History (M.A.)
Master of Arts with a major in history degree program is dedicated to preparing serious and creative professional historians. The master’s degree prepares students who plan to pursue a Ph.D. in History or a related field, such as Library Science, Museum Studies, Historical Preservation, and other graduate degrees. Alternatively, many students use their knowledge of history in the public information sector, in secondary education, or at the two-year college level.
We offer students a rich intellectual environment, unique local research resources, and numerous opportunities for professional development outside the classroom. Our students develop research and analytical skills that allow them to advance in their profession or begin to explore a career in history.
Explore how the past has shaped the present and apply that knowledge to your future!
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History (M.A.) Program Quick Facts
- Dahlonega & Gainesville Campuses
- Program length 30 credit hours
- With or without thesis option
- Face-to-face and limited online courses
- Courses offered within a two-year rotation
- Choice of research interests
Program Application Deadlines
If program capacity is met prior to established admission deadlines, we will stop accepting applications for admission and cancel remaining incomplete applicants. All application materials are to be received prior to the deadline. Completing your application earlier is better.
Spring application deadline - November 1
Fall application deadline - April 1
Fall Deadline
Spring Deadline
Why Study History at UNG?
The History (M.A.) is not just for those aspiring to become historians or teachers. This degree is designed to prepare you for advancement in both private and public sectors. Our creative and dynamic faculty engage with you to provide you with skills designed to help in a variety of career choices that require problem solving skills.
Our program provides training in the theoretical and methodological elements of the discipline of history; advanced research techniques and analysis; and oral, written, and multi-media communication skills. You will develop and strengthen skills in information literacy; the ability to find information and to use it effectively.
Professional Development Opportunities
UNG has built relationships with the Northeast Georgia History Center and other local institutions and encourages graduate students to pursue internships for course credit that contribute to their career goals. We also host professional development workshops featuring professionals using their historical skills in various fields including:
- Museum Studies
- Preservation and Conservation
- Legal Studies
- Education and Pedagogy
- and many others
Graduate Assistantship Opportunities
The department has graduate assistantship opportunities that allow students to hone their professional skills.
Teaching assistants have helped instruct World History surveys and upper division courses like History of Ancient Rome.
Research assistants have helped in the research and writing of textbooks, developed history-focused social media campaigns, and conducted archival research for book projects.
How to Apply to UNG's History (M.A.) Program
Learn More the History (M.A.) Program
- Language Requirements
- FAQs
- Degrees Awarded
All candidates for the Thesis Track Master of Arts with a major in History must demonstrate competency in one language in addition to English. Capstone Track students are exempt. The language competency requirement is met by taking a translation examination (500 words) administered by the department before the student can advance to the thesis-writing stage, usually between their second and third semesters. The language exam takes two hours with a dictionary allowed. The translation exam may be attempted three times. If a student has completed four semesters of a foreign language, or the equivalent, within the last five years at a university or community college, the student is eligible to take the translation exam with no further coursework. For a non-European language, the student should consult with his/her primary professor concerning minimum skill level to qualify for the translation exam. If a student’s foreign language hours are more than five years old, the student must take a competency exam. If successful in placing at the level of a fourth semester in the language, the student is eligible to take the translation exam. In order to pass the translation examination, a student may find it necessary to take language courses at UNG or another institution. These courses never count toward the degree requirements for the MA.
The History department at the University of North Georgia is proud to have several students who have successfully completed the M.A. program in History since its creation in 2009. Many students are either currently working in the teaching profession or pursuing advanced studies in Ph.D. programs.
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Dennis Bagwell
Non-thesis, Military History,
Ross Burger
“The Rhetoric of Blitzkrieg” (Drs. Byers, May, Bennet).
Chris Monroe
Capstone, World History
Jamie Myers Mize
"‘Instances of Wanton Cruelty and Barbarity’: The Evolution of Martial Culture in 18th Century North America" (Drs. Van Sickle, Kim, Spike).
James Wolfe Jr.
“Early Elizabethan Piracy: 1558-1568” (Drs. Van Sickle, Spike, Brick).
