Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in History

In addition to Faculty of Graduate Studies requirements and Faculty of Arts requirements, the Department requires:

a) A minimum of 12 units of coursework at the graduate level, including courses in the primary and secondary areas. These courses include:

• 3 units in the primary area as a course reading course;

• 3 units in the secondary area as a course reading course;

• 6 additional units including course (3 units), if not completed in a student's MA program. Among these, the student may also choose 3 units outside the Department (requiring the supervisor's and graduate program director's approval).

b) Normally, a demonstration of reading proficiency in a language other than English and relevant to the student's research prior to the candidacy examination. Please refer to the subsection below for further details.

c) Written and oral candidacy examinations in primary and secondary areas.

d) Submission and successful defense of an original thesis, normally 80,000 - 100,000 words in length (including notes, charts, tables and appendices, but excluding bibliography).

Language Requirements

Both the master's and the doctoral degrees normally require a demonstration of reading proficiency in a language other than English and related to the major field of study or research area. This requirement can be met in one of the following ways:

1. Passing the Department language exam, which is set twice a year and tests the ability to understand the general meaning of an academic text in a language other than English with the help of dictionaries (English and language which is examined). It can be repeated if failed.

2. Documentation establishing reading proficiency in a language other than English. It is the responsibility of the student to supply evidence of reading proficiency or evidence that course work in a language other than English at another university meets the requirement. Students not meeting the requirement upon entry should consult with the graduate program director before classes begin.

Students may, with permission of the supervisor and the graduate program director, replace reading proficiency with oral proficiency.

Copyediting

The graduate program in the Department of History does not permit the use of third-party editors in the preparation of papers and theses.

Advanced Credit

The applicant must make advanced credit requests as part of the admission process. Credit will not be given for course work taken as part of another completed degree/diploma or for courses taken to bring the grade point average to a required level for admission.

Flexible Grade Option (CG Grade)

The Department of History will allow students to pursue the Flexible Grade Option (CG Grade) for courses offered outside of the program.

Students may choose the CG grade for a course taken extra to load.

The use of the CG grade will not affect students’ eligibility for internal awards.

Time Limit

Expected completion time is four years, and maximum completion time is six years.

Supervisory Assignments

Admission to the PhD is dependent upon the agreement of a faculty member to supervise in an interim capacity. Upon acceptance into the program, students are assigned an interim supervisor who will normally become the permanent supervisor three months into the student's program. Supervisors must be assigned within 6 months of the first registration.

The supervisor establishes a doctoral supervisory committee in consultation with the student. The Supervisory Committee consists of the primary area supervisor and a secondary area specialist with the third member being a faculty member, normally outside the department, whose area of expertise is in the field of study for the student. The supervisory committee must be selected within three months of the permanent supervisor’s appointment (no later than March of the first year of a program).

Required Examinations

In addition to the Faculty of Graduate Studies requirements for Candidacy and Thesis Examinations, the Department requires:

Candidacy

Doctoral students must pass oral and written candidacy examinations in their primary and secondary areas. For complete details of candidacy requirements and the examination format, see https://arts.ucalgary.ca/history/future-students/graduate/phd-candidacy-requirements.

Thesis Examinations

Final thesis oral examinations are open.

Scheduling of the Examination

All members of the Supervisory Committee must have reviewed the student’s research, including a relevant written sample of the materials related to the thesis, before an examination can be scheduled.

Composition of the Committee

The Internal Examiner may be internal to the home program.

Financial assistance may be available to qualified students. For information on awards, see the Awards and Financial Assistance section of this Calendar.

Students applying for scholarships must submit their online applications to the Department by the deadline posted on the department website.