Graduate Programs

Welcome to the University of Oregon’s History graduate program. MA and PhD students in History join a community of scholars with diverse thematic and geographical specializations. We are large enough to accommodate a wide range of scholarly interests but small enough to provide close working relationships between faculty and students, as well as a collegial environment. At University of Oregon, History graduate students can benefit from an array of interdisciplinary programs, excellent language departments, and a research library of more than two million volumes, along with many other resources.

The History department has an outstanding graduate faculty. We are large enough to have a wide array of geographical and thematic specialties, but small enough to provide close working relationships between faculty and graduate students, as well as a collegial environment. For any questions about the graduate program, please contact our director of graduate studies at HistDGS@uoregon.edu.


Carlow Aguirre, History department

Master’s Degree

Our MA program provides students and their faculty advisors with maximum flexibility in designing fields of study. Many of our MA students choose to continue their studies in our PhD program, while others have won admission into some of the most prestigious programs in North America, including Princeton University, the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Chicago, the University of Toronto, and the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Master’s Requirements


History graduate student Victor Ochoa

Finding a Community

“As a first-generation Chicano graduate student, I really felt isolated during the first week of my first year. Within a few days, however, the history folks welcomed me with open arms, invited me out to graduate functions, and happily connected me with other Chicanos/Latinos across departments and across the country. I truly couldn’t have asked for better friends nor a better community!”

—Victor Ochoa, MA alumni  


Doctorate Degree

Our PhD program combines an emphasis on research and teaching designed to equip students to compete successfully for faculty positions. We offer focal fields in the North American West/Borderlands, Indigenous People/Native Americans, environmental history, African American/African history, the history of women/gender/sexuality, Asia (with particular strengths in the history of China and Japan), Latin America, and transnational history.


Three students smiling at the camera outside of McKenzie Hall

PhD Focal Fields

Working with their advisors, graduate students in History, particularly in the PhD program, are encouraged to develop innovative fields of study tailored to their individual interests. Thematic, comparative, and methodological fields that cut across conventional geographical and chronological boundaries are all possible.

Focal Fields


Michele Pflug standing with landscape of plants and old building behind her

Researching with Fellow Scholars

“The intellectual community here at UO has greatly enriched my research experience. The history faculty and graduate students provide a supportive environment in which to explore a range of themes and methodologies tailored to fit students’ unique interests. I’m so glad to be part of a community that encourages such innovative, impactful scholarship.   ”

—Michele Pflug, current graduate student

Direct Your Own Coursework

The Department of History offers courses on the history of classical antiquity, Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, colonial North America and the United States, and the world as a whole.

Courses


Funding Your Graduate Studies

The Department of History meets the challenges of funding graduate education by supporting its students with graduate employee appointments; a variety of internal awards; and university-wide fellowships, grants, and prizes.

Funding and Research Support


Prepare for the Professional World

A graduate degree in history prepares students for a wide variety of careers, including academic research.

Career and Professional Development


History PhD graduate Hayley Brazier

Curating for Conservation

Hayley Brazier graduated from the Department of History with a PhD in 2023. Her interdisciplinary training, research, and teaching experience at the University of Oregon helped her land a position as the Donald M. Kerr Curator of Natural History at the High Desert Museum. As a curator, she crafts exhibits, acts as a subject matter expert on environmental topics, and helps to shape the museum's conservation initiatives and messaging.


Our Graduate Students

Pursue your research within our vibrant community of collaborative and passionate graduate students.

Resources for the Graduate Community


Events

How to Be Ready for the BIG10 Academia Career Fair
Oct14
How to Be Ready for the BIG10 Academia Career Fair Oct 14
How to: Resume and Cover Letter Tips Workshop
Oct14
How to: Resume and Cover Letter Tips Workshop Oct 14 Willie and Donald Tykeson Hall
Physical Chemistry Seminar: “Spectroscopic Studies of Nucleic Acid Structure, Dynamics and Photophysics”
Oct14
Physical Chemistry Seminar: “Spectroscopic Studies of Nucleic Acid Structure, Dynamics and Photophysics” Oct 14 Willie and Donald Tykeson Hall
History Pub Lecture Series: "Malaria Eradication in Africa, 1920-2020: A History of Failures, but What About the Present?"
Oct14
History Pub Lecture Series: "Malaria Eradication in Africa, 1920-2020: A History of Failures, but What About the Present?" Oct 14 Whirled Pies Downtown
Department of History Coffee Hour
Oct15
Department of History Coffee Hour Oct 15 McKenzie Hall
Disabled and Neurodivergent Graduate Student Time Together
Oct15
Disabled and Neurodivergent Graduate Student Time Together Oct 15 Susan Campbell Hall
The Roots of Polarization: From the Racial Realignment to the Culture Wars
Oct15
The Roots of Polarization: From the Racial Realignment to the Culture Wars Oct 15 William W. Knight Law Center
How to Be Ready for the Graduate Student & Postdoc Industry Recruitment Event (GSPIRE)
Oct15
How to Be Ready for the Graduate Student & Postdoc Industry Recruitment Event (GSPIRE) Oct 15
The BIG 10+ Academia Career Fair
Oct16
The BIG 10+ Academia Career Fair Oct 16
Resume Extravaganza! (Drop-In Resume Reviews with Career Coaches & Peer Coaches)
Oct16
Resume Extravaganza! (Drop-In Resume Reviews with Career Coaches & Peer Coaches) Oct 16 Willie and Donald Tykeson Hall