The Department of History offers a PhD program in History. The program prepares the student in four selected fields of study: Three fields of history (called the first, second, and third field) and one field in another discipline (called the outside field). Students indicate their choice of the first field at the time of application to the program, and they decide upon the second, third, and outside fields by the end of the first year of study.
The department represents a rich spectrum of research interests, collaborations, and approaches spanning 16 established fields of history: Africa, Ancient Greece and Rome, Byzantine, Early Modern Europe, East Asia: China, East Asia: Japan, Global, Jewish, Late Modern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Medieval Europe, Middle East, North America, Science, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. The depth and breadth of our program and the strengths of our faculty members, students, and other professionals provide an especially stimulating and congenial setting for graduate training.
Thank you for considering UC Berkeley for graduate study! UC Berkeley offers more than 120 graduate programs representing the breadth and depth of interdisciplinary scholarship. The Graduate Division hosts a complete list of graduate academic programs, departments, degrees offered, and application deadlines can be found on the Graduate Division website.
Prospective students must submit an online application to be considered for admission, in addition to any supplemental materials specific to the program for which they are applying. The online application and steps to take to apply can be found on the Graduate Division website.
Admission Requirements
The minimum graduate admission requirements are:
A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution;
A satisfactory scholastic average, usually a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale; and
Enough undergraduate training to do graduate work in your chosen field.
For a list of requirements to complete your graduate application, please see the Graduate Division’s Admissions Requirements page. It is also important to check with the program or department of interest, as they may have additional requirements specific to their program of study and degree. Department contact information can be found here.
Students should make progress toward completing graduate coursework and language requirements as outlined in the History Graduate Program Guide. Students must pass a third-semester examination concentrating on their first field2 prior to the start of their fourth semester. Before taking the doctoral qualifying examination, students must satisfy all course and language requirements. Students must take the PhD qualifying examination no later than the end of the spring semester of the third year, for students in a six-year field, and by the end of the spring semester of the fourth year, for students in a seven-year field. Advancement to doctoral candidacy immediately follows the qualifying exam upon approval of a dissertation committee and written dissertation prospectus. After advancing, students will continue to be enrolled and submit annual progress reports. Final completion of the PhD requires submission and approval of the dissertation.
Program Fields of Concentration
The program prepares the student in four selected fields of study: three fields of History (called the first, second, and third field) and one field in another discipline (called the fourth or outside field). Students indicate their choice of the first field at the time of application to the program and they decide upon the second, third, and outside fields by the end of the second year of study. Students are bound by normative time requirements of the first field. The graduate advisers committee must formally approve the selection of these fields, normally by the end of the second year.
Fields
1. Africa
2. Ancient Greece and Rome
3. Byzantine
4. Early Modern Europe
5. East Asia: China
6. East Asia: Japan
7. Global
8. Jewish History
9. Late Modern Europe
10. Latin America and the Caribbean
11. Medieval Europe
12. Middle East
13. North America
14. Science
15. South Asia
16. Southeast Asia
PhD Coursework Requirements
Students complete a minimum of 34 course units, not including language, and maintain a minimum overall grade point average of 3.0 (3.5 or above in history graduate courses). Courses that are being applied to the program must be taken for a letter grade. The program of study must conform to the following guidelines:
A. 16 units in the first field: two graduate seminars in any combination of 275s and 280s (both must be completed by the end of the first year) and two 285s (one should be completed by the end of the first year if possible).
Students in the fields of East Asia: China and East Asia: Japan have one additional required 4 unit seminar. Students in East Asia: China must take a reading seminar (280) or a survey seminar (275) in Japanese history. Students in East Asia: Japan must take a reading or survey seminar in Chinese history. Exceptions require the approval of the graduate advisor committee.
Students in the field of History of Science must take, in addition to other required coursework, the historical colloquium (290) in each semester of their first two years. The 290 is worth 1 unit and is graded on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis.
