HSTRY-PHD - History (PhD)

Stanford History Department’s graduate program trains students for careers as scholars, teachers, and various rewarding careers in law, government, diplomacy, business, the arts, and administration. PhD students work closely with department faculty in 14 major fields to satisfy the PhD. We also offer a terminal MA program, a coterminal MA program, and two joint degree programs in Law and History (JD/PhD and JD/MA) with Stanford Law School.

Students planning to work for the doctorate in history should be familiar with the university’s general degree requirements outlined in the Graduate Degrees.

Upon enrollment in the graduate program in history, the student has a member of the department designated as an advisor with whom to plan the PhD program. Much of the first two years of graduate study are spent taking courses. From the outset, the student should be aware that the ultimate objective is not merely the completion of courses but preparation for general examinations and writing a dissertation.

Admission to the Department of History in the graduate division does not establish any rights respecting candidacy for an advanced degree. At the end of the first year of graduate study, students are evaluated by the faculty and given a progress report. A decision as to whether the student is admitted to candidacy for the PhD is usually made by the start of the student’s third year. After completing certain further requirements, students must apply for acceptance for candidacy for the doctorate in the university’s graduate division.

Student success in the graduate program largely depends on the quality of teaching and advising received. A current list of History faculty members is available on the History Department website.

In addition, there are two sets of archival collections on campus:

• The University Library maintains substantial general collections in almost all fields of history. It has an extensive microtext collection, including, for instance, all items listed in Charles Evans’ American Bibliography, and in the Short-Title Catalogues of English publications, 1474-1700, and virtually complete microfilmed documents of the Department of State to 1906. It also has several valuable special collections, including the Borel Collection on the History of California; many rare items on early American and early modern European history; the Brasch Collection on Sir Isaac Newton and scientific thought during his time; the Gimon Collection on French political economy, and other such materials.

• The rich collection of the Hoover Institution on the causes, conduct, and results of WW I and WW II is being augmented for the post-1945 period. The materials include government documents, newspaper and serial files, and organization and party publications (especially the British and German Socialist parties). There are also important manuscript collections, including unpublished records of the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 and the Herbert Hoover archives, which contain the records of the Commission for Relief in Belgium, the American Relief Administration, the various technical commissions established at the close of WW I for reconstruction in Central and Eastern Europe, the personal papers of Herbert Hoover as United States Food Administrator, and other important personal papers. Other materials for the period since 1914 relate to revolutions and political ideologies of international importance; colonial and minority problems; propaganda and public opinion; military occupation; peace plans and movements; international relations; international organizations, and administration, including the publications of the United Nations, as well as principal international conferences. The Hoover Institution also possesses some of the richest collections available anywhere on the British labor movement; Eastern Europe, including the Soviet Union; East Asia (runs of important newspapers and serials and extensive documentary collections, especially for the period of WW II); and Africa since 1860, especially French-speaking Africa, the former British colonies, and South Africa.

This program is full time, doctoral students in the History PhD program are expected to maintain a significant physical presence on campus throughout their graduate studies. This ensures that students have access to advisors and mentors, libraries, and other resources that support timely progress towards completion of degree requirements. Additionally, being on campus ensures that students are part of the academic and campus community which supports continued professional development. 

Information on how to apply for graduate study at Stanford is available on the university’s  Graduate Admissions website. Application information specific to the Department of History can be found on https://history.stanford.edu/academics/graduate-degree-programs/phd-program