The Graduate College forwards the application and transcripts to the department of history. The applicant submits directly to the department these additional materials. A statement of purpose explaining why the applicant wishes to pursue the Ph.D., what fields of history interest the applicant, and what the applicant hopes to do with the degree. A copy of their master's thesis, an essay, term paper, or seminar paper from a history course. When the application is complete, the graduate studies committee uses the following guidelines in ruling on applications.
Admission depends on the graduate studies committee's evaluation of all the candidate's materials.
On rare occasions, students are admitted conditionally with M.A. degrees in fields other than history if they have adequate preparation in history. The graduate studies committee may require students who are admitted conditionally to take 12 hours of course work in history with a GPA of 3.5 before they are considered for regular admission. The courses will be selected by the chair of the graduate studies committee, in consultation with the student. The student will consult with the chair of the graduate studies committee and be assigned a major professor during the first semester of study. The major professor will act as the student's advisor and meet with the student every semester.