UT Dallas 2023 Graduate Catalog

School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology

History of Ideas

Overview

The History of Ideas focuses on the study of history and philosophy, and especially the intersection of the two. Students may optionally choose an emphasis in either history or philosophy. While students with a history emphasis will not exclusively focus on intellectual history, their work will be informed by philosophical reflections on the nature of interpretation, history, and knowledge. While students with a philosophy emphasis will not exclusively focus on the history of philosophy, their work will be informed by the way that historical context influences philosophical ideas. Students who do not declare an area of emphasis will combine coursework in history and philosophy to meet their own specific interests.

Faculty

Professors: Charles R. Bambach, David F. Channell, Pamela Gossin, David A. Patterson, Nils Roemer

Associate Professors: Kimberly Hill, Monica Rankin, Natalie J. Ring, Eric Schlereth, Daniel B. Wickberg, Michael L. Wilson, Benjamin (Ben) Wright

Assistant Professors: Rosemary Admiral, Katherine Davies, Anne Gray Fischer, Amy Kerner, Songyao Ren, Whitney Stewart

Clinical Associate Professor: Jeffrey Schulze

Professors Emeriti: Joan Chandler, R. David Edmunds, Stephen G. Rabe

Associate Professors Emeriti: Peter Park, Gerald L. Soliday

Doctor of Philosophy in History of Ideas

60 semester credit hours minimum beyond the master's degree

Coursework: 42 semester credit hours

Forty-two semester credit hours of which at least thirty-three must be in organized courses.

Required Courses: 15 semester credit hours

IDEA 6300 Proseminar in History of Ideas1

ARHM 6310 Team-Taught Interdisciplinary Seminar

9 semester credit hours of Field Examination Preparation:

Six (6) semester credit hours of IDEA 8305 Field Exam Preparation in History of Ideas

Three (3) semester credit hours of exam preparation in any discipline at the 8000-level.

Breadth Requirements: 6 semester credit hours

One 3 semester credit hours course each in HIST and in PHIL.

Major Electives: 15 semester credit hours

Fifteen semester credit hours in any combination of HIST and PHIL courses.

Free Electives: 6 semester credit hours

Six semester credit hours of electives in any organized graduate-level courses.

Option: Disciplinary Emphasis

Students may optionally declare one of the following disciplines of emphasis, in which case they must meet the following additional requirements:

History Emphasis

Required Courses: 3 semester credit hours

HIST 6301 Historiography2

Courses in History: 12 semester credit hours3

Twelve semester credit hours in HIST courses, at least 3 of which must be in a course that is marked in the syllabus as "Research Oriented" and has a final product consisting of a research paper.

Philosophy Emphasis

Courses in Philosophy: 15 semester credit hours4

Fifteen semester credit hours in PHIL courses.

Foreign Language

Students are expected to demonstrate intermediate-level reading proficiency in a foreign language (equivalent to two years of foreign-language study at the undergraduate level). Students must fulfill the language requirement before scheduling doctoral field examinations.

As part of its approval of a dissertation proposal, the Graduate Studies Committee will consider the appropriateness of a candidate's language preparation for the research or creative project. Faculty members chairing field examinations and dissertations should ensure that students possess the necessary language proficiency to carry out their proposed doctoral research.

The requirement can be satisfied upon enrollment in a Ph.D. program by demonstrating evidence of one or more of the following:

  • Completion of a second-semester, intermediate-level foreign language course or higher (e.g., an undergraduate literature course in a foreign language) with a grade of B or better.
  • Completion of a graduate course taught in a foreign language or with more than 25% of its required readings in a foreign language.
  • An undergraduate major, graduate degree, or certificate in a foreign language.
  • Successful completion of graded coursework at a foreign university at which the primary language of instruction is not English.
  • A degree in any discipline from a foreign university at which the primary language of instruction is not English.

The requirement can be satisfied during graduate study at UT Dallas in one of the following ways:

  • Completion of a second-semester, intermediate-level foreign language course or higher at UT Dallas or elsewhere with a grade of B or better.
  • Successful completion of LIT 6326 Translation Workshop with a grade of B or better.
  • Passing a written translation exam in an approved foreign language at UT Dallas.

