BA/MA DEGREE
The History Department offers a 5-year combined BA/MA program in history. This program allows highly motivated undergraduates to earn both a bachelor's and a master's degree in 10 semesters. These degrees will be awarded consecutively, following completion of the BA portion of the degree. Students admitted to the program will complete the same course of study (30 graduate credits) required of MA students by the end of their fifth year. The program provides a challenging capstone to college, and an opportunity to earn an MA degree for a professional or academic track (regarding these tracks, see the History MA Program page). Our BA/MA may serve as a terminal degree for employment in any field that values historical research, writing, and analysis; or, it may serve as a springboard for doctoral study in History or a related field. The degree may also be combined with teaching certification in social studies – for information on that option see the Teacher Education BA/MA program page.
Admission
The program is very selective, and successful applicants normally have a 3.5 GPA or higher in their History courses and very strong faculty recommendations.
Interested students are encouraged to speak with the Director of Graduate Studies
as early as possible, and no later than Spring semester of their Junior year. Students must be admitted to the program no later than September 1 of their senior
year, and persons interested in applying to the program should make every effort to
complete the required HIS 301 and HIS 401 courses no later than their seventh semester (and ideally by the end of their Junior year).
Complete applications are due April 15 of the applicant's Junior year. Application and recommendation forms should be obtained from and returned to the Graduate Program Coordinator. Applicants will be informed of admissions decisions before the end of the Spring semester. In special cases, the graduate admissions
committee will consider BA/MA applications submitted by August 15 for decisions prior
to the start of the Fall semester, but students should strive to apply for the April 15 deadline if possible.
Required application materials are as follows:
— Short Statement of Purpose (1-2 pages) describing the student's areas of interest within history, the insights or
experiences motivating the decision to explore these areas, and the kinds of questions
which the applicant hopes to explore; this statement should be as specific as possible
about intended topics of study and indicate relevant faculty with whom they envision
working. Applicants are encouraged to contact these professors before submitting the
application.
— Short Writing Sample that illustrates the applicant's writing skills and capacity for research, analysis,
and creative thought. The sample should be 10 or more pages, with proper citations and bibliography.
— Letters of Recommendation: At least two (2) Letters of Recommendation. At least one letter, and preferably multiple letters, should come from Stony Brook History Department
faculty with whom the applicant has taken courses. Recommenders should be instructed to submit their letters directly to the Graduate Program Coordinator.
The GRE is not required.
Requirements
Students admitted to the program are only required to complete 111 undergraduate credits,
rather than the usual 120 credits, because 9 graduate credits will be counted toward
the undergraduate degree. However, only two of these courses may be counted towards
the satisfaction of the requirements of the History major.
Students take two graduate courses during their Senior year, and then complete the remaining graduate courses during their fifth year. Performance
in these courses will be reviewed at the end of the year, and permission to complete
the remainder of the graduate program would be based on satisfactory performance in
the two graduate courses.
If you decide to leave the combined program, only two graduate courses can be counted
toward the undergraduate degree.
Once students are classified as graduate students (normally Semester 9), they will
be subject to the rules of the Graduate School. They will have to pay graduate tuition,
and eligibility for undergraduate financial aid and housing may be affected.
Course of Study
Students should plan to complete their departmental requirements and relevant SBC
requirements (in addition to any requirements for teaching certification, for students
completing that option) in such a way that they are free to enroll primarily in graduate courses
by their seventh or eight semester. This normally entails completing 301, 401, and
all but 1 or 2 SBC requirements during their first three years, leaving the fourth and fifth years of study available for
primarily graduate courses.