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DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY (HY)
Interim Chairperson: Professor Michael Mendle,
Office: 202 ten Hoor Hall
Admission Requirements
General requirements
for all history degree programs. Admission decisions for all graduate history
programs at The University of Alabama are made by the Graduate School based on a
composite of subjective and quantitative information, including the applicant's
statement of purpose and letters of recommendation, the academic standing of the
programs in which the applicant has studied, evidence of appropriate college or
graduate-level work in history courses, test scores, previous grades, and the recommendation
of the Graduate
Committee of the history department.
Each application is considered in the context of other applications to the program,
with due consideration given to the availability of space in the program, the need
to maintain a pool of students of superior potential, and the need to encourage
minority applications. Not every student whose credentials meet stated quantitative
standards is admitted.
Quantitative requirements
for unconditional admission to M.A. program. The applicant must have a grade
point average, based on a 4.0 system, of 3.0 overall or 3.0 for the last 60 semester
hours in a degree program, and a score of at least 1500 on the combined verbal,
quantitative, and analytical portions of the Graduate Record Examination. Applicants
who take the GRE after October 1, 2002, must score at least 1000 on the combined
verbal and quantitative portions and at least 4 on the analytical writing section.
Quantitative requirements
for conditional admission to M.A. program. An applicant whose credentials do
not meet the requirements for regular admission may be considered for conditional
admission if he or she has a quality point average of at least 2.5 overall and a
score of 1400 on the GRE. For applicants who take the GRE after October 1, 2002,
conditional admission will require a score of 930 on the combined verbal and quantitative
portions and at least 4 on the analytical writing portion. Conditional admission
is rare and requires a special recommendation by the Graduate Committee. Students
admitted conditionally must maintain a 3.0 average for the first 12 semester hours
attempted. Failure to do so will result in dismissal from the program.
Special requirements
for admission to Ph.D. program. Students applying to the Ph.D. program are expected
to have GRE scores substantially above the minimum acceptable for M.A. applicants,
a GPA in previous graduate work of 3.5 or better, and strong recommendations. Normally
a successful applicant must also be endorsed by a faculty member prepared to serve
as chairperson of the student's dissertation committee.
General Degree
Requirements
Course load.
Resident students are expected to register for full loads each semester—at least
9 hours, except in the case of.50 FTE teaching assistants, who must take at least
6 hours. All courses must be numbered 500 or above, but
HY 699 Dissertation Research does not count toward the course hour
requirement for any graduate degree.
Historiography requirement. All
incoming graduate students (M.A. or Ph.D.), unless specifically exempted by
the Graduate Committee, must take at least two of the basic historiography
courses (HY 601/HY 602 Literature of American History,
HY 603 Literature of
European history, and HY 605 Literature of Latin American History) as part
of their degree program. They are encouraged to take these courses as early
as possible in their program.
Seminar requirement.
All M.A. students who choose Plan II (described under "Requirements for the M.A.
Program" below) must take at least one research seminar. All doctoral students must
complete two research seminars.
Language requirement.
Unless specified to the contrary, all graduate degree programs in history require
that each student demonstrate reading proficiency in one or more foreign languages.
These languages should be selected from the standard research languages (Spanish,
French, German, and Russian), but other languages relevant to the student's program
may be substituted with the recommendation of the student's advisor and the permission
of the Graduate Committee. The student must fulfill this requirement by passing
the examination administered by the relevant language department at The University
of Alabama. Completion of any of the various "language for reading proficiency"
courses offered at The University of Alabama with a final grade of "B" or above
also meets the language requirement.
Requirements
for the M.A. Program
Plan I:
Coursework.
Coursework totaling 24 credit hours in history and a thesis (an additional 6 credit
hours of HY 599) are required, and the student must demonstrate reading proficiency
in one foreign language before taking the final oral examination.
Thesis. The
topic of the thesis will be selected by the student in consultation with his or
her advisor. After the topic has been agreed upon, the student will prepare a prospectus
describing the topic and the proposed plan of approach, including the principal
sources to be used. Copies of the prospectus will be distributed to the student's
advisory committee, which shall consist of three members, all of whom must indicate
their acceptance of the topic.
Oral exam. The
Plan I oral exam is on the M.A. coursework and the thesis. The examination committee
consists of the three professors who served as readers on the thesis, plus at least
one additional history professor and the representative of an outside department—if
possible, someone who is familiar with the thesis subject area. The M.A. thesis
must be submitted to the student's primary advisor no later than six weeks before
the scheduled defense, and the revised thesis must be submitted to the remaining
members of the student's advisory committee at least three weeks before the scheduled
defense. The examining committee files with the director of graduate studies a written
opinion regarding the student's suitability for further graduate work in history.
