Chances Are, the Future of History Comes from Wesleyan
Olivia Drake| Posted 10/01/05 |
| The September, 2005 issue of Perspectives, the monthly publication of the American Historical Association, included a study of history Ph.D.s earned between 1989 and 2002 and showed that the leader in the field was in fact Wesleyan University – even though Wesleyan doesnt have a Ph.D. program in history.
Though the results may sound incongruous at first, the data is actually quite solid. The studys author, Robert Townsend, found that a higher percentage of Wesleyan students who earned bachelors degrees during the surveyed period went on to earn Ph.D.s in history than undergraduates from any other institution in the United States. Townsends data showed that Wesleyan students earned 607 B.A.s in history from 1987-2002. This aggregate number ranked 13th overall nationwide. However, Wesleyan students went on to earn 100 history Ph.D.s from 1989 to 2002, giving the university a rate of 16 history Ph.D.s earned for every 100 history B.A.s earned within the survey period. This rate was the highest measured and tied Wesleyan with the University of Chicago for best overall ratio. The ratio also exceeded the ratios of all other liberal arts institutions in the country, as well as those of Yale, Harvard, Brown, U.C. Berkeley and Stanford. It should be noted that though most history Ph.D.s are earned by people who received history B.A.s, this is not always the case, a point that, when considered within the context of the study, further highlights the quality of Wesleyans bachelor program in general. |
| By David Pesci, director of Media Relations |
Mike Mavredakis
Jeff Harder