The Public History Program at the University of South Carolina is one of the oldest public history programs in the country and has an excellent record of placing its students in history-related fields.

Students may study public history by earning a Master of Arts degree in Public History or by selecting public history as one of the fields of study in the history Ph.D. program.

Coursework for the M.A. degree requires the completion of a minimum of 36 credit hours.  You must successfully complete an internship, write a thesis, and present a portfolio.  In your course of study you will choose to specialize in one of our three major fields: historic preservation, museums and material culture, or archives.

Coursework for a Ph.D. field in Public History requires a minimum of three courses in public history.  An internship is recommended.

Some students also choose to complete the Certificate in Museum Management or the Certificate in Cultural Resource Management. A joint 60-hour M.A./M.L.I.S. program is offered in conjunction with the School of Library and Information Science.

Our graduates compete successfully in the national job market for employment in preservation agencies, historic sites, museums, and libraries and archives centers.

Applying to the Graduate School of the University of South Carolina

A completed application, transcripts, two letters of recommendation, and the Graduate Record Examination General Test scores must be received at the Graduate School by our early January deadline. By this date, you should also send a writing sample and your one-page Statement of Purpose directly to the Department of History. Be sure to specify which of the three fields you wish to study.  We recommend that you also send a photocopy of your full application to the Department of History.  Admission decisions are made once a year, in the winter for admission in the fall semester.

Access the Graduate School's on-line application form at http://www.gradschool.sc.edu/

NOTE: All applicants for graduate training in the Department of History are expected to have completed either a history major or 18 hours of undergraduate courses in history beyond the survey level. If you do not have this coursework, you must show evidence of equivalent competency (for example, by successful completion of one or more graduate courses in history at another university).