Plan II:
Coursework.
Coursework totaling 30 credit hours in history is required, and the student must
demonstrate proficiency in reading one foreign language before taking the
final oral examination.
Oral exam. Plan
II students must take an oral examination on their history courses and on a revised
seminar paper, copies of which must be furnished to the members of the examining
committee at least 10 days before the date of the oral examination. The examining
committee consists of at least five history professors, including as many as possible
with whom the student has taken courses. The examining committee files with the
director of Graduate Studies a written opinion regarding the student's suitability
for further graduate work in history.
Special note
on M.A. oral exams. In all of the M.A. oral examinations, two negative votes
constitute failure of the examination. History graduate students may repeat failed
oral examinations one time only, after an interval specified by the examining committee.
Two negative votes constitute denial of admission to the doctoral program. The use
of faculty from outside the department to serve on M.A. examination committees (except
in cases where faculty from other disciplines are prescribed by the graduate regulations)
must be approved well in advance by the Graduate Committee.
Requirements
for the Ph.D. Program
History field requirements.
The Ph.D. degree is offered in
United States
history, history of the South, modern British and European history, Latin American
history, and military and naval history. The four general divisions are separated
into the following fields:
United States history to 1877
United States history since 1877
History of the South
British and European history, 1485 to 1815
British and European history, 1815 to present
Latin American history to 1810
Latin American history since 1810
Military and naval history
The
Ph.D. requires a total of 54 hours of graduate coursework. M.A.
hours, including those accepted for transfer from other
institutions, are included in this total. Ph.D. students will offer
four fields of history, with at least two, but not more than three,
related to the same geographic area (U.S., Europe, or Latin
America). The student must earn at least 12 hours of graduate credit
in each of the four fields.
Beyond the 48 hours of history distributed in fields, the student
must earn 6 additional hours of graduate credit (a) in a field
outside the history department; (b) in history, but in fields not
presented for the Ph.D.; or (c) in history, but as additional hours
in one or more of the fields presented for the Ph.D.
Language requirement.
Each student is expected to demonstrate a reading knowledge of two foreign languages,
with the exception of those whose major fields are in American history. Those working
primarily in American history must demonstrate a knowledge of only one foreign language,
although any advisor may require his or her student to continue to fulfill the two-language
requirement if it seems necessary to the area of the student's research. For those
who must satisfy the two-language requirement, a special skill pertinent to the
candidate's doctoral dissertation may be substituted for one language on the recommendation
of the student's advisor and with the permission of the Graduate Committee. The
language and special skill requirements must be met before the scheduling of the
comprehensive examinations.
Comprehensive examinations.
The comprehensive examinations for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. consist
of a four-hour written examination in each of three fields of history offered by
the candidate, each administered by a committee of two or more professors representing
the respective field. An oral examination will be administered subsequently by a
committee consisting of not less than five professors who administered the written
examinations. The comprehensive examinations are to be completed in a two-week period,
with the written exams given the first week and the oral exam given the following
week. The exam schedule must allow at least five days between the last written exam
and the date of the oral exam. The written and oral exams in each field are considered
a unit, which the student will pass or fail as a whole. Two negative votes constitute
failure. A minimum of six months must elapse before the student may repeat a failed
examination, the time of which will be set by the examining committee. A student
is permitted to repeat a failed examination one time only.
Dissertation.
Dissertations are to be based upon research in history and make an original contribution
to knowledge. Each doctoral student will select and obtain approval for a dissertation
topic before scheduling his or her comprehensive examinations. Students will select
dissertation topics in consultation with their advisors. After the topic has been
agreed upon, the student will prepare a prospectus describing the topic and the
proposed plan of approach, including the principal sources to be pursued.
Copies of the prospectus will be distributed
to the members of the student’s comprehensive exam committee in advance of
the oral examination. The prospectus is accepted or rejected at the time of
the oral comprehensive examination.
The
Graduate School
requires each student admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. to pursue completion of
the dissertation without interruption by enrolling each semester in
HY 699 for at least 3 credit hours. The student must register for
a total of at least 24 hours of dissertation research.
Final oral examination.
