History, Non-licensure, M.Ed.

Program Description

The program is designed is to provide qualified students with the opportunity to pursue graduate-level training in the study of history. While students in this program may be teachers seeking an advanced degree, a background in education is not required. This program is designed for people whose primary interest is in receiving a master of arts degree in history. The academic goal of the program is three-fold:

To increase the students’ knowledge of the facts related to historical developments, including the significance of important events, institutions, people, cultures and ideas throughout the world,
to provide the students with a familiarity with questions of interpretation and methods of study of major aspects of history,
to help students develop expertise in historical research and question design as well as evaluation of primary and secondary historical materials.

This program does not lead to teaching licensure.

Admission Requirements

Admission decisions are made by the department’s graduate program coordinator and graduate committee members.

Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university
At least 18 semester credit hours in history or related humanities courses as assessed by graduate advisors
A cumulative average of 3.0 in history

Program of Study

Program Requirements

Completion of a total of 36 credits, of which 30 must be in history and six in education;
Six graduate credits reflecting coursework appropriate to the degree may be transferred from other graduate-level institutions, at the discretion of the department’s graduate committee;
Satisfactory completion of a master’s thesis, approved by the thesis director and with a thesis defense before the department’s graduate committee (and other members of the department who may choose to attend). Only members of the graduate committee may participate in the actual vote to determine whether a student has passed the thesis defense.

Specific Requirements

History (24 Credits)

Completion of 24 graduate credits in history, which will consist of any eight of the following three-credit courses, or their equivalent in transfer credit.

HIST 0600 - Readings: America, 1600-1815 Credits: 3
HIST 0605 - Readings: America, 1815-1914 Credits: 3
HIST 0610 - Readings: America, 1914 to the Present Credits: 3
HIST 0615 - Readings: Modern Europe 1500-1789 Credits: 3
HIST 0620 - Readings: Modern Europe, 1789 to the Present Credits: 3
HIST 0625 - Research: United States Before 1815 Credits: 3
HIST 0630 - Research: United States 1815-1914 Credits: 3
HIST 0635 - Research: United States 1914 to Present Credits: 3
HIST 0640 - Readings: Topics in World History Credits: 3
HIST 0645 - Research: European History Credits: 3
HIST 0650 - Topics in World History Credits: 3 *
HIST 0655 - Research: World History Credits: 3
*Students may take multiple sections of HIST 0650 provided the topic is different (e.g., Topics: Latin America, Topics: Middle East, Topics: Asia).

Research and Evaluation (6 Credits)

Research and evaluation, as evidenced by the completion of 6 graduate level credits as follows:

HIST 0698 - Thesis Research I Credits: 3
HIST 0699 - Thesis Research II Credits: 3

Education (6 Credits)

Completion of 6 graduate level credits in Education, either 05xx or 06xx level.

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Westfield State University