B. 4 units in the second (thematic) and 4 units in the third (limited regional/temporal) fields: graduate seminars in any combination of 275s and 280s.
C. 3 to 4 units in the fourth/outside field: one graduate-level graded course in a field and department other than history.
D. 4 units of methodology: Historical Method and Theory (283). Students are required to take this in their first semester.
E. 4 units of pedagogy: Teaching History Pedagogy Seminar (375). A pedagogy course is required of all first-time graduate student instructors (GSIs). Students are required to take the Department of History’s 375 during their second semester.
PhD Foreign Language Requirements
The language requirements for the PhD vary by field between one and four. Students whose field requires two or more languages are advised to come to the program with significant preparation in the languages most critical to the field (e.g., students in medieval history should have intermediate Latin at the time of application). Students should attempt to complete one foreign language applicable to the selected field by the end of the first year. Please see history.berkeley.edu for a list of language requirements by field and for options for fulfilling the language requirements. Students must satisfy all language requirements before taking the doctoral qualifying examination. Faculty in the field can help students make a plan for completing the requirements.
Curriculum
Course List
Code
Title
Units
Seminars Available - all fields1
These are the graduate seminars. Topics and offerings vary by semester.
Africa; Ancient Greece and Rome; Byzantine; Early Modern Europe; East Asia-China; East Asia-Japan; Global; Jewish History; Late Modern Europe; Latin America and the Caribbean; Medieval Europe; Middle East; North America; Science; South Asia; Southeast Asia.
2
In the third semester, all students are examined for general command of the history and scholarship in their first field. Students taking the exam will be expected to display, at minimum, textbook-level knowledge of their fields and/or a thorough mastery of the materials covered in the courses they have taken at Berkeley. A minimum program of three seminars or its equivalent (275s, 280s, and/or 285s), two of which must be in the first field, is a prerequisite to the examination. Examinations may be oral or written or both (depending on the field) and are graded pass/fail.
3
MA students in Ancient Greece and Rome define their field as either Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome; PhD students define their field as Ancient Greece and Rome or Rome and Late Antiquity.
Courses
History
Terms offered: Fall 2014, Spring 2012, Fall 2011
A four-week long course permitting the instructor to cover in-depth a topic of particular interest. Topics and instructors vary; consult department catalog for details. Special Topics: Short Course: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1.5-3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Spring 2011
For 2,500 years, the book has dominated world culture as the primary material linguistic object. Lectures and demonstrations devoted to various aspects of the production of manuscript and printed books focusing on examining books in the collection of the Bancroft Library that exemplify, encapsulate, or represent an archetype or excellent model of the type and period(s) in which the book was published. Particular attention will be paid to the art of the book in relation to its content. The Book as Object: the Art and Material History of the Book: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of lecture per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2014, Fall 2013
This course provides a strong foundation for graduate work in STS, a multidisciplinary field with a signature capacity to rethink the relationship among science, technology, and political and social life. From climate change to population genomics, access to medicines and the impact of new media, the problems of our time are simultaneously scientific and social, technological and political, ethical and economic. Topics in Science and Technology Studies: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015
This course will cover methods and approaches for students considering professionalizing in the field of STS, including a chance for students to workshop written work. Science and Technology Studies Research Seminar: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2024
This course teaches you to use approaches from the across the humanities and interpretive social sciences and tools of Science,
Technology, and Society (STS) to recognize, analyze, and shape the human contexts, social implications, and ethics of data and data technologies, including data analytics, algorithmic decision systems, machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI). Human Contexts and Ethics of Data: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Graduate standing or permission of the instructor. Graduate students without previous (undergraduate or graduate-level) preparation in the interpretive social sciences or humanities are encouraged to confer with the instructor before enrolling
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2020, Fall 2014
Introduction to the scholarly handling of texts, whether ancient or modern, inscriptions or manuscripts, and instruction in the methodologies, tools, sources, and the editing and use of texts relevant to a particular field of history; instruction in any auxiliary science requisite for historical research. Paleography and Other Auxiliary Sciences: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit with instructor consent.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022
