Within our masters programs we offer several fields of study and specializations. Several affiliated units offer additional educational opportunities.
List of Masters Program Fields of Study
| Masters Program Fields of Study |
| United States History | The most popular field of study for masters students at Boise State University is US history. Our faculty expertise covers the entire spectrum of US fields and time periods, beginning with the age of exploration and continuing to the present. Students in our masters programs have worked on periods as diverse as the revolutionary war era and the Nixon era, and topics including Native American, constitutional, women’s, and western history. The majority of our applied (MAHR) students focus on US history as well. For details of more specific fields that our department supports, see the Women’s, Western, and Religious history field descriptions. |
| European History | The faculty in the department of history includes several Europeanists, whose focuses include ancient, medieval, renaissance and reformation, early modern, and modern history. More specifically, we have faculty who work on ancient Rome, English and British history, early modern European women’s history, early modern and modern Eastern European history, comparative history, social history, and family history. In recent years, students in our masters program have completed thesis in all of these fields. Please take a look at our faculty biographies to get a better idea of our specific interests. |
| World History | The Boise State University department of history has produced several excellent theses in non-European, non-US history in recent years. These include examinations of industrial policy in interwar Mexico, Iranian foreign relations, Filipino history, Japanese history, and colonial African history. Our faculty includes experts on east and south Asian history, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East, with more specific focuses on the Phillipines, Mexico, Iran, and west Africa. |
List of Masters Program Specializations
| Specializations |
| Western History | The study of the American west at Boise State University stresses the diversity of the region and the practical value of scholarly research. Topics include natural resources and environmental history, western women, native Americans, and exploration. The McCain collection in Albertsons Library serves as an excellent foundation for work in this field. It is supplemented by the availability of government publications, local and state governmental resources, the Idaho State Historical Archive, and internship opportunities. Students in both the Master of Arts and the Master of Applied Historical Research programs often choose to work in this specialization. |
| Public History | Public History is the study and practice of history in museums, historical societies, libraries and archives, business, and public agencies. Graduate students pursuing the Masters of Applied Historical Research receive practical on-site public history training as interns in agencies such as Idaho State Historical Society, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the Idaho Military History Museum, the Basque Museum and Cultural Center, and the City of Boise. Students also work as editors and researchers on historical exhibits and publications. Boise State also offers policy history “workshops” and an applied history graduate seminar. |
| Women’s History | Our department has developed an emphasis in women’s history. The history department offers courses in the history of women in early modern and modern Europe, the history of marriage and the family in Europe, the history of women in Christianity, the history of women in America from the colonial era to the present, and the history of women in the Western U.S.A. Our library holdings in women’s history are particularly strong and faculty are prepared to direct theses in women’s history. |
| Ancient & Medieval History | The department of history offers courses in Ancient Greek and Roman, Early Christian, and Medieval European history. Course are also available in Latin language and literature. Other university departments offer courses in ancient and medieval art, literature, and philosophy, for a broad cultural approach in this area. In recent years, masters students have written theses on a wide range of topics in Roman history. |
| Religious History | Our department has developed an emphasis in religious history. The history department offers courses in early Christianity, medieval Catholicism, Byzantine Orthodoxy, the Reformation, Women in Christianity, Popular Religion and Popular Culture, American religious history, Islam, and Living Religions. Our library holdings in early Christianity are particularly strong. Five current faculty members specialize in religious history and regularly advise masters level students seeking to conduct research in this area. |
List of Masters Program Affiliated Units
| Affiliated Units |
| Gender Studies | Multicultural and interdisciplinary in approach, the Gender Studies Program seeks to address many of the current social, economic, professional, media, individual, and public policy issues revolving around discussions of gender and sexuality. Students examine the experiences of women and men and concepts of gender and sexuality within different cultural, social, economic, and religious contexts through the study of scholarship and creative works in a variety of fields. Thus, the course work seeks to provide students with essential preparation for lives and careers deeply impacted by ongoing debates regarding gender and sexuality in our society. Students taking course work in Gender Studies have the opportunity to earn a Minor Degree in Gender Studies. |
| Basque Studies | This is an international, interdisciplinary area studies minor designed to complement majors in the arts, humanities and social sciences. |