The candidate must pass an oral examination on the dissertation and the field of
the dissertation in accordance with the rules of the
Graduate School. The examination committee consists of the three professors who served as readers
on the dissertation, plus at least one additional history professor and a representative
of an outside department. Two negative votes constitute failure of the examination,
which the student may repeat one time only, after an interval specified by the examining
committee.
Using outside faculty
on Ph.D. examinations. Except in cases where faculty from other disciplines
are prescribed by the graduate regulations, the use of faculty from outside the
department to serve on Ph.D. comprehensive or oral examinations must be approved
well in advance by the Graduate Committee.
Scholastic
Requirements
Any student who receives 6 hours
of "C" grades or 3 hours of "D" or "F" grades in history courses shall be dismissed
from the program, although the student dismissed may petition the Graduate Committee
for reinstatement.
A student on probation or whose
transcript carries a grade of "I" will ordinarily be ineligible for a teaching assistantship
or other departmental financial support.
Transfer of
Credit
Courses of full-graduate level credit earned
in an accredited institution where a student was enrolled in the graduate
school may be submitted for review for inclusion in a History degree
program. Evaluation of credit for transfer will not be made until the
student has enrolled in the Graduate School of The University of Alabama.
Acceptance of credit requires the approval of the student’s advisor, the
Graduate Committee of the Department of History, and the Dean of the
Graduate School. Credit will not be accepted for transfer from any
institution at which the student failed to achieve a “B” average on all of
the graduate work attempted.
A student initiates with the Graduate School a request for evaluation of
graduate credit obtained at another institution. The form is available at
the “Web Forms” icon of the Graduate School’s homepage. It is also the
student’s responsibility to ensure than an official transcript of the credit
concerned is received by the Graduate School. All credit toward the M.A.
degree must have been earned during the six years immediately preceding the
date on which the degree is awarded. All credit toward the Ph.D. must have
been earned in the six years immediately preceding admission to the doctoral
program.
The history department usually allows
the transfer of 6 semester hours of credit toward the M.A. degree, although in exceptional
cases up to 12 hours may be accepted. No more than one-half of Ph.D. coursework
hours (not including HY 699) may be transferred from another institution.
Course Descriptions
HY 500 Special Studies in History. Three hours.
HY 501 Japanese Civilization to 1550. Three hours.
Survey of Japanese history from the beginning through the 16th
century. Major emphasis is on the period after A.D. 400.
HY 502 Modern Japan since 1550. Three hours.
Major emphasis is on the end of the Tokugawa Period (1800–68) and
the rise of modernized Japan in the Meiji Period (1868–1912) and the
20th century.
HY 503 Chinese Civilization to 1600. Three hours.
Survey of Chinese culture from the Shang Period through the Ming
Period. Robel.
HY 504 Modern China since 1600. Three hours.
Survey of Chinese history in the Ch'ing Dynasty and the 20th
century. Major emphasis is on 19th- and 20th-century events. Robel.
HY 508 Colonial United States to 1763. Three hours.
Topical survey of major themes in U.S. colonial history, with
particular emphasis on Anglo-American developments. Selesky.
HY 509 American Revolution and the Founding of the Nation,
1763–1815. Three hours.
The development of revolutionary sentiment in the North American
colonies, the resulting revolution, and the subsequent efforts to
establish the new nation.
HY 513 From the Mexican War through the Civil War. Three
hours.
Examines how Americans made war in the middle of the 19th century
and how waging war affected the evolution of politics and society.
Selesky.
HY 516 U.S. from Reconstruction to World War I. Three hours.
Selected topics relating to the development of the U.S., especially
domestic affairs and the growth of important institutions. Beito.
HY 517 U.S. from World War I through World War II. Three
hours.
Covers the participation of the U.S. in two world wars and the
events of the intervening years. Government, commerce, and industry
receive attention and analysis.
HY 521 American Legal History (same as LAW 772). Three hours.
Critical history of American law and institutions, emphasizing the
period since 1750. Freyer, Holt.
HY 522 History of American Labor Law (same as LAW 617). Three
hours.
Problems in the legal history of U.S. labor movements, including
slavery law, the law and the American worker, the labor conspiracy
doctrine, the labor injunction, and the growth of federal labor
legislation and case law. Holt.
HY 523 Constitutional History of the U.S. to 1877. Three
hours.
Deals with evolution of U.S. constitutional law and the nature and
process of judicial review, including 18th-century constitutional
theory and Supreme Court decisions. Freyer.
