Public History Program

Established in 1983, the graduate program in public history at the University at Albany, SUNY, is a 36-credit program, usually completed in three semesters plus a summer internship. In addition to traditional public history courses -- in archival practices, historical site administration, material studies, historic preservation, local/community history, and museum studies -- the program offers students training in digital history, documentary filmmaking, oral/video history, and audio documentary production. Students accepted to both programs may also choose to combine the M.A. in History with the M.S. in Information Science.

Depending on the courses chosen, students will be prepared for employment with historical societies, museums, archives, and similar agencies; with agencies involved in public policy planning, or with organizations that rely on digital technologies and traditional and new media in their efforts to research, preserve, and communicate about the past.

Download our program brochure.

Degrees offered: 

  • M.A. in History/Concentration in Public History (36 credits)
  • M.A. in History/Concentration in Public History COMBINED with the M.S. in Information Science (minimum 65 credits, including 13-credit overlap*)
  • M.A. in History/Certificate in Public History (54 credits)

 

*The dual program requires separate admission to both graduate programs. Up to 7 credits of history coursework may be applied to the M.S.I.S., and 6 credits of information science coursework applied to the history M.A. 

Grad student Andrea Nero at Olana
M.A. graduate Andrea Nero at Olana State Historic Site

For further information:

 


Gainful Employment Program Disclosure

Join us on LinkedIn  *  Follow us on Twitter  *  Find us on Facebook /

The Capital Region

Located in Albany, New York and within short travel distance of New York City and Boston, the graduate program is part of a rich regional network of research and internship possibilities. On campus, the University libraries provide access to more than 2.5 million volumes and have remarkably vast and original Special Collections. The University's location in the state capital affords ready access to the New York State Library, containing over three million items, and to the New York State Archives, containing more than twenty-five thousand cubic feet of records. The Albany area is the home of major state agencies such as the State Archives, the State Museum and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. It also has many public and private museums, historical societies and archives, and fifteen other colleges and universities. The richness and diversity permits a wide choice of internship possibilities, as well as providing a pool of specialized experts to supplement the public history curriculum and internship possibilities.

To learn more about the program, contact:

Professor Carl Bon Tempo
Graduate Director, Dept. of History
Office SS 109B
Phone: 518-442-5368
cbontempo@albany.edu		                    Professor Sheila Curran Bernard
Director, Public History Program
Office SS 060D 
Phone: 518-442-5300 (main office)
sbernard@albany.edu

 

Learn More