Doctor of Philosophy in History - Ancient History

UCLA grants graduate degrees in Ancient History through the Department of History. The Department aims to provide students with both broad and deep training in the history of the ancient Mediterranean world. Students are expected to acquire familiarity with all periods of ancient Mediterranean history, from Archaic Greece to the end of Late Antiquity, and to gain appropriate competencies in cognate disciplines (e.g., Classics, Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Art History, Archaeology). Moreover, it is essential that students master the languages, analytical skills, research methods, and bodies of evidence that will enable them to contribute new knowledge to their chosen area of research. Finally, historians of the ancient Mediterranean world are expected to learn to understand and engage with the historiographic methods and concerns of the wider discipline of history.

The faculty member in the Ancient History field is David Phillips (Ph. D., Classical Studies, University of Michigan: Associate Professor, Greek history, legal history). There are two emeritus members of the faculty, Mortimer Chambers (Ph. D., Classics, Harvard University: Greek history) and Ronald Mellor (Ph. D., Classics, Princeton University: Roman history). A Byzantine historian, John Langdon (Ph. D., Ancient History, UCLA), serves as a Continuing Lecturer in the Department of History.

Because the History Department has several different fields each with slightly different requirements the criteria for admissions are not rigidly standardized The admissions committee considers the following factors three letters of recommendation from the students former or current professors the applicants statement of purpose 1000 Words personal statement a writing sample of no longer than 10 pages double spaced not including bibliography foreign language training undergraduate or MA grade point average Unofficial transcript uploaded on the online application We may request official transcripts at a later time The general requirement for admission for a US student is a bachelors degree from a regionally accredited institution comparable in standard and content to a bachelors degree from the University of California An overall scholastic average of B 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or better is required or its equivalent if the letter grade system is not used and in any postbaccalaureate study Your IELTS Academic overall band score should be at least 7.0. 7.0 is the minimum required. Your TOEFL score on the paper and pencil test must be at least 560 or at least 87 on the internet-based test. For the internet based TOEFL TOEFL iBT the following are the expected scores for each section Writing - 25 Speaking - 24 Reading - 21 Listening - 17