Master of Arts/Doctor of Philosophy in History - Comparative Race and Ethnicity

Race and ethnicity are enduring themes of history in every society. Some regard them as artifacts of the modern period since the European Enlightenment, others as recurring issues throughout all ages and all cultures. The UCSB History Department has a large number of scholars whose work centers on or includes racial and ethnic issues'scholars of the United States, Latin America, Europe, Central Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, the ancient Mediterranean, public history, and the history of science. We exist in a university that has unparalleled resources in other departments for the comparative historical study of race and ethnicity, including distinguished faculty in the departments of Feminist Studies, Sociology, Religious Studies, Chicana and Chicano Studies, Black Studies, and Asian American Studies (Many of whom are affiliate faculty members of the History Department).

We offer a comparative, historical approach to the study of race and ethnicity, in order to help students stretch beyond the specifics of particular groups, times, and places. We intend that students will become knowledgeable about not just the histories of particular groups, but also of racial and ethnic theory and of similarities, differences, and connections between the experiences of groups that may be widely separated by time or space. We are particularly interested in ways that study of ethnicity may intersect with other issues, such as gender, class, religion, labor, nation formation, and the history of ideas.

Applicants who have conducted their post-secondary education outside of the United States must have completed an undergraduate degree program equivalent to a University of California bachelor's degree by the beginning of their graduate program at UCSB. Equivalent undergraduate degrees usually include a minimum four years of university work and above-average scholarship. The degree must be awarded by an accredited institution. Satisfaction of minimal standards does not, however, guarantee admission, since the number of qualified applicants far exceeds the number of spaces available. An excellent command of written and spoken English is required prior to enrollment at UCSB. Applicants whose native language is not English are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the Duolingo English Test (DET). TOEFL paper-based test (PBT) 550, TOEFL internet-based test (iBT) and TOEFL iBT Home Edition 80, IELTS Academic and IELTS Indicator - Overall Band Score of 7.