[Bilimsel Haber] Master in History at Istanbul Bilgi Univ.

[Sule Tarakcioglu]

From: "Christoph K. Neumann" <neumann at bilgi.edu.tr>


Master's Program at Bilgi

The Social Sciences Institute at Istanbul Bilgi University announces the
launching of its Master's Program in History for the academic year of
2006-2007. The Master's Program aims to provide students of diverse
backgrounds a firm academic foundation geared towards conducting
original research in the field of history with an emphasis on
interdisciplinary methods and approaches. Application to the program is
not limited to students with undergraduate degrees in history but is
also open to those from related fields in the social sciences and
humanities, whether it be on the undergraduate as well as graduate
level. International students are likewise encouraged to apply. Teaching
and coursework are conducted in English.

The two-year master's program focuses on the cultural and intellectual
history of Turkey covering the medieval to contemporary periods. Since
the field of cultural and intellectual history is particularly
underrepresented in graduate programs in Turkish universities, the
History Department at Bilgi offers a unique program both in terms of
diverse and challenging coursework as well as research opportunities in
the above field. With an emphasis on interaction with the teaching
staff, the program encourages students to work in close collaboration
with their advisors in both the classroom as well as on individual
research projects.

Up to ten students will be accepted into the Master's program per year.
Limited funding is available.


Contact Information

For further information please contact the director of the master's
program, Associate Professor Dr. Christoph K. Neuman
neumann at bilgi.edu.tr
(##90-212) 311 6469


Timetable for Application and Registration
1 September 2006:                          preregistration deadline
4 September 2006:                          written exam
12 September 2006:                         interview
13-18 September 2006:                      university registration
19-23 September 2006:                      course registration


Application Requirements
*	Graduation from an accredited university
*	Transcript of university-level coursework
*	Three reference letters, two of which must be written by
         members of one's department
*	Academic Curriculam Vitae (cv)
*	LES minimum score of 45 or GRE minimum score of 610
*	English proficiency exam:  either TOEFL (min. 233/575 [TWE
         4.5]); IELTS (min. 7); ÜDS (min. 85) or Istanbul Bilgi
         University Certificate of Proficiency in English
Note: For those students who know a language other than Turkish well
but have only an intermediate command of English, deferment of admission
for a year will be permissible contingent upon taking steps to acquire
the necessary level of English during that year.
*	Written exam
*	Interview conducted by the teaching staff of the History Department


Coursework Schedule

  1. term: HIST 501, HIST 511(required), HIST 521 or CULT 502 or CULT 511
(departmental elective), 1 general elective course
2. term: HIST 502, HIST 512 (required), HIST 532 or CULT 512 or CULT 519
(departmental elective), 1 general elective course
3. and 4. terms: thesis (required).

Required History Courses:
HIST 501        Sources of Turkish Cultural and Intellectual History 1
HIST 502        Sources of Turkish Cultural and Intellectual History 2
HIST 511        Ottoman Material Culture
HIST 512        Political Thought from the Ottoman to Republican Periods

Elective History Courses:
HIST 521        Culture and Social Class
HIST 532        The Practice of the Writing of History

Master's students may choose from a variety of elective courses upon
departmental approval from the following Bilgi University graduate
studies programs: Cultural Studies, International Relations,
Architecture, and Comparative Literature. Students may also opt to take
electives courses from the History Department on the undergraduate level
when appropriate.


Content of History Courses
HIST 501 - Sources of Turkish Cultural and Intellectual History 1
This course introduces the student to the study of narrative sources
ranging from pre-modern chronicles to newspapers through the application
of various theoretical approaches including Structuralism, British
Marxism, New Cultural History and Deconstructionism. The implications of
print and publishing techniques in the production of sources will
likewise be examined.

HIST 502 - Sources of Turkish Cultural and Intellectual History 2
This course focuses specifically on archival and visual sources using
quantitative and statistical methods. The relation between sources and
Ottoman and Turkish administrative and social structures, the
contextualization of visual sources and documents, research methods as
well as strategies of interpretation are among the topics to be explored.

HIST 511 - Ottoman Material Culture
Often assumed static and unchanging as implied by the notion of
"traditional," Ottoman material culture is examined in this course by
tracing material change within the framework of everyday life and social
structure.

HIST 512 -Political Thought from the Ottoman to Republican Periods
Emphasizing the relationship between thought and social development,
this course entails the study of original texts dealing with
Ottoman-Turkish political thought with the intention of problematizing
the notion that Turkish political thought is based on a continuous
tradition of state-centredness and primacy of rulership as formulated in
the sixteenth century. The role intellectual developments played in the
forefront of social struggle as well as their transformation through
time and changing conditions will be the focus of this course.

HIST 521 -Culture and Social Class
This course critiques the notion of culture as it was first
conceptualized as a manifestation of "the spirit of a nation" as seen in
Romantic nationalistic historiography or as a phenomenon secondary to
the economic superstructure as presented in conventional Marxism. It
likewise traces how culture has been redefined following the linguistic
turn as a primary historical phenomenon especially in cultural history.
Approaches towards culture as employed in historical works produced in
Turkey, as well as possibilities for future practice, will be examined
in light of examples offered by world-renowned historians such as E.P.
Thompson, Peter Burke, Michel Foucault, Alain Corbin, Raffaella Sarti,
Simon Schama and Christiane Klapisch-Zuber.

HIST 532 -The Practice of Writing History
This course is an introduction into the ways in which history is
practiced and produced. Students will be introduced to a variety of
strategies for delineating research topics and identifying sources, for
evaluating data and evidence, as well as understanding narrative
conventions and style used in the compostion of historical works. In an
attempt to combine theory with practice, close critical readings of
important texts will be accompanied by discussion of theoretical
debates, questions regarding narrative technique and practice as well as
language use.


TEACHING STAFF
Prof. Dr. Mete Tunçay
Prof. Dr. Murat Belge
Prof. Dr. Jale Parla
Doç. Dr. Christoph Neumann
Doç. Dr. Levent Yilmaz
Yrd. Doç. Dr. Bülent Bilmez
Doç. Dr. Ferda Keskin



Christoph K. Neumann
Director, MA programme in History

Istanbul Bilgi University
Faculty of Science and Letters
Department of History

neumann at bilgi.edu.tr

phone ##90-212-3116469  (office), 3270531 (home)
fax ##90-212-2168477 (faculty), 3270531 (home)


--