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Donna Hamil
“The Mongol Khatuns: Political Agency and Cultural Adaptation of Royal Women in the Expanding Mongol Empire” (Drs. May, Hightower, Proulx).
Sarah Harris
Capstone, American History
Jonathan C. Harton
“In the Shadow of Mountains: Civil War Archaeology and Memory in Northwest Georgia” (Drs. Smith, Van Sickle, Spike).
Peter Kravchenko
“Modeling History: The Omni-Narrative and Unified Event Narrative” (Drs. Byers, Van Sickle, Proulx).
Winston Glen Kyle
“Forged in Conflict: The Role of War in the Development of Atlanta 1861-1946” (Drs. Smith, Van Sickle, Byers).
Ronald Martz
Capstone, Military History
Laura Mullins
Capstone, World History
Joshua Sasser
Capstone, World History
John Thompson
"World War I and Indigenous Identity" (Drs. Spike, May, Wynn, Byer).
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Robert Baker
“From the First to the American Way” (Drs. Van Sickle, Smith, Whittemore).
Sarah Hyde
“Democratization and Political Realignment in Antebellum South Carolina” (Drs.Van Sickle, Connolly, Smith).
Heather Welch
“A Matter of Bodies: Gendered Responses to Economic Incentives in the Holocaust and Argentina's Dirty War” (Drs. Byers, Spike, C. Harris).
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Robert Klemm
“A Slow Demise: Transatlantic Fascism and the Development of Latin American Nationalism in the Early 20th Century” (Drs. Byers, Spike, Harris).
Richard Morales
Non-thesis, Military History
Nicole Bronsted Wagner
“Defenders of ‘Beauty and Booty’: The Politicization, Plunder, and the Formation of American Identity during the War of 1812” (Drs. Van Sickle, Bricker, Spike).
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Daniel Bennett
“Fraternal Ties in Nationalist Eyes: The Fate of Freemasonry in the Age of European Nationalism” (Drs. Byers, Bricker, Whittemore).
Brian Everett
“American Exceptionalism in the Film Industry of the 20th Century” (Drs. Jespersen, Byers, Marker).
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Jeb Graydon
Capstone, Military History
Jennifer Smith
“Contact and Consequence: Space and Function of the Wakhan Corridor during the Nineteenth Century” (Drs. May, Hightower, Blackwell).
Bryant Wine
Capstone, World History
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Coleman Lee
"You and the Cold War: An Orwellian Look at the Superpowers" (Drs. Blackwell, Harris, and Byers)
Dianna Southers
Capstone, World History
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Jeremy Donald Conner
Capstone, World History
Kelsie Burks Mayes
“Batesville, Georgia: Timber and the Decline of Yeomanism in a Southern Appalachian Community” (Drs Rohrer, Bush, Whittemore)
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Lesley Katen Jones
“Home is Where the Haunt is: The Cultural History of the Domestic Séance in Victorian London (Drs Guerty, Greene, O’Day, Pardue)
Michael Donald Mathis
Capstone, World History
Jordan David Richardson
Capstone, World History
Anna Katherine Rogers
Capstone, World History
Michael Benjamin Schinabeck
Capstone, World History
Student
Thesis or non-thesis
Gunter C. Bales
Capstone, World History
Jessica Paige Brazinski
Capstone, World History
Kinsey Jacquelyn Knight
Capstone, World History
Savannah Grace Whitman
Lived Experiences in the KL 2nd Gulag Camp Systems (Drs Byers, Wisnoski, Miller)
Questions?
For questions about the application process, contact:
Graduate Admissions
grads@ung.edu
706-864-1543
Where This Program Could Lead You
Graduates of the M.A. in History program will have comprehensive knowledge in their subject area specialties and will master the analytical tools for making ethical and intelligent decisions in the global environment. This combined set of cultural, historical, and intellectual capital, supported by the soft skill set of research, analysis, and effective communication provides M.A. History degree-holders with highly applicable assets advantageous to professional decision makers of all occupations.
Our students seek careers in education, museums, community organizations, and government agencies.
Use the career insights tool to explore different opportunities related to this degree program. Learn about average salary and discover the skills you need to get the job you want.