DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY

The Department
Chairperson: George Urbaniak
Graduate Officer: Michael Sibalis
Director of the Tri-University Doctoral Program: Richard Reid (Guelph)

The Tri-University Graduate Programs - MA and PhD
The Department, together with the departments of History at the University of Guelph and the University of Waterloo, offers a joint program leading to MA and PhD degrees.  Students in the program register at one of the three universities but may complete course work and use faculty and library resources at all participating universities. Students are governed by the university in which they are registered and their degree is granted by the home university.

The Tri-University Graduate Program uses a self-administered application process in which the onus is on the applicant to collect and submit all required documentation and material.  Only students who are graduates of accredited universities and colleges are eligible for admission. Applications are considered by the co-ordinating committee and a recommendation for admission or rejection is forwarded to the dean of Graduate Studies at the proposed home university.

PhD Fields

Faculty

Wilfrid Laurier University

Adjunct Faculty University of Guelph University of Waterloo MA Admission Requirements
In order to be admitted to the master's program, a student must meet the general admission requirements of the university. In addition, a minimum admission average of B+ in the last two years of undergraduate study, exclusive of first year level courses in those two years, is required. An honours graduate in a program other than history or general degree graduates may be admitted if evidence justifying admission is offered; however, a program of appropriate preparatory studies (qualifying year) will be required of such applicants.
    Language requirements: Students are expected to be proficient in the language or languages needed in their areas of research.

MA Program Requirements
A candidate for the Master of Arts degree in history has three alternative streams of study. The thesis stream includes four seminar courses and a research requirement of a thesis with an oral defence. The major research paper stream includes six seminar courses and a research requirement of a major research paper with an oral defence. The course-only stream includes eight seminar courses and a requirement to write a research paper in at least three of the eight courses in which the student is enrolled. To meet the general comprehensive requirement of the university, all courses are organized as seminars. Some seminars are devoted largely to the methodology, preparation and presentation of research papers based on primary sources.  The choice of the stream of study for any individual student will be made through consultation between the student and the department, but the final decision rests with the department.

MA Graduate Courses
Note: Not all courses are offered every year. Contact the department before accepting an offer of admission to determine whether the courses you wish to complete will be offered during your period of residency.

HI600A    0.5
The Nature and Practice of History
A seminar course to acquaint students with important interdisciplinary perspectives that characterize the study of history. The emphasis is upon intensive reading, discussion and critical analysis of representative examples of interpretation and methodology in the historical literature, and their applications to historical research and writing. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI600.)

