Programs

Historical Studies

  • Degrees offered: MA, PhD
  • Application deadline: December 15; applications received after this date will not be accepted.
  • Study options: Thesis / Report (MA); Dissertation (PhD)
  • Duration: 12-20 months (MA); 4-5 years (PhD)
  • Entry term: Fall

Established in 1785, UNB has a long history of helping students interpret the past. Our historical studies department’s graduate programs examine diverse narratives about societies, institutions and cultures to help make sense of the complex world in which we live today. Students develop invaluable critical reading, professional writing and advanced analytical skills while exploring this endlessly fascinating discipline. UNB history graduates go on to find rewarding careers in archives, museums, cultural institutions, public service, the private sector and in tenured faculty positions at universities. Currently, the department has approximately 45 MA and PhD candidates. Our bi-campus program offers supervision at both the Fredericton campus and Saint John campus in a wide variety of fields. Through collaboration with faculty at other institutions, we offer a wide range of co-supervisory options tailored to your research needs. 

Research areas

  • Canadian history
  • History of the Atlantic World including Atlantic Canada
  • Early modern and modern European history
  • Histories of war and society, intelligence, and military history. 
  • Social history of medicine and health
  • Twentieth-century American history
  • Histories and cultures of the ancient Mediterranean

Current faculty and research areas

Fredericton campus

  • Cindy Brown: Military History, the impact of war on the people who live in the battlefield, particularly Italy.
  • Jeffrey Brown: United States, Transatlantic Modernism/Modernity, American Therapeutics 
  • Fred Burrill: North American Labour History, Oral History, Deindustrialization, History of Atlantic Canada, History of Quebec, Working-Class Historiography 
  • Stephanie Cavanaugh: Early Modern History (Europe and early colonialism), Late Medieval Europe, Histories of Religion
  • Wendy D. Churchill: Early Modern Britain and its Empire, Social History of Medicine, Early Modern Atlantic World, Early Modern Women's and Gender History 
  • Sarah-Jane Corke: Post 1945 American History, US Foreign Relations, History of the CIA
  • Cheryl Fury: Early Modern Europe, Tudor-Stuart England, Social History of the Navy, Women and Gender, the Holocaust, and Fascism
  • Bonnie Huskins: Loyalists of the American Revolution, Early Modern British Atlantic World, History of Atlantic Canada
  • Sean Kennedy: Modern European, French History, the far right and Intellectual History
  • Stefanie Hunt-Kennedy: The Caribbean and the Atlantic World, Slavery and Emancipation, Disability History, African Diaspora, Histories of Race
  • Heidi MacDonald: Twentieth-Century Canadian History with Specializations in Atlantic Canada, the Great Depression, Women Religious (Nuns), Suffrage, and Youth. 
  • Gregory Marquis: Atlantic Canada, Law and Society, Crime and Policing, Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco
  • M.Willis Monroe: Ancient Middle East, History of Religion and Science, Digital Humanities and Quantitative Approaches to History.
  • Sasha Mullally: Canadian and American History with a Specialization in the Social History of Medicine and Health 
  • Matthew Sears: Ancient Greek and Roman History, Greek and Latin historiography, Ancient Warfare and Society, Commemoration
  • Erin Spinney: History of Nursing, History of Medicine, Environmental History, Early Modern Britain, Social History of Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Royal Navy, Women's Labour in the British Atlantic World.
  • Lisa Todd: Modern Germany, European History, Gender and Sexuality, and War and Society
  • Angela Tozer: 19th and 20th Century Histories of Capitalism and Settler Colonialism with a focus on Canada and the Atlantic World.  
  • Lee Windsor: History of Warfare in the Modern World  
  • Donald Wright: Canadian Federal and Provincial Politics, Climate Politics

Application requirements

  1. MA applicants should hold an honours degree in history, or equivalent. Priority is given to those with first-class standing.
  2. PhD applicants should hold a masters degree in history with high or first class standing.
  3. Prior to applying, applicants must contact the Director of Graduate Studies and a prospective advisor to secure research supervision.
  4. Applications include:
    • MA applicants; a statement outlining your academic background, your research interests in History, and tentative project proposal
    • PhD applicants; a research proposal (developed in consultation with your potential supervisor) 
    • Three references (at least two from professors who can comment in detail on your academic abilities and potential)
    • A completed online application form
  5. International applicants whose first language is not English must submit language scores that meet or exceed International English language testing system (IELTS) band 7.

Your application will also be used to make decisions about funding, so it's worth taking the time to prepare it carefully. 

Funding

MA fellowships are valued at approximately $30,000 over 20 months. Full-time PhD students are funded at a minimum of $88,000 over four years. These funds may be a combination of scholarships, awards, and teaching and research positions. We assist all our student in applying for Canada Graduate Scholarships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. 

Contact us

For more information on our program, contact Dr. Lisa Todd, Director of Graduate Studies, or contact Elizabeth Arnold, Graduate Program Assistant.

Office: Tilley Hall, Rm. 120

Phone: 506 453 4621

Related: Department of Historical Studies Graduate Studies