(PHIST)
LSU offers the PhD degree in American, British, European, and Latin American history. The departmental-level academic course plan for each student will be developed in consultation with and approved by the student’s graduate advisory committee. The committee will include the student’s major advisor and at least two additional members of the graduate faculty such that the LSU Graduate School’s requirements for graduate committees are satisfied.
The basic requirements for the doctorate are specified in this publication. It is the responsibility of each applicant and graduate student to be familiar with these stipulations and fulfill them. A minimum of 60 credit hours of course work and dissertation research are necessary to complete the program. The plan of course work depends on the student’s earlier preparation in history, and the major requirement is a dissertation “which embodies creative scholarship” and which “must add to the sum of existing knowledge and give evidence of considerable literary skill.” Each student must offer three fields of study: one major field and two minor fields.
Major Fields:
Those fields offered by the department are: American history (inclusive), Latin American history, Europe to the Middle Ages, Medieval and Early Modern Europe, European history since 1500, and British history.
Minor Fields:
Each student must offer two minor fields that fall outside the scope of the major field. Approval of the selection and scope of each field will be made by the student’s major professor and minor field professors. Minor fields may be selected from the list of offered major fields, from Asian History, or an approved aspect or period thereof. Both minor fields cannot fall within the same major field. Requirements for fulfilling the minor field will be determined by the student’s minor field professor; typically each minor field requires six hours of course work. The department also offers a minor field in world history the requirements for which are as follows:
- HIST 7970 Reading Seminar in Comparative History (3) , which would be offered on a regular basis (normally once every two years).
- Three 4000- or 7000 level courses, in any three of the following four areas: East Asia, South Asia, Africa, Latin America.
- An oral examination, designed to prepare students for teaching world history.
With twelve hours of required courses, the world history minor counts as two minor fields.
Students may select one minor field outside the department of history, and requirements for an outside field will be determined by the outside department. Each minor field must consist of at least six hours of graduate level course work, although some departments will require more.
Course Work and Examinations:
Course Work: Students entering the program with a MA from another university will take the basic seminars in their major field. In European History they are HIST 7908 , HIST 7909 , and at least three seminars numbered between HIST 7915 and HIST 7930 . In Modern European and British History they are HIST 7908 , HIST 7909 , and at least four seminars numbered between HIST 7915 and HIST 7930 . In United States history they are: HIST 7904 , HIST 7908 , HIST 7951 , HIST 7952 , HIST 7955 , HIST 7957 , and HIST 7959 . Students will also have to take courses in their minor fields and may want to take other courses in their major fields. Students who have completed a MA in our department will have already completed these basic seminars.
Departmental-level academic course plan: Within the first year of study at the PhD level, each student will prepare, in consultation with his or her committee, a departmental-level academic course plan form which specifies requirements for course work and other aspects of the student’s course of study. When these requirements are completed, the student takes the general examinations.
General Examinations: General examinations will be offered once each semester. Minor field requirements consist of six hours of course work and a possible exam, subject to the discretion of the minor field professor. In certain cases a minor field may consist only of course work and a written exam will not be given. Once the minor field exams (or course work) have been completed, the student must take the major field exams the following semester. The major field exam will consist of two six-hour written exams and an oral examination with the student’s committee and a representative from The Graduate School. Once the major field examination has been successfully completed, the student becomes a PhD Candidate.
Final Examinations: After completing the dissertation, the candidate defends it in an oral examination. The examining committee consists of the student’s major professor, other faculty from the Department of History or other departments in the university, and a representative from The Graduate School, in accordance with the guidelines outlined in the LSU Graduate School Bulletin.
Foreign Language Requirement:
It is required that all PhD students in American and British history must demonstrate reading proficiency in one foreign language, and PhD students in all other concentrations must demonstrate reading proficiency in two foreign languages. Each student must fulfill the foreign language requirement before advancing to the general examinations. Reading proficiency may be demonstrated through a sight translation conducted by a member of the faculty or by successfully completing a reading knowledge course offered by the Departments of Foreign Languages & Literature or French Studies. The requirements for language skills differ by field; students should consult with their major professor for requirements in their areas.
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