HI600B    0.5
The Nature and Practice of History: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI600A
HI610A    0.5
War and Society in the 20th Century
This course focuses on the impact of the 20th-century wars on the people of the English-speaking world, especially Canada. The course emphasizes issues related to the Second World War but both seminar discussions and research papers include topics related to the First World War and other 20th-century conflicts. Issues to be examined include: medical and psychiatric developments; personnel selection; veterans' re-establishment programs; the impact of war upon families; economic transformations, including labour relations; as well as a range of military questions arising from operational history. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI461 or HI661.)
HI610B    0.5
War and Society in the 20th Century: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI610A
HI611A    0.5
The Second World War
A seminar course on the military, strategic and diplomatic history of the Second World War, including its immediate aftermath. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI662.)
HI611B    0.5
The Second World War: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI611A
HI612A    0.5
Naval History and International Relations
A seminar in research, reading and analysis of various aspects of naval history and international relations, with particular emphasis on the era 1880 to 1989. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI663.)
HI612B    0.5
Naval History and International Relations: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI612A
HI613A    0.5
Military and Diplomatic History in the 20th Century
A seminar emphasizing research in primary sources on aspects of international conflict in the 20th century. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI467 or HI667.)
HI613B    0.5
Military and Diplomatic History in the 20th Century: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI613A
HI614A    0.5
International History, 1890-1956
This course focuses on the problems of international relations in the years between 1890 and 1956. These years were particularly troubled because of the instability caused by the emergence of new ideologies (like communism and fascism) which challenged traditional conceptions of international order. The course examines the nature of this challenge and the ways more traditional states of all sizes tried to deal with this destabilization. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI454 or HI654.)
HI614B    0.5
International History, 1890-1956: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI614A
HI615A    0.5
War and Genocide in Europe, 1939-45
This course explores the connection between war and genocide as it occurred in Europe during World War II. It will focus on the contextual and instrumental significance of the war with the aim of gaining better understanding of the evolution and implementation of the Holocaust and other genocidal policies. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI696L.)
HI615B    0.5
War and Genocide in Europe, 1939-45: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI615A
HI616A    0.5
War and Remembrance in the Twentieth Century
This course introduces students to the reciprocal relationship between warfare and social development in the twentieth-century English-speaking world outside of North America.
HI616B    0.5
War and Remembrance in the Twentieth Century: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI616A
HI620A    0.5
Canada: The Historical Literature
A seminar involving critical analysis of the major books which have shaped our view of Canadian history. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI471 or HI671.)
HI620B    0.5
Canada: The Historical Literature: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI620A
HI621A    0.5
Canada to 1900
A seminar course emphasizing topics selected from the eras of contact, the French and British regimes and Confederation. Themes may include regional, social, economic, political and cultural problems. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI479 or HI679.)
HI621B    0.5
Canada to 1900: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI621A
HI622A    0.5
Modern Canada
This seminar focuses on topics of historical importance in the recent history of Canada. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI480 or HI680.)
HI622B    0.5
Modern Canada: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI622A
HI623A    0.5
Topics in Regional History
A seminar on the comparative development of the two central provinces in Canada. Emphasis will be on the social and economic evolution of the two societies. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI472 or HI672.)
HI623B    0.5
Topics in Regional History: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI623A
HI624A    0.5
Science and Society in Canada
A seminar course emphasizing the impact of scientific and cultural change in the 19th and 20th centuries. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI475 or HI675.)
HI624B    0.5
Science and Society in Canada: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI624A
HI625A    0.5
Canada's First Nations
This course focuses on recent trends in Canadian Native histiography, from tales of since time immemorial to the (post) colonial gaze. A selected number of themes and approaches will be considered with special attention given to understanding how Native history is (re)interpreted by a variety of disciplines and by both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal historians.
HI625B    0.5
Canada's First Nations: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI625A
HI626A    0.5
Approaches to Local History
A seminar course to introduce students to the micro-historical method, with a focus on communities and historians' treatment of the problem of social, political and economic changes on a local level. ) (Not available for credit who hold credit for HI677.)
HI626B    0.5
Approaches to Local History: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI626A
HI630A    0.5
Later Tudor and Early Stuart England
An analysis of the major historiographical trends and debates in English history from 1558 to 1660. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI481 or HI681.) 
HI630B    0.5
Later Tudor and Early Stuart England: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI630A
HI631A    0.5
British History
A study of the social and cultural history of industrial Britain. The seminar emphasizes the social and cultural impact of industrialization upon Victorian England. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI482 or HI682.) 
HI631B    0.5
British History: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI631A
HI632A    0.5
Imperialism and Popular Culture
Modern imperialism was a powerful instrument of demographic and cultural change. By consent or coercion peoples from diverse regions and cultures were thrown together and they constructed new societies built upon novel forms of social inequality and conflict. This novel multiracial and multicultural dimension of imperialism also had an impact on metropolitan cultures, and gave rise to a correspondingly new discourse on race, gender, class and national identities. Through readings and discussions, students will explore topics dealing with the relationship between imperialism and popular culture in the period of 1850-1914. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI696M.)
HI632B    0.5
Imperialism and Popular Culture: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI632A
HI633A    0.5
Society and Nature in the Victorian Age
A seminar course on selected topics on the development of and the relationship between Victorian social and scientific thought. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI658.)
HI633B    0.5
Society and Nature in the Victorian Age: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI633A
HI640A    0.5
Slavery, Civil War and Emancipation-African Americans in the 19th Century
This seminar focuses on important literature relating to 19th-century American slavery, the Civil War (insofar as it involved Blacks) and emancipation. It examines the nature of the peculiar institution, the manner in which Blacks responded to their enslavement and the events which led to their freedom. It also examines the immediate post-emancipation period and the response of ex-slaves to their new-found freedom. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI483 or HI683.) 
HI640B    0.5
Slavery, Civil War and Emancipation-African Americans in the 19th Century: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI640A
HI641A    0.5
The United States, 1865-1917-Industrialism and Its Response
An examination of post-Civil War economic expansion and the changes it wrought in American society. The course covers the creation of the United States industrial and transportation networks and the development of large-scale entrepreneurial capitalism. It also examines Americans' response to these phenomena, with particular emphasis on the adjustments they made to traditional social, political and economic attitudes. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI484 or HI684.)
HI641B    0.5
The United States, 1865-1917-Industrialism and Its Response: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI641A
HI650A    0.5
Early Modern Europe
Topics discussed focus on social, institutional and intellectual structures and their transformations. Units of reading include: the structure of everyday life; structures of popular culture; mental structures and their transformations; the print revolution and its impact. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI456 or HI656.)
HI650B    0.5
Early Modern Europe: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI650A
HI651A    0.5
Europe and the Overseas World, 1450-1700
This seminar studies European exploration, trade and colonization during the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, and assesses the resultant interaction of African, Amerindian, Asian and European cultures by the examination of selected cases using primary historical sources. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI485 or HI685.)
HI651B    0.5
Europe and the Overseas World, 1450-1700: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI651A
HI652A    0.5
Russian History
Studies in Russian and Soviet history with special emphasis on political and intellectual themes of the 19th and 20th centuries. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI486 or HI686.)
HI652B    0.5
Russian History: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI652A
HI653A    0.5
Paris: Capital of the Nineteenth Century
This course examines aspects of politics, culture and daily life in Paris (the city dubbed "capital of the nineteenth century") in the period 1815-1914 within the wider context of the emergence of modern urban and industrial civilization.
HI654A    0.5
Comparative Revolutions
A comparative study of revolutions, giving attention primarily to the classic revolutions of modern European history. Attention is given to problems in comparative history, particularly the problems in comparing societies caught up in revolutionary and pre-revolutionary conditions. (Not available for credit to students holding credit for HI487 or HI687.)
HI654B    0.5
Comparative Revolutions: Research Seminar
Prerequisite: HI654A
HI695
Major Research Paper
A research paper of approximately 60 to 80 pages in an area of special interest to the student, which completes the requirements in the second stream of study.
HI696
Directed Studies
HI699
Thesis
PhD Admission Requirements
All inquiries and applications concerning this program should be addressed to the director, Tri-University Graduate Program in History. All applications requesting financial support for the fall term must be received by the Tri-University Graduate Program in History and be complete by February 1. Successful applicants will begin the PhD program in September. The Tri-University Graduate Program uses a self-administered application process in which the onus is on the applicant to collect and submit all required documentation and material.

