Master of Arts in American History and Government

Department of History and Political Science

The College of Arts and Sciences

The Master of Arts in American History and Government (MAHG) integrates the study of American history with the study of the philosophy and structure of American government. Designed with the content needs of secondary school social studies teachers in mind, the program is open to teachers, community college faculty, history and civic education curriculum professionals, social studies professional development coordinators, library and museum personnel, and others with a personal, scholarly, or professional interest in American history and government. Each course in the program is built around the reading and discussion of original historical documents. With a combination of summer and online study, motivated students can complete the degree in two years.

Mission Statement

The Master of Arts in American History and Government at Ashland University will provide students with an integrated program built around the reading and discussion of original documents. In doing so, the degree program aims to give students the subject mastery and interpretive skills necessary for further study, research, and scholarship in the fields of American history and government.

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Students will evaluate important original texts and documents in light of their sources, the reasons they were produced, and important historical and political facts relevant to where, when and why they were produced.

2. Students will analyze texts through identification of arguments, assumptions and relevant facts, through appraisal of the validity of inferences and deductions, and through comparison and contrast of arguments in two or more sources.

3. Students will interpret texts by articulating the meaning of the sources in their historical and political context and the effect and importance of the sources in history.

Interim Dean
Daniel McDonald, College of Arts and Sciences

Ashland University Graduate Faculty
Jeffrey Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science
Christopher Burkett, Associate Professor of Political Science
Adam M. Carrington, Associate Professor of Political Science
Gregory McBrayer, Associate Professor of Political Science
Cara Rogers Stevens, Associate Professor of History
Daniel K. Williams, Associate Professor of History
Joseph Griffith, Assistant Professor of Political Science
Jason Stevens, Assistant Professor of Political Science

Administrators
Jason Stevens, Chair
Christian A. Pascarella, Director
David Foster, Thesis/Capstone Coordinator
Charles Martindell, Graduate Programs Resource Manager
Monica Moser, Graduate Programs Administrator

Admission Procedures

The following are required for admission to the MAHG programs as a degree-seeking student:

1. A completed Ashland University Application for Graduate Admission

2. Official academic transcripts from accredited institutions of higher education documenting all undergraduate and graduate degrees awarded. Additional transcripts may be requested at the discretion of the program chair.

3. A minimum undergraduate grade point average of 2.75 of a 4.00 scale, or a minimum graduate grade point average of 3.00 on a 4.00 scale.

4. A $30 application fee. The application fee is waived for applicants who have previously applied to another master's degree program at Ashland University.

Transcripts, application fees paid by check or money order, or other correspondence should be mailed to:

Ashland University
Attn: Enrollment Services
401 College Avenue
Ashland, OH 44805

Official Electronic transcripts should be submitted to: enroll-grad@ashland.edu

Structure

Each course in the program is offered for two (2) semester credit hours. Courses are offered in two formats: as intensive, residential week-long summer courses during the months of June and July; and, as live online videoconference courses offered on various schedules throughout the academic year.

The degree requires a total of 30 semester credit hours.

Students may choose from either a thesis, capstone project, or a qualifying examination track.

Students may complete the degree in as little as two or three years, depending upon their desired course load and track option. During summer semesters, students may take up to four (4) courses during any one summer. Students should consult with their program advisor to discuss their semester-by-semester load.

The Qualifying Examination, Capstone Project, and the Thesis Tracks

Students may choose the thesis, the capstone project, or the qualifying examination track. Each option serves the same goal: that is, by completing the qualifying examination, capstone project, or thesis a student will demonstrate mastery of the topics taught in the program. In addition to content mastery, students must also display well-developed analytical and interpretive skills in the use of original documents and their relationship to the broader subjects of American history and government.

The student need not choose a track until the semester during which he or she reaches 18 hours in the program. With the permission of the program chair, the student may switch tracks after he or she has made an initial decision.

Qualifying Examination Track

Students who choose this option must earn 12 hours of core course credit and 18 hours of elective credit. At the time the student registers for his or her final semester the student should contact the program director to schedule and prepare for the qualifying examination.

The qualifying examination is composed of essay response questions based upon the core and elective courses taken by the student as part of their curriculum. Students may repeat the examination once. Students who fail to successfully pass the exam after a second attempt face dismissal from the program.

Capstone Project Track

Students who choose this option must earn 12 hours of core course credit, 14 hours of elective credit, and successfully complete HIST 692 or POLSC 692.

The capstone project allows a student to demonstrate his or her mastery of subject matter, as well as analytical and interpretive skills in a practical, useful, or creative format of the student's choosing. A capstone project combines different kinds of practical experience (e.g., as a docent or historical reenactor) or other written work (e.g., lesson plans or historical fiction) with analytical and interpretive writing in the form of one or more essays. Capstone projects may include:

• Creation of a selection of materials (e.g. primary documents) to enhance a curriculum, with essays providing justification of the selections and analysis and interpretation to assist in their use.

• Participation in Civil War battle reenactment, with interpretive essays explaining the significance of the battle in the military and political outcome of the Civil War.

• Development of an exhibition at a school, library, or museum, along with analytical and interpretive essays explaining the significance of the exhibition.

Students will work individually with the program's faculty to plan their capstone project proposal. The capstone project proposal requires the approval of the student’s capstone project committee, which will review proposals to make sure they meet substantive and methodological requirements of a master's program. Once the proposal is approved by the committee, the student may begin work on the project. Each student will have a capstone advisor, who also heads the capstone project committee, to help him or her complete the capstone project.

