UTEP's history Ph.D. program capitalizes on the location of our campus and the strengths of our faculty by focusing on the study of the U.S.-Mexico border region. All of our doctoral students have a field in Borderlands History. They also choose two other fields from among Latin American History, U.S. History, World History, or an interdisciplinary field of their own design. This program makes our students key contributors to the body of knowledge about the rich history of the borderlands. It also trains them broadly, so they are highly competitive for positions both within and outside of academia.

The El Paso-Juárez metropolitan area, with a population of two million, offers students varied research and cultural opportunities. The University Library supports graduate study and research with a range of computerized services, in addition to a permanent collection of about 1.3 million items. This includes substantial and quickly growing deposits of original documents and newspaper collections from both sides of the border. Our Institute of Oral History, meanwhile, holds a collection of nearly 1,000 records relating to the history of the border region. Perhaps most importantly, the UTEP campus is nestled in the foothills of the Franklin Mountains, almost literally a stone’s throw away from the U.S.-Mexico border in far west Texas.

This department has a large and talented team of scholars with expertise in the border region and Latin America: Ernesto Chávez (Mexican-American), Cheryl Martin (colonial Mexico, Spanish borderlands), Julia Marie Schiavone Camacho (border, gender/sexuality, race), Jason Colby (U.S. in Latin America), Charles Martin (Texas), Sandra McGee-Deutsch (Latin America, Argentina), Michael Topp (immigration), Paul Edison (the French in Mexico), Sam Brunk (modern Mexico, environmental), Jeffrey Shepherd (Native American, American West), and Yolanda Chávez Leyva (border, public, Chicana).

Applications are invited from highly qualified students with a BA or MA in History, or the equivalent. Application forms are available from the UTEP Graduate School, (915) 747-5491, or through the “Requirements and Application Forms” link on this page. Applicants must provide transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate work. They must also take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) and arrange to have the results sent to the Graduate School. Applicants are also required to submit a sample of their academic writing, a statement of educational interests and career objectives, and letters of recommendation from three individuals familiar with their academic record and potential. All application materials should be sent to: The Graduate School, Attn: Mrs. Norma Marcus, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968-0587.

Our fellowships and assistantships are highly competitive and support will be offered to all students accepted into the program. Review of applications begins February 1st.

For further information contact:
Graduate Programs, Department of History, University of Texas at El Paso, 500 W. University, El Paso, TX 79968-0532. Telephone: (915) 747-5508; e-mail: sbrunk@utep.edu, fax: (915) 747-5948.