Detailed Information
Program of Study
Villanova University is one of relatively few academic institutions in the country that offer only an M.A. degree in history, rather than the M.A. and Ph.D. The program seeks to encourage students’ love of history and strengthen their analytical and interpretive skills to meet diverse career goals.
Over the course of an academic year (fall and spring semesters and a summer term), twenty-one different graduate seminars are typically offered that cover a broad range of historical periods, themes, and regions. The average class size is 11 to 12 students. During the fall and spring semesters, classes meet once a week for 2 hours in the late afternoon or early evening. During the summer, classes meet one evening each week for eight weeks. The program is especially strong in European and American history, but thematic and non-Western topics are an important part of the curriculum.
Program requirements include the successful completion of ten graduate courses and a passing score on the comprehensive examination. There is no formal language requirement. Students may begin taking courses in the fall, spring, or summer sessions and may take courses on a part-time (one course per session) or full-time basis. As many as two graduate courses in related disciplines, such as literature or political science, may be taken at Villanova. Students may also transfer a maximum of 6 credits for graduate courses taken at other institutions.
Research Facilities
The University Library contains more than 780,000 volumes and 5,600 current periodicals. The Philadelphia region, with its numerous other colleges and universities, museums, historical societies, and archival collections, offers a rich cultural and institutional environment for study and research in history.
Financial Aid
The Department has graduate assistantships and tuition scholarships for 15 full-time students. Graduate assistantships are awarded on a competitive basis. The assistantship in history included a waiver of all tuition and academic fees and a stipend of $6550 in 2008–09. A number of tuition scholarships are also available that provide a waiver of all tuition and academic fees.
In addition, the office of the director of financial aid administers the Federal Stafford Student Loan, the unsubsidized Federal Stafford Student Loan, and the Federal Supplemental Loans for Students.
Cost of Study
Graduate tuition was $610 per credit hour in 2008–09. In addition, there are a one-time application fee of $50 and a University fee of $30 each semester.
Living and Housing Costs
The area surrounding the University offers a wide selection of living quarters that are convenient to the campus, which is served by two suburban rail lines and buses. The University does not maintain accommodations for graduate students, but second-year students are eligible for positions as resident counselors in the dormitories.
Student Group
There is no typical graduate student in history at Villanova. The students comprise a large and diverse yet very congenial community. Many students enter the program directly from their undergraduate college. Others are completing graduate work in history while also engaged in careers in government service, law, business, or teaching. In any given semester, between 50 and 60 students take courses, approximately one third of whom are part-time students.
Student Outcomes
Many students continue to study toward a Ph.D. in history; recent graduates may be found in doctoral programs at Temple, Indiana Bloomington, the College of William and Mary, the University of Madrid, Brandeis, and other institutions. Other graduates pursue history-related careers in libraries, archives, or museums. Many have gone on to teaching or educational administration at the secondary or college level in places as diverse as Kuwait and West Point. Still other graduates work for government or nonprofit organizations, newspapers, or corporations.
Location
Located in the heart of the Delaware Valley’s Main Line, the University occupies more than 200 handsomely landscaped acres in the town of Villanova, 12 miles west of Philadelphia. The location combines the advantages of a tranquil suburban setting with proximity to a large metropolitan city known for its outstanding historical, educational, and cultural resources.
The University
Villanova University is a private institution founded in 1842 by the Augustinian Fathers. Graduate programs were first administered separately in 1931. Currently, there are five academic units in addition to Graduate Studies: the Colleges of Arts and Sciences, Commerce and Finance, Engineering, and Nursing and the School of Law.
Applying
Applicants should have at least 18 undergraduate credits and a 3.0 average in history. The Graduate Record Examinations General Test is required for admission to the program. International applicants must take the TOEFL examination. Application deadlines are March 1 for fall admission, November 15 for spring admission, and May 1 for summer admission. The deadline is March 1 for those applying for a graduate assistantship.
Application forms and other information may be obtained from either the Department of History or the Office of Graduate Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Villanova University, 800 Lancaster Avenue, Villanova, Pennsylvania 19085 (phone: 610-519-7090, fax: 610-519-7096, e-mail: gradinformation@villanova.edu). Online submission of applications is also possible at http://www.villanova.edu/artsci/college/academics/graduate/.
The Faculty and Their Research
- Marc Gallicchio, Professor and Chair; Ph.D., Temple, 1986. U.S. foreign relations, American political and military history.
- Hibba Abugideiri, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Georgetown, 2001. Middle East history.
- Craig Bailey, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., London, 2004. History of Ireland and Britain.
- Judith Ann Giesberg, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Boston College, 1997. U.S. women’s history.
- Christopher Haas, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Michigan, 1988. Greece, Rome, late antiquity, early Christianity history.
- Lynne Ann Hartnett, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Boston College, 2000. Russian/Soviet history, European women’s history.
- Jeffrey A. Johnson, Professor; Ph.D., Princeton, 1980. History of science and technology.
- Maghan Keita, Professor; Ph.D., Howard, 1988. African and world history.
- Catherine Kerrison, Associate Professor; Ph.D., William and Mary, 1999. Colonial and revolutionary America, U.S. women’s history.
- Elizabeth Kolsky, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Columbia, 2002. South Asian history.
- Adele Lindenmeyr, Professor; Ph.D., Princeton, 1980. Russia and Soviet history, environmental history.
- Lawrence Little, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Ohio State, 1993. African-American history.
- Timothy McCall, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Michigan, 2005. History of Renaissance art.
- R. Emmet McLaughlin, Professor; Ph.D., Yale, 1980. Renaissance and Reformation history, early modern European history.
- Charlene Mires, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Temple, 1997. American history, material culture, public history.
- Paul Rosier, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Rochester, 1998. Modern and Native American history.
- Rev. Joseph G. Ryan, O.S.A., Assistant Professor; Ph.D., American, 1997. American history, history of medicine.
- Holly Sanders, Assistant Professor; Ph.D., Princeton, 2005. History of modern Asia.
- Paul R. Steege, Associate Professor; Ph.D., Chicago, 1999. Post-1945 European history.
- Rebecca L. Winer, Associate Professor; Ph.D., UCLA, 1996. Medieval Europe, European women’s history, Jewish history.
Correspondence and Information
Villanova University
Dr. R. Emmet McLaughlin, Director of the History Graduate Program
Department of History
Villanova, Pennsylvania 19085-1696
Telephone:
610-519-4660
Email:
emmet.mclaughlin@villanova.edu