HY 524 Constitutional History of the U.S. since 1877. Three
hours.
Continuation of HY 523. Freyer.
HY 525 Rise of America to World Power. Three hours.
Survey of American foreign policy from the Revolution to the
Spanish-American War of 1898. Jones.
HY 526 U.S. as a World Power, 1898 to the Present. Three
hours.
Survey of American foreign policy from the Spanish-American War of
1898 to the present. Jones.
HY 529 American South and Southwest, 1513–1821. Three hours.
History of the Spanish advance into the present-day borders of the
U.S., explaining how Spain fought and finally succumbed to the more
dynamic and aggressive French and English. Clayton.
HY 530 U.S. Economic History since the Colonial Period. Three
hours.
A survey of U.S. economic history from the colonial period to the
present. Emphasis will be placed on the role of business, social,
and voluntary organizations. Beito.
HY 534 U.S. Social History to 1865. Three hours.
Topical survey of major social forces in the U.S., emphasizing the
colonial experience of Americans and its impact on future
generations. Beito.
HY 535 U.S. Social History since 1865. Three hours.
Topical survey of major social forces, with particular emphasis on
immigration, voluntary association, and suburbanization. Beito.
HY 541 History of the U.S.–Vietnam War. Three hours.
A survey of the historical background of the conflict in Indochina
leading to U.S. involvement in that conflict. Jones, Robel.
HY 542 The Middle Ages. Three hours.
Foundations of the modern world in barbarian Europe : retreat into
the countryside and private government, recovery of public
institutions, money economy, and cultural vitality.
HY 543 Renaissance. Three hours.
Intellectual movements associated with the Renaissance, with
readings in Machiavelli's Prince, More's Utopia, and other humanist
writings; social and economic life, religion, politics, and
statecraft. McClure.
HY 544 Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Three hours.
History of the separation of Catholic and Protestant churches from
the ideal of the universal Christian church; late-Medieval religious
practice. McClure.
HY 545 17th-Century Europe. Three hours.
Troubled times, dominated by wars, depressions, harvest failures,
and epidemics, but also the times of Baroque art, classical
literature, critical philosophy, and scientific revolution. Ultee.
HY 546 Age of Reason, 1715–89. Three hours.
The Enlightenment of Voltaire, Diderot, Rousseau, Franklin, Hume,
Goethe, and Kant, whose writings exalted individual reason,
tolerance, liberalism, science, and public service and set the stage
for the French Revolution. Ultee.
HY 547 French Revolution and Napoleon. Three hours.
Causes, course, and effects of the revolution, from the storming of
the Bastille to Napoleon's seizure of power, conquests, and final
defeat at Waterloo. Ultee.
HY 548 Europe, 1815–50. Three hours.
Europe in the first half of the 19th century: industrial expansion,
changes in social structure, and the new ideologies of romanticism,
nationalism, socialism, and liberalism.
HY 549 Europe, 1850–1914. Three hours.
Culture and history of Europe to World War I: major institutions,
values, and ideas, as well as the social environment in which
Europeans lived.
HY 551 Europe since 1914. Three hours.
Zenith and decline of the great imperial powers of Europe through
World Wars I and II; tensions of the Cold War, the Common Market,
and European unity.
HY 554 German History to 1740. Three hours.
A survey of the Germanies from the early migrations to the rise of
Prussia under the Hohenzollern dynasty, with emphasis on the
development of German particularism and distinctive characteristics.
HY 555 German History since 1740. Three hours.
A survey of German history from Frederick the Great to Adolph
Hitler, with emphasis on the Austro-Prussian conflict, the
Bismarckian Empire, and the two world wars.
HY 557 World War I. Three hours.
"The War to End All Wars," from the European crises culminating at
Sarajevo in 1914 to peacemaking at Versailles in 1919. Major
emphasis is on the western and eastern fronts and on the war at sea.
Beeler.
HY 558 World War II. Three hours.
The global conflict—or series of conflicts—from Manchukuo in 1931 to
Tokyo Bay in 1945. Battles on land, at sea, and in the air; life on
the home fronts and in enemy-occupied areas; and the war's legacy to
future generations. Selesky.
HY 561 Russia to 1894. Three hours.
Conventional political history of Russia from the ninth century to
the 19th century, followed by the social and cultural history of the
Russian revolutionary movement. Hagenloh.
HY 562 History of Russia since 1894. Three hours.
Crisis in Russian society and the coming of the revolution;
emergence of Stalinism; and political developments since World War
II, including the post-Cold War era. Hagenloh.