Applications are considered by the co-ordinating committee and a recommendation for admission or rejection is forwarded to the dean of Graduate Studies at the proposed home university. Only students who are graduates of accredited universities and colleges are eligible for admission. Students will be admitted only after they have obtained an MA in which they have received at least an A- standing. Since not all applicants can be admitted, close attention is paid to samples of applicants' written work, applicants' transcripts and past record as a whole, and to their statement of research interests.

Candidates for admission to the PhD program in history whose chosen area of research requires a language other than English must demonstrate sufficient language skills prior to admission. This is normally the equivalent of the skills acquired in a 200-level university course.

Applicants from outside Canada whose previous education cannot be assessed readily may be required to demonstrate their knowledge by other means such as the Graduate Record Examination. Non-Canadian applicants whose first language is other than French or English are required to submit evidence of proficiency in the English language or pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). A net score of at least 600 is required.

Applicants to the program indicate a preference for the University of Guelph, Wilfrid Laurier University or the University of Waterloo, depending on where their proposed thesis supervisor is located. Students in the program are governed by the general regulations of the university in which they are registered and their degree is granted by that university. Registration at one university for three degrees (BA, MA, PhD) is discouraged.

PhD Program Requirements

Second Language
Students must demonstrate a reading knowledge of French (or other appropriate second language, approved by the co-ordinating committee). For details regarding second language credit and other regulations, students should consult the Tri-University Graduate Program handbook.

The language exam will be offered every fall and winter term and must be passed before the student is allowed to sit the Comprehensive Examination or the Colloquium. Students normally take the language exam by the conclusion of their second term/semester of registration. In the event of failure they must attempt the test every subsequent semester until it is passed or the student decides to withdraw from the program. Failure to comply with this requirement may involve termination of the program or denial of financial assistance.

