Graduate Courses taught
Readings in the American Revolutionary Era
Research seminar: The Art of the Article
Literature of U.S. History before 1865
Readings in U.S. Gender and Sexuality
Gender History and Theory in Europe and America
Gender and Public Space in the U.S. and Europe, 1600-1900
Undergraduate Courses taught
Survey of American History before 1865 (lower division)
The Art of Historical Detection: The American Self-Made Man (lower division)
Introduction to Historical Study (boot camp for new history majors)
Colonial North America, 1600-1800 (upper division)
Gender and Sexuality in American History I and II (upper division)
The American Revolutionary Era, 1760-1820 (upper division)
The New American Republic, 1780-1830 (upper-division)
Oratory in America, 1775-Present (upper division)
History of Sexuality in America, 1600-Present (upper-division)
Women, Gender, and American Political Culture, 1776-Present (seminar)
Making the Self-Made Man (honors seminar)
A History of Richmond in 50 Objects (honors seminar)
Senior Capstone Research Seminars on a range of subjects (the American Revolutionary Era, the History of Sexuality in America, American Social and Cultural History)
Considering graduate school in history?
Should you go? It’s not an easy question to answer. Grad school is significantly different than an undergraduate program and often requires very different skills in independently managing your time (not to mention your emotional well-being). I recommend reading more advice on this score, available at the University of Wisconsin’s website, the American Historical Association’s newsletter, Swarthmore College‘s history website, and Prof. David Stone’s Kansas State University page.
Writing personal statements for grad school applications
Writing personal statements for grad school applications is one of the more difficult genres of writing–and can be opaque. Most important, admissions committees want to know about your specific interest in their program and your preparation to enter it. What kinds of history do you want to write? How does that link up with the expertise of their faculty? Is there one or more faculty member(s) with whom you want to work? Mention them by name. Have you confirmed that those faculty are available to work as advisors?
Just as significant is your preparation for the program. Have you already undertaken projects in which you work extensively with primary and secondary sources in ways that signal an ability to write history? If you are studying a field that requires foreign language preparation, explain (honestly) your facility with that language. Send a writing sample that displays your ability to work with those sources.
Many statements discuss things that are borderline irrelevant: their interest in teaching, or their lifelong love of history. These are significantly less important to the application. But if you intend to pursue a career in public history, you may want to discuss your experience in internships or other public history settings.
Carolyn Eastman 