Thesis Track

Students who choose this option must earn 12 hours of core course credits, 14 hours of elective credit, and successfully complete HIST 691 or POLSC 691.

The thesis allows a student to demonstrate his or her mastery of subject matter, as well as analytical and interpretive skills in a traditional written format. A thesis is a written work stating a claim or interpretation and supporting it with data and argument. For example, a thesis might claim that a certain type of protestant theology is responsible for political reform movements in the United States and support that claim by examining, in one of a number of different ways, the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Students will work individually with the program's faculty to plan their thesis proposal. The thesis proposal requires the approval of the student’s thesis committee, which will review proposals to make sure they meet substantive and methodological requirements of a master's program. Once the proposal is approved by the committee, the student may begin work on the thesis. Each student will have a thesis advisor, who also heads the thesis committee, to help him or her complete the thesis. A thesis shall be no fewer than 10,000 and no more than 30,000 words.

Program Time Limits

Students must complete all requirements for the Master of Arts in American History and Government degree within 10 years. This period begins with the date of the earliest course and ends with the last coursework applied toward that degree. In extraordinary circumstances, a time extension may be granted through the approval of the program's faculty committee.

Course Delivery

Courses are offered as intensive week-long summer courses at the main campus and as live online videoconference courses. On-campus room and board are available for a nominal fee for students attending summer courses.

Degree-seeking students may apply to their degree requirements up to 18 semester credit hours of combined online, transfer credit, and credit earned for HIST 670, POLSC 670, HIST 691, POLSC 691, HIST 692, or POLSC 692. Of those 18 credit hours, no more than 6 may be transferred into the program from other universities.

All degree-seeking students must earn at least 12 hours on campus during the summer semester. There is no limit on the number of hours which may be earned on campus.

Grade and Course Repeat Policy

No credit toward degree requirements will be awarded for courses in which the student has earned a grade below C+. Any student receiving a B- or lower grade in a course may choose to retake that same course in an attempt to raise their grade point average. Both grades appear on the student's transcript. However, upon request of the student, only the second grade will be used in calculating the GPA.

Dismissal Policy

Any student who, in the opinion of the chair, is not making satisfactory progress toward the degree is subject to dismissal from the program. Signals of unsatisfactory progress may include, but are not limited to:

• A program GPA of below 3.00 at any time.

• Two grades below B-, either in the same semester or in different semesters.

• For students on the examination track, failure to pass the qualifying examination in two attempts.

• For students on the thesis or capstone track, failure to complete a satisfactory product within two years of the date of the approval of the student’s proposal.

• Excessive instances in which the student has withdrawn or failed to complete a course on time.

Transfer of Credits

Up to six (6) semester credit hours may be transferred from other institutions to satisfy degree requirements in the master’s program. The maximum number of transfer credits accepted toward degree requirements may be reduced depending upon the number of semester credit hours the student earns in online courses.

To transfer credit hours, the following conditions must apply:

• Credit hours transferred cannot have been used for another degree.

• A student must have earned the credit hours no longer than six years prior to acceptance into the master’s program.

• A student must have earned the credit hours at a regionally-accredited institution.

• The credit hours must be graduate-level credit hours from a course in which the student received at least a B.

• Quarter hours transferred into the university will be converted into semester hours, and all conversions will be rounded down to the nearest semester hour.

Additionally, coursework transferred must be substantially similar to graduate level HIST/POLSC-prefix courses offered by Ashland. The topics of courses for transfer must be in US history (including state and local history), American government (including state and local government), or US-related political science or politics topics. Non-US history (e.g. European history, world history, etc.), comparative government, or other courses with a focus on other than the aforementioned topics cannot be accepted in transfer. Further, courses for transfer must require readings and written assignments commensurate with a similar course at Ashland. Courses for transfer must also have been graded on an A-to-F scale (or equivalent numerical scale). Courses taken on a Pass/Fail or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis may not be transferred. 

All transfer credit will be applied as elective hours regardless of the topic of the transferred course. Transfer credit may not be applied to MAHG core course requirements. Grades from transferred courses are not included in the calculation of the student’s cumulative grade point average.

The student’s academic advisor approves credit transfers. Advisors may request a copy of the course syllabus to verify the course’s required readings and written assignments. To transfer credit, a student should ask the registrar of the institution where the credit was earned to send an official, sealed copy of his or her transcript to Ashland University. The transcript should make clear that the credit hours are graduate credits. Transcripts should be sent to:

MAHG Program
Ashland University
401 College Avenue
Ashland, Ohio 44805

Students who plan to take courses elsewhere for transfer after enrollment at Ashland must contact their advisor in writing for approval prior to beginning such coursework. A copy of the course syllabus must accompany the request. No other guarantees exist that credit hours will be transferable. Prior assurances given verbally by faculty or staff at Ashland University must be regarded as estimates or opinions; they do not commit the University to a course of action.

Any exceptions to this policy, which are granted rarely, must be approved by the program's faculty committee.

Course of Study

Elective Courses:

All students must earn 18 semester hours of elective credit. Students on the Thesis or Capstone Project tracks must complete 7 elective courses (14 semester hours) and either HIST 691, POLSC 691, HIST 692, or POLSC 692 (4 semester hours). Students on the Qualifying Examination track must complete 9 elective courses (18 semester hours) and either HIST 693 or POLSC 693 (0 semester hours).