The same requirement will hold for students whose native language is French except that it will be applied to a reading knowledge of English.

Doctoral Seminar
Students are expected to attend the Doctoral Seminar each semester in which they are registered during the residency period. They are required to register for the Doctoral Seminar once, normally towards the end of their residency period. Fulfilment of the requirements of the Doctoral Seminar includes the presentation and defence of a scholarly conference paper.

PhD Fields and Areas
Each student is required to demonstrate competency in one major field and two minor areas. The student's advisory committee, in collaboration with the student, will establish the fields to be examined and will select either the comprehensive or colloquium mode of examination.

One minor area must be in an area of study outside the major field. One of the minor areas may be in another discipline. The distinction between a major field and a minor area is determined by the depth and range of reading rather than by its geographical or chronological span. There will be reading lists for the fields and areas which will establish a basic core of readings but allow some flexibility as to overall content in any given year. Each student must receive a detailed written outline of each field or area requirement from the supervisor at the beginning of their field or area preparation. A copy of the field and areas requirements and any changes subsequently agreed thereto must be filed with the tri-university director. The minor areas and major field are designed so that a student can complete the major in two terms and both minors in another two terms.

As a partial fulfilment of their field preparations, students must take a seminar in each of their areas and field. A student will take a seminar in every area or field for which he/she is responsible, even when these seminars contain only one student and amount to a reading course. Each field and area is larger than the seminar and the student is responsible for material beyond the seminar in order to satisfy the field or area requirements.

The program will offer field and area seminars annually in which faculty and graduate students from all three campuses will participate. In cases where students taking a minor area seminar seek a survey coverage of the area, those students will normally be in the same seminar as those taking the major field seminar.

Upon completion of their field and areas, students proceed to either the Comprehensive Examinations or the Colloquium:

The comprehensive mode requires the student to complete one historiographic essay for each field or area seminar, one written examination in each field or area and an oral qualifying examination covering the major field and two minor areas. In some cases, where additional preparation seems necessary, an additional essay may be required. The examination will be drawn up by the supervisor of each field or area and will be approved by the examining committee approximately one week in advance of the examination. There will be a common exam for students in the same field or area at the same time. All three examinations will normally be written within a two-week period by the start of the sixth semester. The examination answers will be marked by the examining committee which will normally comprise the student's doctoral supervisor as well as the instructor(s) of the major field and the two minor areas of concentration. Together they will award a mark in the Major Field (HI704), the First Minor Area (HI705) and the Second Minor Area (HI706). Following successful completion of the written examinations, the student will proceed, approximately two weeks later, to the Oral Qualifying Examination before the same committee. The committee will assign a mark for the Oral Qualifying Examination (HI701). A student who fails a field or one or more areas in the Oral Qualifying Exam may attempt them a second time, but will first have to retake the relevant written examination in the field or area(s).

The colloquium mode requires that students complete two essays to be written in each field or area. One of the essays will be the historiographical paper which is submitted as part of seminar requirements. The mark for the field or area will be determined by the two papers, based on 40 percent for the historiographic paper and 60 percent for the second paper. Following the completion of preparations, the student will present an independent research paper on a topic approved by their advisory committee, and will be examined intensively on that topic at an oral defence (HI702). For students in the colloquium mode the examination will occur in the first month of the seventh semester of the student's registration, except in cases where approval has been given by the co-ordinating committee.

Failure to complete either colloquium or comprehensive examinations within the stipulated time may lead to a suspension of funding support. The examining committee for the colloquium and comprehensive modes will normally be composed of the thesis supervisor and the field supervisors, and will be chaired by the director or designate; at least one of the committee members must be from another campus. Continuation in the program after the oral examination or colloquium requires at least a B+ average, based on all courses taken in the program to that point.

PhD Thesis Requirements
Following successful completion of the colloquium or qualifying examination, the student must complete, under the supervision of a tri-university doctoral program faculty member, an original research project on an advanced topic. Each candidate will be required to write a thesis of such originality and cogency that it would be publishable, in whole or in part, with minor revisions. The thesis should normally be between 50,000 and 90,000 words in length. The regulations and procedures at the university in which the student is enrolled will govern the thesis format and the thesis examination.

