History & Art History

Students frequently ask about the process of selecting an instructor and registering for the Comprehensive Readings course and what to expect from the comprehensive examination.

Comprehensive exams are taken after students have completed the comprehensive readings course in Path 1 only. Students writing a thesis must take the exam before registering for their thesis. The Comprehensive Readings course (HIST 790 for U.S. history, HIST 791 for World history, or HIST 792 for European history) is the most immediate preparation for the exam. The Comprehensive Readings course is taken individually with a particular faculty member assigned to you by the Graduate Director. The faculty member is usually someone with whom you have not taken any coursework, since the purpose of the comprehensive readings is to fill in any major gaps in your knowledge of your major field after your coursework has been completed. In no case will you be allowed to do your comprehensive readings with a faculty member with whom you have taken more than one course.

GOALS:

The comprehensive readings course (HIST 790, 791, or 792) is intended as a culmination of the history MA program. Its most important goal is to improve the ability of the student to write and speak knowledgeably about broad interpretive and historiographic issues in their field of specialization (U.S., European, or World History). The instructor and the student will work together to fill in the gaps in preparation of coursework. In part, these gaps might be defined in terms of lack of coverage of particular chronological or topic areas (e.g., the Colonial era or women’s history), but they are equally defined in terms of an understanding of schools of historical interpretation (e.g., “progressive” historians) or interpretive themes (e.g., race or nationalism). In general, the course seeks to broaden the student’s historical preparation, to allow him or her to think and write synthetically with interpretive depth and about their field of study.

FORMAT:

This is arranged between the student and the instructor. Most often, however, there are meetings about every other week for about an hour. Typically, this is arranged as an individual tutorial. But students and faculty regularly decide that small groups (2-4 people) are a valuable alternative.

DEADLINES AND REGISTRATION:

Students must register for Summer & Fall by March 1 and Spring by November 1.

NOTE: Because faculty members’ schedules fill up quickly, exceptions to these deadlines will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. You will not be allowed to register, however, until you have been assigned a faculty member by the Graduate Director, Dr. Holt (and Dr. Holt is willing to discuss that choice with you if you have specific faculty members in mind). Please make an appointment with Sharon Bloomquist (sbloomqu@gmu.edu or call 703-993-1248) to meet with Dr. Holt well before these deadlines. Once Dr. Holt has assigned you to a faculty member, Sharon will give you an individualized section form that you will need to take to the Registrar’s Office in order to register for HIST 790, 791, or 792.

WORK LOAD:

Again, this is by mutual agreement of faculty and student. But a typical reading list would be the equivalent of 12-20 books depending on size – at least one book per week – with students in Path 1 generally following a more demanding course. There is a required writing component as well. Often, instructors require short papers reacting to the reading or book reviews. Others ask for a longer review essay at the end of the semester.

THE COMPREHENSIVE EXAM:

The readings course prepares students for the comprehensive exam, which draws on all coursework in the major field. The exam is intended to measure the student’s ability to write about broad interpretive and historiographic issues in their field. The format of the exam is a take-home essay exam. You will generally have a choice of questions from which to choose, some of which will require you to integrate and synthesize readings and material from several courses in your major field. The questions tend to be broad and interpretive, requiring you to think broadly across your entire field. The comprehensive exam is graded pass/fail. In addition, you will also receive a letter grade for the comprehensive readings course (HIST 790, 791, or 792).