History of Science

Questions about these requirements? See the contact info at the bottom of the page. 

Coursework 

Eight Four-Unit Courses or the Equivalent, Including:  

• Two seminars: Historiography of the History of Science (HISTSCI 3003A) and Research Methods in the History of Science (HISTSCI 3003B) 
• Four additional graduate seminars (2000-level), of which:
• Three must be offered by the Department of the History of Science (DHS)
• One must be outside the department
• Graduate reading courses and independent study courses do not fulfill the graduate seminar requirement.
• Two additional history of science courses, designated either “for undergraduates and graduate students” (1000-level) or “primarily for graduate students” (2000-level). 

Courses in the Department of the History of Science may also include: 

• Courses taught in other departments by members of the department or by formal faculty affiliates, provided they focus on topics closely aligned with the history of science, medicine, and technology or STS
• Courses cross-listed as HISTSCI
• Up to one graduate-level course offered by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the Science, Technology, and Society program. (While only one course may be counted as History of Science, others may be taken to fulfill other course requirements.) 

All other courses count as outside the department. 

AM Essay 

AM students must prepare a master’s essay that presents an original argument about a topic in the history of science, medicine, and technology. It should be based on original research in primary sources, and it should engage carefully with relevant secondary sources. It should be 7,500 to 10,500 words in length, exclusive of bibliography and notes. It must be accompanied by a complete bibliography of cited works and references in an appropriate scholarly format.  

Candidates for the AM must submit the AM Essay Topic Proposal form, available on the HoS graduate program resources website, by March 1 of the AM year.  

The master’s essay may consist of a paper written for a course in the history of science—HISTSCI 3003b or another graduate seminar—taken during the AM year.  

Essays written for spring seminars must be submitted to the course instructor, DGS, and graduate coordinator by the last day of the reading period.  

The master's essay may also be an independent work not connected to a course, but it is expected that the essay will have been substantially written and researched during the course of the student’s enrollment in the program; in this case, the DGS will designate a faculty member to grade the essay.   

The essay must receive a grade of B+ or higher. 

Residence and Progress: 

Students must be in residence for one year of full-time study. 

Eight courses must be completed with grades of B or higher. 

All AM students will meet with the DGS and, where applicable, their advisor at the start of each term to review progress and approve plans of study. 

Contact Info 

History of Science Website

Linda Schneider 
Graduate Program Coordinator 
Department of the History of Science 
Science Center 371 
Cambridge, MA 02138 
Email
617-495-9978