Admissions
The Graduate School minimum requirements for regular admission to the University is a 3.0 grade point average (GPA). Applicants to History graduate programs are recommended to have a GPA of around 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. While the M.A. Maritime Studies program is part of the Department of History, many of our students enter with degrees in other disciplines including Anthropology, Archaeology, Biology, English, and Business.
Applications may be obtained from the Graduate School. A completed application consists of:
- Completed graduate study application form
- Official copies of all college transcripts (unofficial copies cannot be accepted)
- Three letters of recommendation; Recommendations should come from individuals an applicant has worked with. The best recommendations come from academic sources, with past or current employers being a second-tier choice. Please do not submit recommendations written by relatives or family friends.
- A statement of purpose (see our “Advice on Writing a Statement of Purpose“). Please note that statements of purpose not mentioning potential academic mentors are difficult to assess, and negatively affect application ranking.
Application deadline for MA Maritime Studies if seeking funding support through a graduate assistantship for fall semester is February 1. Applications accepted after February 1 may not be considered for funding through graduate assistantships. Applications will not be considered for the fall after May 15. Campus visits are encouraged for all applicants. Maritime Studies only has one intake in fall.
Please note that applications are only submitted to ECU’s graduate school, and only applications deemed complete are sent to the departmental selection committee. Program/department contacts cannot accept application materials. All inquires about application processes or routing applications can be directed to gradschool@ecu.edu
*As of summer 2020, applicants to the MA in Maritime Studies do not need to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). This was applied to applicants seeking admission into our fall 2021 intake, and is our policy until further notice.
**For further information on History graduate programs, please visit the Graduate Information page.