Admission Requirements for the M.A. Program:

We base admission decisions upon an evaluation of all the information we have about applicants. Thus, you are not guaranteed admission if you meet all the quantitative requirements below, and in some cases we may decide to admit someone who does not meet all the quantitative requirements based upon the academic record, recommendations, and writing samples.

1. A completed application form with a non-refundable $35.00 application fee [$60.00 for international students]. Since this may change, you should check with the Graduate School before applying.

2. Official transcripts from all colleges or universities that you have attended. It is not necessary to send transcripts from The University of Memphis, since these are already on file.

All transcripts must be sent directly from each institution at which the credit was earned to Graduate Admissions, The University of Memphis, 100 Wilder Tower, Memphis, TN 38152.

3. A minimum of 18 semester hours in undergraduate history with a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4-point scale in all undergraduate history courses. In special cases the Graduate Coordinator in History may make an exception, particularly in a case where a student with fewer than 18 credits in history courses has other non-history courses sufficiently similar in content or methodology to history courses, or when exemplary grades in the last undergraduate years follow poor earlier performance. While we primarily look at grades in history courses, we also may reject an applicant if grades in other humanities courses or overall GPA is unacceptable.

4. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Miller Analogies Test (MAT) scores. The department will normally consider you for admission only if you earn a GRE verbal score of at least 450, or a MAT scaled 405 or a raw score of at least 45. We urge you to take the Graduate Record Examination, especially if you plan to work toward the Ph.D. degree. All test scores must be sent directly from the testing agency to Graduate Admissions, The University of Memphis, 100 Wilder Tower, Memphis, TN 38152. Test scores older than five years are not acceptable, although we may be able to request a waiver of this time-limit if we think it is unnecessary for you to retake the exam. We do not accept scores on MAT exams taken in less than 2-month intervals.

In unusual circumstances we may admit a promising student who does not fully meet this requirement, if the academic record, recommendations, and writing sample warrant it.

Students who already have an earned master’s degree or an equivalent degree from an accredited institution may, with the concurrence of the Graduate Coordinator, request a waiver of the entrance examination.

You can contact the Testing Center, 112 John W. Brister Building, 901.678.2428, to arrange to take the MAT or to obtain a registration packet for the GRE. To take the GRE on campus by computer, call the E.T.S. Computer-based Testing Center, 901.678.1457. The GRE is administered by the Educational Testing Service; the Institution Code for The University of Memphis is 1459.

5. Two letters of recommendation evaluating your academic ability. You are free to send additional recommendations if you wish, but we are primarily interested in recommendations from former or current professors, especially of upper-level history courses you have taken, who can address your potential to succeed in a graduate program of history.

6. A writing sample, such as a paper from a course, that demonstrates your ability to write and think about history. Please write your e-mail address at the top of the first page of your writing sample. This is the only way we will be able to get in touch with you if we want to follow up on any aspect of your application.

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