Doctoral Field Examinations

The doctoral field examinations consist of three written sections and an oral defense. The examining committee, composed of three members of the faculty (at least two in History of Ideas), oversees the definition and preparation of the three examination fields within guidelines established by the program. Initial committee formation must take place during the 36th semester credit hour of coursework, which will typically be followed by nine semester credit hours in Field Examination Preparation. Exams normally should be completed before the completion of 60 semester credit hours.

Dissertation

Students are formally advanced to Ph.D. candidacy when they have successfully completed the doctoral field examinations. After that examination, a four-person supervising committee is formed, normally from the examining committee plus another faculty member proposed by the student, to oversee dissertation work. The supervising committee must then approve a formal dissertation proposal before the student submits it to the Graduate Studies Committee for final approval.

Each candidate then writes a doctoral dissertation, which is supervised and defended according to general University regulations.

Master of Arts in History of Ideas

33 semester credit hours minimum

Coursework: 33 semester credit hours

Thirty-three semester credit hours of which at least twenty-seven must be in organized courses.

Required Courses: 6 semester credit hours

IDEA 6300 Proseminar in History of Ideas1

ARHM 6310 Team-Taught Interdisciplinary Seminar

Breadth Requirements: 6 semester credit hours

One 3 semester credit hours course each in HIST and in PHIL.

Major Electives: 15 semester credit hours

Fifteen semester credit hours in any combination of HIST and PHIL courses.

Free Electives: 6 semester credit hours

Six semester credit hours of electives in any graduate-level courses.

Option: Disciplinary Emphasis

Students may optionally declare one of the following disciplines of emphasis, in which case they must meet the following additional requirements:

History Emphasis

Historiography: 3 semester credit hours

HIST 6301 Historiography2

Courses in History: 12 semester credit hours3

12 semester credit hours in HIST courses

Philosophy Emphasis

Courses in Philosophy: 15 semester credit hours4

15 semester credit hours in PHIL courses.

Professional Option

Students in the professional option normally complete all thirty-three required semester credit hours of coursework in organized courses. They are not required to complete a portfolio or meet a foreign language requirement.

Research Option

Research Oriented Coursework:

Students focusing on the Research Option under the History Emphasis must take at least one 3 semester credit hours course that is marked in the syllabus as "Research Oriented" and has a final product consisting of a research paper.

Foreign Language

The research MA degrees require demonstrated proficiency in an approved foreign language. The requirement can be satisfied upon enrollment in the M.A. program by demonstrating evidence of one or more of the following:

  • Completion of a second-semester, intermediate-level foreign language course or higher (e.g., an undergraduate literature course in a foreign language) with a grade of B or better.
  • Completion of a graduate course taught in a foreign language or with more than 25% of its required readings in a foreign language.
  • An undergraduate major, graduate degree, or certificate in a foreign language.
  • Successful completion of graded coursework at a foreign university at which the primary language of instruction is not English.
  • A degree in any discipline from a foreign university at which the primary language of instruction is not English.

The requirement can be satisfied during graduate study at UT Dallas in one of the following ways:

  • Completion of a second-semester, intermediate-level foreign language course or higher at UT Dallas or elsewhere with a grade of B or better.
  • Successful completion of LIT 6326 Translation Workshop with a grade of B or better.
  • Passing a written translation exam in an approved foreign language at UT Dallas.

Portfolio

Two substantial pieces of work (two research papers or a creative project plus a scholarly essay) originating in or completed for graduate courses are revised and presented in a portfolio for evaluation by a master's committee.

1. This course must be taken during the first Fall semester after enrollment in the program.

2. This course must be taken during the first 18 semester credit hours of coursework.

3. History Emphasis students will complete a minimum of 18 semester credit hours in HIST courses, after adding together the Breadth Requirements, Required HIST 6301, and the additional 12 semester credit hours of Courses in History.

4. Philosophy Emphasis students will complete a minimum of 18 semester credit hours in PHIL courses, after adding together the Breadth Requirements and additional 15 semester credit hours of Courses in Philosophy.

Updated: 2024-05-10 14:18:18 v14.bfdaaa