Connect with the past. Reimagine your future.
Join us for an online open house to get your questions answered about graduate programs and the admissions process. Meet admissions staff, financial aid professionals, faculty, and academic advisors from various graduate programs. Learn more about your journey at UMass Boston.
Register Now
From museums and archives to historic sites, cultural organizations, and special collections, the Public History Certificate builds pathways to careers across the field. Cross-disciplinary courses prepare students for a wide range of roles, while individualized internships provide experience that complements classroom learning.
Here’s where this degree can take you:
The program gave me a solid grounding in the fundamentals. Rather than just studying the 'what', we worked with community partners to delve into the ‘how'—how to research artifacts and prepare descriptions for online display, create digital archives, and conduct an oral history. Field trips helped us understand the inner workings of museums, archives, and historical societies. With my internship, I applied skills I learned in the classroom to a real-world digital history project.Amy S., ’25
Deadlines:
Application Fee: The nonrefundable application fee is $75. UMass Boston alumni and current students that plan to complete degree requirements prior to graduate enrollment can submit the application without paying the application fee.
Applicants must meet general graduate admission requirements in addition to the program-specific requirements.
Estimate Your Program Cost: Get a feel for your expected program costs using the Graduate Program Cost Calculator.
Program Cost Information: Significant on-campus tuition discounts are available to residents of Massachusetts, the other New England states, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. For more detailed information on costs, visit the Bursar's website to learn more about Regular Session Tuition & Fees for in person courses and Special Price Tuition & Fees for online courses. Please refer to Financial Aid for more information.
Required Courses (9 Credits)
Electives (9 Credits)
Complete three from the following:
For more information on curriculum, including course descriptions and degree requirements, visit the Academic Catalog.
Complete 18 credits from six courses including three required courses and three electives.
Statute of limitations: Three years
Director of the Public History Track Jane Becker
jane.becker@umb.edu
(617) 287-6885
Students and alumni preserve and bring history to life through a blog showcasing their public history work, research, and community projects. They document local and regional stories, connect with archives, museums, and community groups, and share their findings with public audiences. Through their posts, students make history accessible, inclusive, and relevant, applying their studies to the real world.
Explore Our Blog
Explore the department and college that supports your journey in History.