Decisions in the PhD Thesis Defence
Five decisions are open to the examining committee:

  • Accepted - Thesis may require typographical and/or minor editorial corrections to be made to the satisfaction of the supervisor.
  • Accepted with modifications - Thesis requires minor changes in substance or major editorial changes which are to be made to the satisfaction of members of the examining committee designated by the committee.  The examining committee's report must include a brief outline of the nature of the changes required and must indicate the time by which the changes should be completed.  Normally such changes should be completed within four weeks of the date of the examination.
  • Accepted conditionally - Thesis requires more substantive changes, but will be acceptable when these changes are made to the satisfaction of those members of the examining committee designated by the committee.  The examining committee's report must include a brief outline of the nature of the changes required, and the date by which the changes are to be completed.
  • Decision deferred - Thesis requires modifications of a substantial nature, the need for which makes the acceptability of the thesis questionable.  The examining committee's report must contain a brief outline of the modifications expected and should indicate the time by which the changes are to be completed.  The revised thesis must be resubmitted for re-examination.  Normally, the re-examination will follow the same procedures as for the initial submission except that the display period may be reduced or eliminated at the discretion of the appropriate graduate dean.  Normally the same examining committee will serve.  A decision to defer is open only once for each candidate.
  • Rejected - Thesis is rejected.  The examining committee shall report the reasons for rejection.  A student whose doctoral thesis has been rejected is required to withdraw from the PhD program.
    • If the examining committee is not prepared to reach a decision at the time of the thesis defence, it is the responsibility of the chair to determine what additional information is required by the committee to reach a decision, to arrange to obtain this information for the committee, and to call another meeting of the committee as soon as the required information is available.  It is also the responsibility of the chair to inform the candidate about the delay.

    PhD Graduate Courses

    HI700    0.5
    Doctoral Seminar
    This seminar is scheduled every semester to discuss research problems and issues of professional interest. Graded on a P (pass)/F (fail) basis.

    HI701    1.0
    Qualifying Examination
    This oral examination is designed to assess 1) the student's knowledge of the subject matter and ability to integrate the material in the major and minor fields, and 2) the student's ability and promise in research.
    HI702    1.0
    Colloquium
    A public presentation of the student's research in the major field is assessed on the basis of 1) the student's knowledge of the subject matter and ability to integrate the material, and 2) the student's ability and promise in research.
    HI703    0.5
    Language Requirement
    A written demonstration of the student's reading knowledge of French (or other appropriate second language). Graded on a P (pass) / F (fail) basis.
    HI704    1.0
    Major Field
    HI705    0.5
    First Minor Field
    HI706    0.5
    Second Minor Field
    HI799    2.0
    PhD Thesis
    The following courses are designed to study the central issues, ideas and historiography of the designated major field.

    HI710    1.0
    Canadian History Major Seminar

    HI711    1.0
    British History Major Seminar
    HI712    1.0
    Scottish History Major Seminar
    HI713    1.0
    Community Studies Major Seminar
    HI714    1.0
    Early Modern European History Major Seminar
    HI715    1.0
    Modern European History Major Seminar
    HI716    1.0
    Gender, Women and Family Major Seminar
    HI717    1.0
    Race, Class, Imperialism and Slavery Major Seminar
    HI718    1.0
    United States History Major Seminar
    The following courses are designed to study the central issues, ideas and historiography of the designated minor field.

    HI760    0.5
    Canadian History Minor Seminar

    HI761    0.5
    British History Minor Seminar
    HI762    0.5
    Scottish History Minor Seminar
    HI763    0.5
    Community Studies Minor Seminar
    HI764    0.5
    Early Modern European History Minor Seminar
    HI765    0.5
    Modern European History Minor Seminar
    HI766    0.5
    Gender, Women and Family Minor Seminar
    HI767    0.5
    Race, Class, Imperialism and Slavery Minor Seminar
    HI768    0.5
    United States History Minor Seminar
    HI769    0.5
    International History Minor Seminar
    HI770    0.5
    Science, Medicine and Technology Minor Seminar
    HI771    0.5
    Other Minor Seminar