History and Historic Preservation MA (HiHP)

Students must fulfill all the requirements for the MA in History and the Masters in the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation.

All MA students in the HiHP program must complete a minimum of 27 credits in History. The mandatory course requirements are as follows: 

1.    History and Contemporary Theory (HIST 601; 3 credits)
2.    Field General Seminar(s) (HIST 608; 3-6 credits)
a.    608A and B (United States)
b.    608C (Modern Europe)
c.    608D (Middle East)
d.    608G and I (Latin America)
e.    608J and K (Asia)
f.    608M (History of Science, Technology, Environment, and Medicine)
g.    608N (Global Interaction & Exchange)
h.    equivalent seminar(s) in other historical fields with DGS approval
3.    Research Seminar (HIST 8XX; 3 credits for thesis track, 6 credits for exam track)
 

All HiHP students must take at least 12 credits in a “major field” within History, including at least 3 credits of General Seminar in that field and at least 3 credits of Research seminar in that field. If a research seminar in the student’s field is not offered, students often take “research seminars” as independent study courses with faculty in their fields. Students also take other readings courses in their field.

Special Notes

• Courses completed during previous postbaccalaureate degree programs and/or at other institutions may be considered to satisfy course requirements.
• Requests for course requirement waivers, equivalency, and credit transfers should be directed to the Director of Graduate Studies. A request must include the course syllabus and transcripts showing the final grade. The endorsement of the advisor is typically sought.
• Up to nine (9) credit hours of major and minor field readings courses may be taken at the 400 level. Students seeking to take a 400 level course for graduate credit should consult the instructor of record to discuss course expectations before registering.
   

Students must complete at least 12 credit hours in one of the approved major fields (see Fields of Study). Three to nine of these credit hours must be in the appropriate General Seminar(s) and an additional three must be in 800-level research seminars. The students take an additional six hours of HIST 799 (Master's Thesis Research).

In consultation with the advisor, the student develops an original research project that will require substantive analysis of primary materials, in addition to full engagement with the existing relevant scholarship. Archival and bibliographic research may last several months and be conducted in the College Park region or farther away. Writing may take an additional several months.  Typically the MA thesis is 60-80 pages long.

All thesis research, including oral history research, must be conducted in accordance with University rules as well as professional and legal standards. In some instances, MA students might be required to submit a précis of the thesis or other materials to the Institutional Review Board of the University of Maryland or another institution. In Spring 2006, the campus IRB issued a finding that oral history does not enjoy a blanket exclusion from IRB review. It is, therefore, essential that all research projects involving oral history and other forms of research that fall under human subjects research protocols be cleared by the IRB.

In an open oral defense of the thesis, normally lasting not longer than two hours, the student must attain approval by a majority of a Thesis Examining Committee consisting of at least three members of the Graduate Faculty, chosen by the Director of Graduate Studies in consultation with the student's advisor. The advisor chairs the committee. At the conclusion of the oral defense, the committee will determine whether the thesis is satisfactory as submitted or if revisions must be undertaken before the thesis will be officially accepted. If the student has expressed the desire to continue on to the doctoral program at Maryland, the thesis committee will also make a recommendation to the Graduate Committee about the student's admission to the PhD program.

Each student admitted to the HiHP program will select an advisor in history who is a member of the Graduate Faculty and whose intellectual interests are compatible with the student's plan of study. All graduate students are required to choose an advisor by November 1 of their first semester. If they do not choose an advisor by that date, the DGS will appoint one for them. The faculty advisor is responsible for advising the student, approving course selection each semester, monitoring the student's progress, and informing the student of the nature and timing of examinations and other evaluations. The advisor, in consultation with the student, will be responsible for constituting the advisory, thesis, and examination committees. The advisor will also represent the student to the Graduate Committee, as appropriate.

The advisory committee, to be constituted no later than the spring semester of the first year of study, consists of the student's advisor and two faculty members in appropriate fields, chosen by the Director of Graduate Studies in consultation with the student and the advisor. At the conclusion of the first year of study, all students will make available to the advisory committee a transcript of coursework and major written work completed during the first year. The Director of Graduate Studies will provide the advisory committee with additional relevant information, such as teaching assistantship evaluations. Upon review of the appropriate materials, the advisory committee will then recommend to the Graduate Committee continuation, modification, or, as appropriate, termination of the student's program.

After the first year of study, the advisory committee may convene to discuss progress-to-degree. The advisor has primary responsibility for determining the need for an advisory committee review, but a student has the right to request formal review.

The advisory committee ordinarily serves as the HiHP thesis committee, but substitutions are possible, provided that all members of the HiHP thesis committee are members of the Graduate Faculty and that the student's advisor serves as the committee chair.

HiHP students may change advisors at any moment of their studies, registering the change with the Director of Graduate Studies.

A change of advisor or of the composition of the advisory committee must be recorded in the student's electronic file.

Continuous Registration

All graduate students must register for courses and pay associated tuition and fees each semester, not including summer and winter sessions, until the degree is awarded.

HiHP students who will be away from the University for up to one year may request a waiver of continuous registration and its associated tuition and fees. Waivers shall be granted only if the student is making satisfactory progress toward the degree and can complete the degree requirements within the required time limits. Interruptions in continuous registration cannot be used to justify an extension to time-to-degree requirements.

The Graduate School makes available an official Leave-of-Absence for Childbearing, Adoption, Illness, and Dependent Care. The Dean of the Graduate School must approve the leave. The time-to-degree clock is suspended during an approved leave-of-absence.

Additional information on Continuous Registration and Leave-of-Absence policies is published online in the Graduate Catalog.

Time-to-Degree

Whether a full- or part-time student, all students admitted to the HiLS program must complete all degree requirements in five (5) years from initial enrollment.

Progress-to-Degree

All students in the HiHP program will be expected to demonstrate steady progress towards the completion of degree requirements. At a minimum, the Graduate School requires students to maintain a B average in all graduate courses. However, the Department of History expects a higher level of performance.

Failure to make satisfactory progress-to-degree or to maintain the expected grade point average may result in the suspension or loss of departmental funding, the denial of a petition for extensions, and, in extreme cases, a recommendation for dismissal.

Extensions and Waivers

The Graduate Committee will consider petitions for waivers to departmental guidelines. Petitions for waivers to Graduate School requirements must be submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School, using the appropriate form. In most instances, the petitioning student will be required to provide a rationale for the waiver request, and, as appropriate, a convincing plan of study. The advice of the student's advisor may be sought. The advisor will be required to endorse any waiver request that involves extensions to overall time-to-degree as well as the major benchmarks of progress-to-degree.

All petitions should be directed to the Director of Graduate Studies. The Director of Graduate Studies, and in some cases the Dean of the Graduate School, will notify the student of his/her disposition of petitions for extensions.