examination. A single faculty evaluation of `fail' necessitates that the student retakes the entire oral examination. The Chair of the Committee reports examination results to the Director of Graduate Study, who then notifies the Graduate College.
Admission to Candidacy: Students who have successfully completed their course work and have passed their comprehensive examinations are admitted to candidacy and allowed to register for dissertation credit.
Dissertation committee: Before registering for the Comprehensive Examination, the student, in consultation with the Supervising Professor, the Examination Committee, and other faculty members, should have identified a dissertation topic and done sufficient preliminary research to ensure that the topic is viable. A Dissertation Director should be selected by the student in consultation with the Supervising Professor, if the Supervising Professor is not to direct the dissertation. A Dissertation Committee should then be nominated by the student and the Dissertation Director. One member of this Committee must be nominated from outside the Department and may be nominated from outside the University. If a reader is not a member of the WMU Graduate Faculty, a current curriculum vita must be submitted to, and the nomination approved by, the Dean of the Graduate College. Membership of the Dissertation Committee, as well as any changes in membership after it has been established, must be approved in writing by the Director of Graduate Studies, the Department Chair, the Dean or Associate Dean for Graduate Studies of the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Dean of the Graduate College. Once the dissertation topic and Committee have approved, the student is required to prepare a Dissertation Proposal.
Dissertation Proposal: The Proposal shall consist of a narrative and a bibliography. The narrative portion should be roughly four thousand words in length, and must include: a statement of the thesis; a survey of scholarly work on which this dissertation will build; a description of the methodology to be followed; and a statement of the contribution the dissertation is intended to make to scholarly research. The Proposal shall be submitted in writing to members of the Dissertation Committee, who may require changes. Once the Proposal has been approved by all members of the Committee, the student is required to make a formal public presentation on a date to be set and announced by the Department. At the conclusion of the presentation, the Dissertation Committee members may request modifications to the Proposal. At the end of a successful presentation, or acceptable revision, one copy of the Proposal, with the Dissertation Proposal Cover Sheet, signed by each member of the Committee, shall be attached to a copy of the College of Arts and Sciences Notice of Appointment to a Dissertation, Project, or Thesis Committee form: http://www.wmich.edu/~grad/forms/committee.appt.pdf. This form, after being signed by all Examination Committee members, is forwarded to the DGS, who shall place one copy in the student’s permanent record, and shall request approval by the Director of Graduate Studies, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate College. Filing the signed Appointment Form indicates approval of the Proposal and permission for the student to register for the first time for HIST 730. These forms must accompany the Application for Permission to Elect. Dissertation. Students are responsible for notifying the Chair of the Department of History who will register their dissertation topic with the American Historical Association and other appropriate professional organizations.
Dissertation Enrollment (12-18 hours): Only students who have been admitted to candidacy may enroll in HIST 7300 (Dissertation). A minimum of 12 hours and a maximum of 18 hours of HIST 7300 are applicable to the degree. Once registered in HIST 7300 the candidate must enroll continuously for at least one credit hour each fall and spring semester until the degree has been awarded.
Dissertation Mechanics and Human Subjects Institutional Review Board see Appendices for information.
Dissertation Fellowship: The Graduate College awards on a competitive basis, dissertation-year fellowships annually to candidates having an approved dissertation proposal. The fellowship allows a year of uninterrupted research and writing time. To apply, contact the Graduate College: www.wmich.edu/grad/funding/index.html#.
Dissertation Defense: The candidate and Dissertation Director are jointly responsible for circulating drafts and receiving criticism from Committee members. All members of the Committee prior to the public oral defense must unanimously approve the dissertation. Public announcement of the defense is the responsibility of the DGS and the Dissertation Director. A Dissertation Defense Scheduling Form must be submitted to the Graduate College (www.wmich.edu/grad/forms/defense.scheduling.pdf.) at least two weeks prior to the defense. Immediately after the oral defense the Dissertation Committee meets to decide whether or not to approve the defense presentation. If successful, the candidate is responsible for submitting an abstract of the dissertation for publication in Dissertation Abstracts International, and for submitting one copy of the completed and approved dissertation to the Graduate College for microfilming by the University Microfilms Inc., and a second copy to the Department of History.
Fellowships and awards: A number of fellowships, assistantships, and awards are available to doctoral candidates. For terms and deadlines, see http://www.wmich.edu/finaid/Publication/scholarships/Assistance, the Graduate College and the History Department websites. In addition to Graduate College awards, dissertations may also be submitted to the GSC by February 1 for consideration for the Dept. of History's Robert Russell Writing Award, given annually.