This seminar provides a broad overview of the discipline of History. Beyond examining influential works that continue to shape how we write, teach, and think about history, it familiarizes students with important subfields of the discipline, and seminal thinkers who helped shape them. Though the course probes no topic or approach in depth, it does aim to facilitate a working knowledge of a range of methods and theoretical vocabularies with which historians should be conversant. Students must take this course in their first semester. Historical Method and Theory: Read More [+]
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: Ancient: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: Europe: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2022
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: United States: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2018, Spring 2017
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: Latin America: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2024
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: Asia: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2023
For precise schedule of offerings see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Research Seminars: Africa: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Terms offered: Fall 2020
This class explores what is happening to higher education and the historical profession in the contemporary world and how the job market for historians is changing. The aim is to demystify the academy and the historical profession while encouraging deeper thinking about career diversity and development. We will focus on practical questions like how and when you get your reading done, how you prepare for 3rd semester and qualifying exams, visit and use archives, develop research skills, prepare grant proposals, build a CV/Resume, attend conferences and present papers, publish reviews and articles. It will also address how you survive this intensification of academic labor, addressing issues such as mental health and resources for parents. Becoming a Historian: Read More [+]
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of seminar per week
Summer: 6 weeks - 5 hours of seminar per week 8 weeks - 4 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2024
Colloquium on topics of current research. For precise schedule of offerings, see department catalog during pre-enrollment week each semester. Historical Colloquium: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of colloquium per week
Summer: 8 weeks - 4 hours of colloquium per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Prerequisites: Open to qualified students directly engaged upon the doctoral dissertation
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week
Summer: 3 weeks - 5-60 hours of independent study per week 6 weeks - 2.5-30 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 2-22.5 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Graduate
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Fall 2023, Summer 2019 10 Week Session, Spring 2018
Individual conferences to be arranged. Intended to provide directed reading in subject matter not covered in scheduled seminar offerings. Directed Reading: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week
Summer: 6 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week
Terms offered: Prior to 2007
Preparation for teaching, under the supervision of History faculty, including meeting with supervising faculty and leading discussion sections. Professional Training: Teaching History: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: History 375 (completed or taken concurrently), graduate standing and appointment as a Graduate Student Instructor
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 4 hours of independent study per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Spring 2025, Spring 2024, Spring 2023
This class introduces graduate students to a variety of theories and techniques used in teaching history at the university. Through discussion, small group activities, and simulations, the course explores core ideas of history pedagogy. It addresses opportunities and challenges in teaching history as well as common classroom situations to develop the foundation for becoming teachers at Berkeley and beyond. The course has two primary goals: (1) to prepare graduate students to teach effectively as GSIs in history classes at Berkeley; and (2) to introduce ideas, practices, and debates in teaching and learning to support graduate students' professional development into independent instructors, in and out of the classroom. Teaching History at the University: Read More [+]
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week
Summer: 6 weeks - 7.5 hours of seminar per week 8 weeks - 6 hours of seminar per week
Additional Details
Subject/Course Level: History/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Terms offered: Fall 2021, Fall 2020, Fall 2019
Individual study, in consultation with the graduate adviser, to prepare for student's language examinations and the master's examination. Individual Study for Master's Students: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: For candidates for M.A. degree
Credit Restrictions: Course does not satisfy unit or residence requirements for master's degree.
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week
Terms offered: Fall 2021, Fall 2020, Fall 2019
Individual study, in consultation with the graduate adviser, to prepare students for language examinations and the doctoral examination. Individual Study for Doctoral Students: Read More [+]
Rules & Requirements
Prerequisites: For candidates for doctoral degree
Credit Restrictions: Course does not satisfy unit or residence requirements for doctoral degree.
Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.
Hours & Format
Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week
Summer: 8 weeks - 1.5-15 hours of independent study per week
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