Graduate Admissions FAQs

A. Do not sent materials to the History Department. The Graduate School of Arts & Sciences does not accept paper materials.

A. One of the most commonly overlooked sections of the application is the request for information on your knowledge of foreign languages. The department staff records whatever information you provide, but it does not have the time to search your transcript or résumé for language proficiency. The department requires that you submit a separate sheet describing your foreign language competence (beginning, intermediate, advanced level) and including a list of language courses taken. Please upload this page to the application under “Department-Requested Document.”

A. The department does not have a minimum required GRE score, since the admissions committee looks at many other factors, such as letters of recommendation and transcripts.

A. Yes, it is. Please upload it with the online application. No writing sample may be longer than 40 pages.

A. Yes. The admissions committee is not looking a for a lot of personal information, although a little bit of that can be effective in introducing yourself. The committee wants to see a statement of your general historical interests, and what kinds of scholarly questions and topics you want to explore. Make sure these questions are grounded in an understanding of your intended field of study. Do not propose to study only one specific thing; it is OK if you have a specific dissertation or thesis topic in mind, but the committee is looking for people with a slightly broader set of interests and a flexible attitude about learning. It is OK to speak about career ambitions if you are interested in pursuing non-academic jobs, but do not tell the committee you’ve always wanted to be a professor. Describe the historical questions that spark your passions!

Please visit https://www.bu.edu/cas/admissions/phd-mfa/apply/frequently-asked-questions/testing-requirements/ for more information.

A. Yes, this is a good idea, but it is not required. Take time to review the faculty roster and to learn about the professors’ areas of research before reaching out to introduce yourself to a potential advisor. Please do not request phone calls or Zoom meetings; email exchanges, often extended, work well for these initial introductions.

Please also take note that the admissions committee reviews all of the applications and makes the final decisions across all fields. No advisor has a say in the final admissions decisions.

A. Beginning in January, the admissions committee meets every two or three weeks to consider all complete applications. The committee will inform applicants who are admitted of its recommendation after the entire review process is completed. Those who are not accepted will generally receive official notification from the Graduate School shortly after that. Consideration of your application may be delayed if any credentials are missing.

A. All students admitted to the Ph.D. program receive a financial aid package.

A. A deadline will be stated in the letter offering admission.

A. You will receive a welcome e-mail from the Graduate School confirming the fact that your acceptance has been processed. In early summer the department’s Director of Graduate Studies will be in touch with more details regarding orientation and registration.