the JMP thesis stream

Before you apply

• Check out our write up on the application process here!

Program requirements

• 12 credit hours of coursework at the 7000 level (history).

  • 6 of those credit hours are of your choosing.

  • 6 of those credit hours are HIST 7110: Advanced Historical Methodologies

  • This is a mandatory course split over two semesters - the class is held on the University of Winnipeg campus one semester and the University of Manitoba campus the other.

  • In exceptional cases, you may be permitted to take 6 extra departmental credit hours at the 7000 level.

• 2 zero-credit, pass/fail courses

  • GRAD 7500 Academic Integrity Tutorial must be completed online within your first term of registration.

  • GRAD 7300 Research Ethics Course must be completed online within your first year of registration.

• Proficiency in a second language is demonstrated in one of the two following ways:

  • OPTION 1: Language courses

    • If you successfully completed 6 credit hours of introductory language classes during your undergraduate degree, you are exempt from taking more and have already fulfilled the language requirement.

    • If you need to complete a language course during your MA program, you must receive a B grade or better. Be aware that not all language options are offered over the summer.

    • Language courses fill up fast.

  • OPTION 2: Language translation exam

    • The language translation exam allows you to bypass the courses but is not offered often.

    • In this exam, you’re given text from a journal article (on a historical subject) in the language of your choice that you have to translate. Dictionaries and conjugation books are permitted.

  • For more information, reach out to the History Department.

• MA Thesis (GRAD 7000)

  • This is defined by the University of Manitoba as “a piece of original writing based on a variety of research sources” that “does not normally exceed 100 pages of double-spaced text”. For more information, check out the History Department’s website here.

  • The thesis proposal is normally submitted 9 months from the student’s start date in the JMP. Once approved by the student’s advisor, the proposal is circulated by the JMP Chair to two members of the Joint Master’s Program in History for review and approval. 

    The thesis proposal form, available on the department website, offers clear guidelines for the content and format of the proposal. 

    In general, the proposal should present a clear research problem, a preliminary discussion of the current historiography around the topic, a discussion of potential primary sources to be researched, the methodology to be used to examine and analyze the primary and secondary material, and a working outline of potential chapters. 

  • For more information about writing your MA thesis, consider participating in our Planning, Researching, and Writing Workshop, which runs every Fall and Winter semester. Click here for more information.

Advisors

Upon admission, you will indicate who you would like as an advisor. If you do not indicate someone or your first choice is unavailable, an alternate advisor will be arranged in consultation with the Chair of the JMP.

• While technically, you can request a change of advisor during your program, it is highly discouraged and not a decision that is taken lightly.  

ideal Timeline

Program Length: 2-4 years. (Program must be completed within four years of the start date.)

The following timeline is an ideal timeline, but not a required timeline. You may choose to go about things a little differently, or life might get in the way and make things take longer than you expect. That’s okay!

Year One:

• (September) Set up a meeting with your advisor. Some advisors will encourage you to start thinking about your thesis project right away, while others will advise you to wait until after you’ve completed your coursework. Make sure you’re on the same page with your advisor on when things are expected to be completed.

• (September-April) Complete your coursework.

• (September-April) Complete your language requirement.

  • If you’re doing the courses instead of the exam, make sure you register early. Part one of the introductory language courses is only offered in the Summer & Fall.

  • If you are doing a translation exam instead of a course, make sure you start preparing early. While you can take the exam as many times as you need to, they are not offered often. If an exam time is offered, take it.

• (May-June) You will complete your first annual progress report with your advisor and the Graduate Chair. In this review you’ll go over where you’re at in the program, what you’ve completed and what you still need to complete. Your advisor will provide an assessment of your progress, and you’ll also have time to provide feedback of your own. Both you and your advisor will sign off on the review and it will be added to your student file.

Summer:

• Your courses may be done, but this is the ideal time to get working on your thesis project form (i.e.. your thesis proposal).

  • Click here to download the thesis project form.

• Complete the thesis project form and send it to your advisor. They will provide you with feedback that you can either take, or not. Your advisor will help guide you and provide support, and it’s important to recognize that they have expertise in the field—that’s why you chose them!—but you don’t have to take every suggestion made. Remember, this is your project.

• Once you’re both happy with the state of your proposal, it will be submitted to the Chair of the Joint Discipline Committee who will then pass it along to your advisory committee for comments and approval. If further revisions are needed, you’ll be asked to complete them. If the proposal is approved, it will be registered with the Canadian Historical Association.

Year Two:

• Write your thesis!

• Don’t isolate - that makes this so much harder! Stay connected with your advisor and your fellow students. Attend workshops offered by the library, or HGSA events. You can join us for our monthly meet-ups, get feedback on you writing at our writing workshop, present your research at our Fort Garry Lecture Colloquium, join our Discord server (email hgsa@umanitoba.ca for the invite link!) or find ways to volunteer on campus.

Year Three/Four:

• Keep going, you’ve got this! You’re nearly there!

Other notes

• Students require a minimum 3.0 grade-point average in their coursework before they are permitted to submit a thesis.

• Manitoba Student Aid will only provide funding (if you qualify - for more information, click here to visit the Manitoba Student Aid site) for 3 years.

For more information, contact the University of Manitoba department of history.

Department of History
403 Fletcher Argue Building
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2 Canada
Phone: 204-474-8401
https://umanitoba.ca/faculties/arts/departments/history/
history@umanitoba.ca