Online M.A. for History Educators

Nationally Acclaimed

UNCW’s online History M.A. program is ranked among the top ten in the nation by the educational consulting websites Gradsource.com and Bestcolleges.com. It is also named among the very best programs by the online College Affordability Guide. Find out more about us!

UNCW's History Department offers a 30-hour, purpose-designed Master's Degree in History for professional educators. The specific goals of the program are:

to provide advanced opportunities for the study of history;
to prepare historical educators by providing them with knowledge of the most current research practices and questions in relation to historical problems;
to develop the professional practices of history educators to reflect deep understandings of content.

In short, the program is designed to strengthen and sustain a love of history in a learning environment created for dedicated teachers. It MAY qualify its graduates for salary increases and strengthens participants' existing ability to bring history to life in the classroom with new and deeper knowledge.

**Because of the COVID-19 situation the GRE requirement is waived for those applying to the online M.A. program for Fall 2022**

Application

Deadline for Fall 2023
Application for Fall 2023 opens October 1, 2022
Application deadline is July 1, 2023
Classes begin August 2023

Cost of Attendance


	North Carolina resident	Out of state resident
Cost per credit hour	$295.29	$1,063.57
Total tuition cost	$8,858.70	$31,907.10

Note: This does not cover the cost of books for courses.

Curriculum

Courses for 2021-2022

	August 18 - October 3	October 4 - November 21
New cohort	HST 590, "The Historian's Craft: Issues & Approaches" (Fain)	HST 560, "Capitalism in World History" (Le Zotte)
Cont. cohort	HST 540, "The Holocaust in European History" (Tanny)	HST 520, "Indians & Settlers in Colonial America" (La Vere)

	January 12 - March	March - May
New cohort	HST 590, "End of the European Colonial Empires" (Dhulipala)	HST 560, "The Modern Middle East" (Pollard)
Cont. cohort	HST 540, "Ancient Gr/Rome" (Pilkington)	HST 520, "Everyday Life in Cold War America" (Fain)

	June/July 2022
New cohort	HST 595, "Local and Regional History"
Cont. cohort	-

	June/July 2022
New cohort	HST 595, "Local and Regional History"
Cont. cohort	HST 595, "Capstone Course"

Student Testimonials

“Being in the classroom, studying in the field, discussing topics with classmates, meeting my professors, browsing the bookstore -- and even eating in the dining hall -- was most rewarding. More importantly, being on campus provided a strong connection to UNCW that might not be obtained otherwise. Enrolling in this program was truly one of the best decisions I have made. Thank you again for a great educational experience.”

--Jennifer Bower (M.A. ’20) about the program’s Summer Institute

“Field experiences were incredible! It was also great to meet classmates in person.”

--Jamie Brooks (M.A. ’20) about the program’s Summer Institute

“In four days I was able to learn a lot of history that I would not otherwise have thought about.”

--Candice Workman (M.A. ’20) about the program’s Summer Institute

Online M.A. for History Educators Frequently Asked Questions

Who is your program designed for?

Our students come from many different backgrounds, but most are mid-career or aspiring history and social studies teachers, museum educators, librarians, and archivists.
Is this a degree in History or in History Education?

Our degree is the M.A. in History, and it is designed to bolster our students’ content knowledge of the field so that they can present the past more effectively to their audiences.
How often do you admit new students?

We accept new students to the program each Fall Semester. We do not enroll new students in the Spring Semester.
Do I need to have an undergraduate degree in History to apply?

No, our program accepts applicants from many different educational backgrounds.
Do I need to take the GRE to apply?

The GRE requirement for the program is waived for those applying to enroll in Fall 2022 because of difficulties caused by the pandemic. After 2022, the GRE requirement for applicants will be permanently abolished.
What is the application deadline for the program?

The History Department will begin reviewing applications on February 1, 2022. Each cohort fills quickly, but in the event that spaces in the program remain, we will continue to entertain new applications until July 1, 2022.
How long does it take to complete the online M.A. degree?

Our 30-credit hour program is 24 months long. It begins in August and ends in July after the second year.
Can I specialize in a particular field of history?

Our program is designed to train well-rounded graduates who are trained in U.S., European, and Global history. Students in each cohort take the same courses at the same time. They do not concentrate on a particular geographic or thematic area.
Will I have to write a thesis?

No, ours is a non-thesis program.
Does the program accept any transfer credits from other institutions?

Yes, the History Department will accept a maximum of six transfer credits.
What are the Summer Institutes?

Our students participate in two, on-campus Summer Institutes, each year they are enrolled in the program. The Institutes last one week and are taught in late June or early July. These are a signature feature of the program and have been extremely popular with students. They allow you to meet one another and your professors and to experience student life on campus.

Class Updates

HST 520 - Indians and Settlers in Colonial America (La Vere)
HST 540 - Europe and the Atlantic World (Sherman)
- This online course will introduce students to the connections between Europe and the Atlantic World, c. 1500-1800. It will explore the ways in which cultures intersected among Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, and the Americas from the Age of Discovery to the late eighteenth century. Students will apply transnational methods to study European history by examining the overlapping Atlantic empires and experiences of the British, French, Spanish and others, along with the African and Indigenous societies they encountered. Through the framework of the Atlantic World, we will examine the social, economic, cultural, and political bonds that were formed in the early modern era through topics such as trade, religion, slavery, and gender.
HST 560 - The Modern Middle East: Issues and Approaches (Pollard)
- This course covers the history of the modern Middle East through its most important 20^th- and 21^st-century events. We will examine the post-WWI era and state building; 1948 and the establishment of the state of Israel; the Iranian Revolution of 1979; the post-state and proxy-war era accompanying the American occupation of Iraq in 2003; the role of women in the modern Middle East, and, finally, Arab Spring. Each unit includes articles chosen both for what they inform you about the Middle East, and for what they reveal about the historiography of the field of modern Middle Eastern history. Students will encounter diplomacy, memory, gender studies, and revolutionary theory as lenses through which to examine and to teach crucial topics in regional and international history.
HST 590 - The Historian's Craft: Issues and Approaches (Fain)
- This online course will introduce students to the graduate level study of history. It will explore just what professional historians do in their work and what they produce. It will examine the ways historians discuss their work and move the field forward. In doing this, it will require students to grapple with the differences between popular and academic history, the evolving nature of historical inquiry and the ways that it has been accepted or rejected by different publics. It will require students to think about the complex dynamic between history and memory and between received knowledge and revisionist accounts. It will also delve into the world of historical ethics and how the events of the past can be fairly and responsibly presented to the public.