HY 570 Spanish Viceroyalties of America. Three hours.
The conquest and colonization of America by Spain, from the voyages
of Columbus to the Wars of Independence in the early 19th century.
Clayton.
HY 571 The Age of Exploration and Conquest. Three hours.
A history of exploration from ancient times to the 16th and 17th
centuries, when European nations expanded by sea voyages and
conquest, penetrating the Americas, Africa, and Asia and basically
completing the geographical knowledge of the earth. Clayton.
HY 572 Modernization of South America. Three hours.
Survey of political, economic, and social trends in the major
nations since 1930. Delpar.
HY 573 The Andean Nations. Three hours.
Examines the political, economic, social, and cultural history of
the Andean nations since independence, with emphasis on Colombia,
Peru, and Venezuela. Delpar, Clayton.
HY 574 Relations of the U.S. and Latin America. Three hours.
Chronological survey of diplomatic, economic, and cultural
relations, with emphasis on the 20th century. Delpar.
HY 575 Caribbean Basin, 1492 to the Present. Three hours.
Traces the evolution of the nations of the Caribbean and Central
America from the first European settlements in the 16th century to
the present. Delpar.
HY 580 Survey of Military History. Three hours.
Introduction to the field of military history and to the writing of
military history from ancient times to the present, with an emphasis
on the 19th and 20th centuries. Selesky.
HY 583 Comparative Revolutions in the Modern World. Three
hours.
Comparative study of revolutionary movements in the Western and
non-Western worlds.
HY 590 England under the Tudors. Three hours.
Development of an early modern state: establishment of strong
central monarchy, religious crises from the Reformation to the
Puritan movement, and exuberance and excess of an expanding society.
Mendle.
HY 591 England under the Stuarts. Three hours.
How Englishmen of the 17th century worked out the great questions of
their day: Was liberty compatible with strong and effective
government? Could English elites share their power without
destroying it? Finally, what did God want for England ? Mendle.
HY 593 Britain in the 18th Century. Three hours.
From the Hanoverian Succession in 1714 to victory at Waterloo in
1815: political development, agrarian and industrial revolutions,
John Wesley, Samuel Johnson, and an apparently endless succession of
wars. Beeler.
HY 594 Britain in the Victorian Age. Three hours.
Britain at her apogee: possessor of the empire on which the sun
never set; world economic leader; nation of Peel and Palmerston,
Gladstone and Disraeli, Dickens and Trollope, Tennyson and Browning,
Turner and Constable, and Victoria and Albert. Beeler.
HY 595 Britain in the 20th Century. Three hours.
The course looks at Britain from the death of Queen Victoria to Mrs.
Thatcher: the decline of the British Empire, the two World Wars, the
rise of the welfare state, the Common Market, and economic
resurgence.
HY 599 Thesis Research. One to six hours.
HY 600 Teaching History. One hour.
Group I—Historiography Courses
HY 601 Literature of American History to 1865. Four hours.
HY 602 Literature of American History since 1865. Four hours.
HY 603 Literature of European History. Four hours.
HY 605 Literature of Latin American History. Four hours.
Group II—Proseminars
HY 606 Proseminar in United States History to 1877. Four
hours.
HY 607 Proseminar in United States History since 1877. Four
hours.
HY 608 Proseminar in Southern History. Four hours.
HY 620 Proseminar in Latin American History. Four hours.
HY 631 Proseminar in Early Modern British and European History.
Four hours.
HY 635 Proseminar in Recent British and European History.
Four hours.
HY 639 Proseminar in Military and Naval History. Four hours.
Group III—Seminars
HY 651 Seminar in United States History to 1877. Four hours.
HY 657 Seminar in United States History since 1877. Four
hours.
HY 658 Seminar in Southern History. Four hours.
HY 660 Seminar in State and Local History. Four hours.
HY 665 Special Studies Seminar. Four hours.
HY 670 Seminar in Latin American History. Four hours.
HY 682 Seminar in British and European History. Four hours.
HY 684 Seminar in Military and Naval History. Four hours.
Group IV—Directed Study
HY 697 Directed Readings. One to four hours.
Prerequisite: Written permission of the director of graduate
studies.
HY 698 Directed Research not Related to Dissertation. One to
four hours.
Written permission of the director of graduate studies is required
for admission.
HY 699 Dissertation Research. Three to twelve hours.
Not to be counted for required credit for advanced degrees.
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