Master of Arts in History - Public History
The master of arts in public history graduate program is intended for those who wish to work in historic preservation, at historic sites, and within archives and other public history subfield.
Preserve the Past for the Future
The program is designed so graduate students can prepare themselves in an area of expertise that best meets their interests and needs. Areas of expertise may be defined by broad themes, topics, chronology, or geography.
Many of the courses throughout the program are chosen by you, giving you the ability to personalize your degree and align it with your career goals. Choose from a variety of history courses, including those related to American history, American Indian history, public history, modern military history, comparative world cultures, and women’s history.
Students are able to further customize their experience at UW-Eau Claire by choosing between three program options: 1) a 30-credit thesis option; 2) a 30-credit thesis and practicum option; or 3) a 33-credit non-thesis option. All three paths are rooted in experiential education, providing countless opportunities to connect with local organizations, secure internships, and get involved in the growing field. They also include incredible support and guidance from faculty mentors and advisors, who will work with you directly in planning and designing your degree.
Graduates leave able to gather, analyze, and present material, and understand the complexity of human history and historical developments. Whether your goal is to work for a government agency as a researcher or analyst, curate museums, preserve historical sites, or become an executive at a historical society, our supportive, expert faculty — combined with a rigorous, experiential curriculum — will prepare you well for a successful and rewarding career.
Program Details
While pursuing your master of arts in history - public history, you'll have direct access to the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Division of Public History and Historic Preservation, which houses its Northern Field Services Office in the history department. The Field Services program provides programming and assistance to history and preservation organizations statewide and regularly collaborates with the public history program to coordinate internships and other opportunities.
A required internship in public history gives you both course credit and firsthand experience in the field. Working under supervised assignment at either a museum, archive site, historical site, or other agency, you'll learn what it's like working as a public historian. Projects within the internship will also give you the opportunity to apply research skills and knowledge of history to help solve community problems.
UW-Eau Claire is known for its top-notch faculty, including those you'll learn from while working toward your degree. In fact, two of our history professors have been recipients of Wisconsin Professor of the Year awards. The history department also was a recent recipient of the University of Wisconsin Regents Teaching Excellence Award for Academic Departments and Programs.
The public history program also works closely with UW-Eau Claire's Special Collections and Archives, which regularly hosts interns. The archives area is home to one of a network of 14 Area Research Centers (ARCs), which the Wisconsin Historical Society and UW System administer cooperatively, providing students access to the resources of the society as well as the other 13 ARCs.
Blugold Stories
Public history students gained real-world experience assisting with the Chippewa Falls Welcome Center's very first exhibit. The Blugolds created themes around local historic events and took an empty room and made it a one-of-a-kind walk through history.
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Where can the master of arts in history - public history program lead me after graduation?
UW-Eau Claire's public history master's program is designed to provide training and experience in the career fields in which public history practitioners work. This includes positions in historic preservation, historic sites and museums. And thanks to the broad training and real-world experience students get, our graduates have no trouble finding jobs upon graduation.
You can expect close supervision and guidance from a faculty mentor. A counseling and advising system has also been devised with the intention of providing each student with a personalized program. Your advisor will work with you directly to design a plan that will allow for the completion of program requirements in the most efficient way possible.
No matter your path, curriculum throughout all three programs will teach you to appreciate the historical method of searching for truth, make judgments about concrete issues and exercise careful analysis along the way.
Here are a few courses in Master of Arts in History - Public History at UW-Eau Claire.
HIST 586
Introduction to Public History
This course will introduce students to the theory and practice of a variety of history-related pursuits known collectively as public history because they are primarily aimed at audiences outside the university. Students will learn about a range of career options available to public historians, as well as the special challenges that they confront.
HIST 703
Readings in World History
Familiarizes students with major issues of historical debate in the field by reading a book per week or commensurate articles. Term paper summarizing and evaluating views on a specific issue is shared with other students.
HIST 793
Current Trends in History
Examines the emergence of history as a profession, major subfields today within the discipline of history, methodologies and models currently influencing the work of historians, and dominant issues presently engaging the attention of historians.
What's Next?