APPENDICES: GENERAL IMPORTANT INFORMATION
GUIDELINES: GRADUATE STUDENTS ANNUAL ACTIVITIES REPORT: Each page of the Report should be headed with your name, your Supervising Professor’s name, and the date of the Report.
1. ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES
Courses completed and grades received
Courses in progress
Courses not completed (provide a reason for any incompletes or drops)
Language requirements set by your examination/thesis/dissertation committee: Progress made towards meeting language proficiency requirement (course work, summer programs, examination schedule, and completed examination results).
Thesis/dissertation/examination progress:
Composition of committee, including department and if applicable, school of members.
Thesis/Dissertation Prospectus written, accepted; public presentation
Research completed or planned
Planned date of MA or comprehensive examination
Teaching and Research
Classes taught as instructor of record (title, number, enrollment)
Teaching Assistantships held (course title and number; student enrollment)
Instructor(s) of record
TA responsibilities you discharged
What you learned from the experience
Research Assistantships held
Supervisor
Project title
RA responsibilities you discharged
What you learned from the experience
2. PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION: Include in all cases the title of the paper/presentation; its thesis; the venue, date (projected or past), and the sponsoring agency/journal, using proper bibliographic format.
Papers written, submitted, or accepted for presentation at historical conferences
Papers presented at professional conferences
Papers written, submitted, accepted for publication; include the name of the
Journal, and which stage you have reached
Papers published, works prepared for, accepted or presented publicly
Other professional works prepared for, accepted or presented publicly
Research grants: applications pending; grants made. Include subject and précis of the research projected.
Honors, awards, memberships
3. PROFESSIONAL SERVICE. (Include dates)
Professional consultation, asked or given
Service to professional organizations
Service to the Department (including committee work) the College; the University
Service to the community beyond the University
4. SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
Please list any activities related to your career as an historian, which do not fit into the categories listed above. Funded students should include academic and employment responsibilities other than those required by their award.
THESIS AND DISSERTATION MECHANICS : As is standard for theses and dissertation, The Department of History uses the current edition of The Chicago Manual of Style. The shorter standard for writing mechanics is the current edition of Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses and Dissertations, which includes many elements from The Chicago Manual of Style in succinct form. Supervising faculty in the department may require either of the two major citation systems described in The Chicago Manual of Style.
For theses and dissertations the Graduate College has set certain standards of its own in such areas as pagination, margins, chapter/section headings, abstracts, acknowledgments, and copyright. These are described in the current edition of the Graduate College Guidelines for the Preparation of Theses, Projects, and Dissertations, which may be purchased in the bookstore in the Bernhard Center. The Graduate College meticulously examines each thesis submitted and may return theses to writers with instructions for correction. This review process can be lengthy, and must be completed to the Graduate College's satisfaction before the Master of Arts degree will be awarded.
HUMAN SUBJECTS INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD: Historical research often involves the use of human subjects, for example, oral interviews. Such other activities as consulting, public policy research, archaeological research, and the use of archival materials not in the public domain also may be subject to Human Subjects restrictions. Before a student begins a research project involving human subjects, the project must be reviewed and the procedures approved by the Human Subjects Institutional Review Board (HSIRB) of the University. The HSIRB, and not the researcher, has final authority to determine whether a project falls under the policy for protection of human subjects. In planning the research, students should consult the office of the Board if they are in any doubt. Application for clearance of a research project is the responsibility of the graduate student and the faculty member directly supervising the research.
The DGS will determine from the Prospectus whether a thesis research plan falls under the review jurisdiction of the Human Subjects Institutional Review Board. If it does, clearance by the Board must precede initial thesis registration. Western Michigan University administers a comprehensive policy, approved by the Board of Trustees, for the protection of individuals who serve as subjects in research conducted by or under the direction of faculty, staff, or students in connection with institutional programs and other responsibilities.
Graduate students and supervising faculty who contemplate research which may involve human subjects should be familiar with the document "A Guide to the Use of Human Subjects in Research at Western Michigan University." The document is available form the HSIRB office, A220 Ellsworth Hall (387-5926). This office can also advise students of the calendar of the HSIRB, which meets about once a month and requires proposals to be submitted a week in advance of the meeting.
University policy identifies students involved in human subject research as co-investigator. In each case the faculty member is considered the principal investigator and is therefore responsible for compliance with review policy.
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