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STATEMENT OF GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR THE DOCTORAL PROGRAM
MISSION STATEMENT:
The Mission Statement for Bowling Green State University states that “through the interdependence of teaching, learning, scholarship,
and service we will create an academic environment grounded in intellectual discovery and guided by rational discourse and
civility.” The doctoral program in Policy History seeks to realize this vision, through its practices and through the practices
of its graduates, both within and beyond the University. More specifically, the history department commits itself to a first-rate
doctoral program that grounds our students in historical scholarship and practice; trains them for a variety of careers in
academia, government, and the private sector; and provides a model for scholarly and professional discourse based on collegial
discussion and respectful debate.
THE POLICY HISTORY PH.D PROGRAM:
The doctoral program is a “niche program” that focuses on policy history. Doctoral students examine the interrelationships
among politics, institutions, and society in the formulation, implementation, and consequences (intended and unintended) of
policy. The Bowling Green policy history program is unique: it is only program that offers policy history studies in non-American
as well as American fields, and encourages students to work comparatively, across national boundaries—an especially important
skill in a the modern “global” era. An outstanding faculty, a low student-teacher ratio, and extensive opportunities for interdisciplinary
work allow doctoral students to tailor their programs of study to their intellectual interests and professional goals. Faculty
research interests include a broad spectrum of regional specialties —United States, Europe, Russia, East Asia, Africa, Latin
America—and policy-related topics—state bureaucracies, foreign policy, economic policy, church-state relations, social welfare,
political culture, immigration, labor, urban development, science and technology, women and gender, race and ethnicity, disease
and nutrition, crime and punishment. Students can also choose supplemental advisors from and take courses in other university
departments and programs including American Culture Studies, Africana Studies, Women’s Studies, Ethnic Studies, Political
Science, Public Administration, Applied Philosophy, and the Center for Archival Collections.
ADMISSION STANDARDS:
The history department accepts only a small number of highly qualified doctoral students whose interests and abilities match
our program. For applicants to the doctoral program, B.A. and M.A. degrees in history or a related field are required. Applicants
are evaluated on: 1) transcripts for all degrees from an accredited college or university; 2) a substantial writing sample
on an academic topic; 3) a short personal statement on research interests and career plans; 4) letters of recommendation from
three individuals familiar with the applicant’s academic work or other related experience; and 5) official scores for the
general portion of the Graduate Record Examination. The History Department does not admit undergraduates directly into the
Ph.D program although many of our M.A. students go on to complete their history Ph.Ds at BGSU.
ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF THE REGION:
The policy history doctoral program serves the state and region in a number of important ways. First and foremost, it provides
well-trained college and university teachers and researchers many of whom choose to remain in the area after graduation. Graduates
who choose non-academic careers often move into public and private sector jobs in the region. Both groups contribute in significant
ways to local, state, and regional economies as educators, policy analysts, public officials, taxpayers, consumers, and informed
citizens. The doctoral program has a strong internship component that regularly places students in regional sites including
the Ohio State Senate, Henry Ford Museum, Toledo Metroparks, Fort Meigs Historical Site, The Wood County Historical Center,
and the Center for Policy Analysis and Public Service at Bowling Green State University. Doctoral students are also a central
component of our new Ohio Policy History Initiative program—a pilot partnership program (with the Ohio Legislative Services
Commission and the Center for Policy Analysis and Public Service) to provide policy research support for the Ohio Legislature.
And they play a crucial role in the History Links grant (in partnership with the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center and
the Toledo and Fremont Public School Districts) from the U.S. Department of Education to strengthen history education in Ohio
public schools.
PLACEMENT OBJECTIVES:
Over the past few years, it has become less and less acceptable—to legislators, university administrators, prospective students
and their parents—to insist on compartmentalization of teaching and research, especially in publicly-funded institutions and
most especially in the humanities and social sciences. Despite this trend, graduate student training in most institutions
still focuses almost entirely on academic (rather than pedagogical) training with a strong bias towards research. The BGSU
history department has made a concerted effort to integrate graduate student teacher training into an intellectually rigorous
program that continues to foster intellectual development and innovative research. Thus, we maintain a quality intellectual
component that produces students who obtain positions jobs at Ph.D granting institutions, and we have also been very successful
at other kinds of placements because we train students to teach well in the kinds of academic settings that comprise the majority
of jobs. One reason for our success on this score has been the development of a relatively comprehensive program for mentoring
students, moving them through TA assignments to independent teaching, and offering informal opportunities (brown bag teaching
forums, etc.) to address issues related to teaching and student learning. Beginning in academic year 2004-2005, the history
department will implement a teacher-training sequence that includes our required Teaching College History course in the Fall,
followed by a Micro-teaching Workshop in the Spring. At the same time, the history department’s strong internship program
and innovative programs like the new Ohio Policy History Initiative both strengthen and broaden the more traditional academic
program at the doctoral level.
This commitment to training our Ph.D students to teach well has paid off in practical terms. In the face of an anemic job
market for history Ph.Ds, over 80% of our students who have completed their Ph.Ds since 1995 have found full-time employment
in academia. Graduates entering academia have taken tenure-track positions at Ithaca College, Utah Valley State College, University
of North Carolina-Charlotte, Grand View College, University of Akron, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Marietta College,
West Virginia Wesleyan, St. Francis University, Yuba College, Geneva College, and Edinboro State College. Doctoral students
have also entered non-academic employment, taking positions with the Department of Homeland Security (formerly INS), Ohio
Legislature, and the Wisconsin Maritime Museum.
PROGRAM REVIEW:
The doctoral program is regularly reviewed as part of the University’s Program Review process. The last departmental review
was 1996-1997. The next review is 2003-2004
Contact Information:
Scott Martin, Chair
Walter Grunden, Graduate Coordinator
Room: 128 Williams Hall
Phone: 419-372-2030
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