History

Students graduating with a PhD from our department have gone on to a variety of fruitful and interesting careers. Many have pursued and found faculty positions and other teaching and research-oriented jobs at such institutions of higher learning as Ohio University, the University of Missouri, the University of Cincinnati (main campus and satellites), the University of Dayton, and the University of North Carolina system. Some alumni have additionally or instead charted careers in elite-level secondary education or in public and digital history, including through work in the archival and library sciences, historical consultancy, historical preservation, museum work, and published historical writing.

All students entering the program have a Doctoral advisor, assigned at the time of admission. This advisor will guide the student through all intellectual aspects of the program. In addition, the Director of Graduate Studies serves as an advisor on departmental and institutional requirements. Students may change advisors, with the permission of the new advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies.

During the first year of enrollment, in consultation with the Doctoral advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies, each student creates an exam committee composed of three individuals, at least two of whom must be Department of History faculty, and all three of whom must have a terminal degree. Members of this exam committee also serve an important advisory role in the semesters leading up to the qualifying exam.

In addition, each student creates a dissertation committee in consultation with the Doctoral advisor. This committee is composed of three or four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the Department of History. At least two members of this committee must be Department of History faculty. Members of the dissertation committee serve an important advisory role during candidacy.

Each year, usually in the fall semester, the Director of Graduate Studies will provide an evaluation form to faculty advisors for each of their Doctoral students. The advisor will then meet with each of his/her Doctoral students to review the student's academic progress for the past year. A copy of the completed evaluation form will be given to the student and to the Director of Graduate Studies.

At the University of Cincinnati's Department of History, Doctoral students are connected directly with faculty, with interests in many areas. We also have conferences, symposia, colloquia, and many visiting speakers throughout the year to both inspire new ideas and give students a chance to show their work professonally. The majority of our graduate students are funded throughout their graduate career. The university and surrounding libraries have incredible collections to facilitate research. For more information, see our Graduate Program Page.