Frequently Asked Questions

The application deadline is January 3rd. Our department only offers admission in the fall term.

To apply: Go through the GradCAS online application system. If you have trouble uploading large files (for example, transcripts) or if you need to send additional material, you can mail your material to:

Graduate Administrator
Department of History
University of Pittsburgh
3702 Wesley Posvar Hall
Pittsburgh, PA 15260

In an effort to reduce financial barriers to attending graduate school, the Kenneth P. Dietrich Graduate School of Arts and Sciences offers application fee waivers. Please note that fee waivers are approved on a case-by-case basis and not all fee waiver requests will be granted.  All requests received will be reviewed and responded to within 48 hours during normal business hours: Monday - Friday 8:30a.m. to 5:00p.m. EST.  To be considered for a fee waiver, please complete the following fee waiver survey for review: https://pitt.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cD38CmmjcOT3Tvw

The code for the University of Pittsburgh is 2927.

The Department of History is committed to training area specialists with a global perspective. Our students learn how to research, interpret and teach the histories and historiographies of particular places from comparative, cross-cultural, transnational and global perspectives. For more details about thematic and regional strengths, please explore the graduate section of our departmental website as well as the pages of individual faculty.

A PhD program in History is not a professional school that trains and qualifies students for a particular profession. Instead, graduate training in History provides advanced analytical and communication skills, broad knowledge about society, politics and culture, as well as a high level of intercultural awareness. The training students receive in our graduate program will serve them well on a variety of career tracks. A fair number of our graduates choose teaching careers at colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. Others find employment in university administration, in the field of public history and education outside the university, or work for the government and non-governmental organizations. A PhD in History offers many options. Please see this link for the various places our alumni have ended up in. 

Absolutely! We recommend that students interested in our graduate program reach out to potential advisors before applying. Our faculty will let you know right away whether or not they accept new students, and if they see a potential fit between your and their research interests. You are also free to visit campus if you wish and talk with these faculty members in person.

We strive for most students to graduate within 5 or 6 years, depending on whether they entered the program with an MA in History or not. 

The department offers funding to most of its graduate students through a mix of teaching assistantships, teaching fellowships, departmental fellowships, and research assistantships. If you are accepted into the program, you will in cost cases be offered a five- or six-year funding package, which covers tuition fees, and includes university-provided individual health insurance and a living stipend of approximately $23,000 per year. Students can apply for a variety of non-teaching fellowships provided by the University of Pittsburgh or national and international organizations. In addition to the teaching and non-teaching fellowships, we offer generous summer research funding, which allows students to conduct archival research within the US or abroad. 

Our department does not offer a terminal Master’s program. We only accept students who aim for a PhD, regardless of whether they enter the program with a BA or an MA. Students who enter the program with a BA or an MA in a discipline other than History will earn a Master’s degree (MA in History) on the way to the PhD.

No, we consider applicants with either a BA or an MA.

The Graduate Committee determines this after your acceptance into our program. Generally speaking, if the MA is not in History, we can only accept 6 credits. If the MA is in History, we can transfer up to 30 credits.

There is no guarantee that we can transfer earned credits towards a PhD degree. We require that you submit a petition to the graduate committee, stating precisely toward which requirements previous work is to be applied, with a detailed description (syllabi, reading lists, and thesis) of the relevant earlier work to aid the graduate committee in its decision. Note that transfer credit will not be accepted for courses in which a letter grade of B or lower has been received; grades and quality points are not recorded for credits accepted by the transfer. Please also note that this process happens after you are accepted.

Generally speaking, if you have your previous MA degree in history and you have completed an independent thesis we tend to accept 18-24 credits from that degree. If you have a degree outside history, accepting your Master's thesis is at the discretion of the committee. If they accept you are eligible for a maximum transfer of 24 credits. If they deny your thesis you will be required to pursue an MA here at Pitt and are only eligible for a 6-credit transfer. Typically, if your MA is not in history we do not accept you MA thesis and require you to pursue the MA at Pitt.

Yes, you can apply with an undergraduate degree other than History. The graduate committee looks for evidence of a well-established and serious interest in an applicant's chosen field of specialization. This can include previous coursework and degree, but other experiences and accomplishments can also serve as evidence. 

Given the profile of our graduate program with its focus on transnational and world history, we consider foreign language skills and international experience a great advantage for incoming students. While students can improve their foreign language skills and learn a new language while they are in the program, reading skills in the language most relevant to the field of your interest is a prerequisite for admission to the program.

Typically, 60-80 students apply every year to our graduate program, of whom 8-12 receive offers of admission. Of these, 5-8 usually matriculate. Admission statistics are available here.

Very much so! We are looking for the most promising applicants, regardless of where they come from or where they completed their degrees. About half of our graduate students were born outside of the United States, and about a third of our faculty. 

If you have specific questions about the program or the application process, please contact:

Paris Yamamoto
Graduate Administrator pay13@pitt.edu

or

Niklas Frykman
Director of Graduate Studies niklas.frykman@pitt.edu