Charles University Faculty of Arts

Ph.D. in Auxiliary Historical Sciences

The curriculum is divided into three areas: (A) obligations associated with assessment of work for the dissertation; (B) basic study obligations; and (C) academic research or pedagogical activities. Specific study obligations (assessment of study) for all three areas are in boldface type. If not stipulated otherwise, they are organized in the form of credit.

A. DISSERTATION

Progress relating to work on the dissertation is assessed in the student’s individual study plan with the help of the following study obligations:

1)PhD seminar (AXPVDOS04–07, from the 5th year and above AXPVDOS07 with repeated registration)

-The student is required to participate in the PhD seminars for the duration of their studies. PhD seminars are organized in the form of individual consultation with the supervisor, and four times per academic year, joint seminars with all PhD students in the field. The projects and results of the PhD students work is presented at these joint seminars. The seminars also include a lecture on new knowledge relating to research in auxiliary historical sciences and associated fields of study. Participation in these seminars is required for all students.

-During the first year of studies, the student presents at a joint seminar their project and the preliminary information relating to the dissertation. This is discussed with comments and suggestions contributed by the other PhD students and lecturers.

-At the end of the first year of studies, students submit the written results of heuristics as an appendix to the interim study report, i.e. an overview of the sources for the specific topic and professional literature and an annotated outline of work that they have previously discussed with their supervisor.

-In the third year of studies, PhD students submit in a similar manner another chapter or comprehensive section (in a scope adequate for the content of a chapter – as a rule, approx. 35 pages) and present the interim results at a joint PhD seminar with the participation of the supervisor and other students and lecturers of PhD studies and participate in the discussion that follows.

-Fulfilment of these study obligations (submitting the written results of heuristics and a presentation of the current dissertation research results) is a requirement for successfully passing the PhD seminar in the third year of studies and a prerequisite for taking the state PhD exam.

-In the event of an internship abroad, students are excused from participation in seminars, but are required to make a presentation.

-Term: the obligation PhD seminar will be automatically registered for students in each year of studies.

2) Annotated research for the disseration(AXPVDIS05)

-For the studied titles, a summary and evaluation will be provided. For other titles, the student will state whether they have verified availability and the results of this verification. For all titles, the specific relationship to the dissertation topic is explained in detail.

-Term: 1st year of studies

3) Annotated outline for the dissertation(AXPVDIS06)

-Annotated outline for the dissertation

-Term: 1st year of studies

4) First chapter or another comprehensive section from the dissertation (AXPVDIS07)

-Usually around 35 standard pages in length

-Term: 3rd year of studies

5) Additonal comprehesive chapters from the disseration(AXPVDIS08)

-Scope of the adequate content of specific chapters

-Term: 4th year of studies

B. BASIC STUDY OBLIGATIONS

Common foundation for PhD studies at the Faculty of Arts

1)Foreign language

-Student may choose between German (AXJAZ0005), English (AXJAZ0001), French (AXJAZ0002), Russian (AXJAZ0006), and Italian (AXJAZ0003), as well as Latin (AXJAZ0004). Students who do not demonstrate adequate knowledge of German during the entrance exam are required to select this language.

-Term: 1st to 2nd year of studies

2) Theoretical and methodological seminar I–II (AXPVTMS02-03)

-The content of the seminar relates to profiling directions for the study of auxiliary historical sciences in the European context and methodology of the main auxiliary historical sciences, especially diplomacy, methodology of source criticism, and the publishing of historical sources.

-As a part of profiling directions for the study of auxiliary historical sciences, students focus on development of the study of auxiliary historical sciences and their current status in modern Europe, on the most important institutions developing the study of auxiliary historical sciences from the 19th century, and on the main works and current state of research in the field.

-The methodological part of the course focuses on various concepts of the field in historical development and in modern research, on the typology and methodology of studying historical sources in connection with current issues of historical studies and historical criticism of written historical sources with emphasis on pragmatic, especially official, documents. In connection with the issue of sources, students will also look at the main methodological approaches to publishing historical sources and their specific methods.

-The course also includes orientation in classical and modern professional literature, including the latest literature in the field, knowledge of printed manuals, dictionaries, and other study aids, identifying and publishing written sources, and the ability to work with relevant Czech and foreign electronic databases.

-The seminar takes place in the form of regular consultations with the lecturer in charge of conducting the seminar on the relevant topic. The output will be a written work in the range of 10 to 15 standard pages, including the prescribed literature. The topic is determined for PhD students by the subject-area board upon recommendation of the supervisor with regard to the professional orientation of the PhD student. The written work is evaluated by two members of the subject-area board.

-Term: 1st to 2nd year of studies

Subject-area programme of study – individual part

3) Subject-area examination from subjects of a narrower research focus (AXPVSPE01)

-Individual exam in the form of a professional discussion, the content of which is determined on the basis of the dissertation topic. The basis of the exam is an annotated bibliography, which the PhD student compiled as part of the dissertation. As a rule, two members of the department assess the student.

-Term: 1st to 3rd year of studies

4) Individual study obligations (AXPVSPE…+ various codes according to the topic)

-Graduates of fields other than Archival Science and Auxiliary Historical Sciences pass an examination in profile auxiliary historical sciences, the selection of which is determined by the supervisor according to the focus of the dissertation. Term: 1st to 2nd year of studies

-If required by dissertation topic, PhD students pass an exam in academic reading from a second language, in particular Italian (ASZIJ2000), French (ASZFJ2000), English (ASZAJ2000), Russian (ASZRJ2000), or Latin (ASZLJ0001). Term: 1st to 3rd year of studies

C. ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES

1)Professional review (AXPVOAK09)

-The PhD student submits for publication a review of a professional work which has been consulted in advance with their supervisor.

-Term: 1st year of studies

2)Academic publications I–II (AXPVOAK10-11)

-The PhD student submits for publication in a professional journal, peer-reviewed proceedings, or in a protocol for an academic conference at least two original source professional studies with an academic apparatus. The studies may be replaced with a chapter in a professional monograph of a similar scope.

-The studies may also reflect the results arising from preparation of the dissertation.

PhD students have the opportunity to publish in professional Czech or foreign journals – examples of Czech journals include Sborník archivních prací, Paginae historiae, Pražský sborník historický, Documenta Pragensia, Mediaevalia Bohemica Historica, Studia mediaevalia Bohemica, Folia historica Bohemica, Český časopis historický, or regional professional journals. At the same time, PhD students have the opportunity to send their texts (larger studies, smaller texts, and reviews) for publication to foreign journals – Acta Universitatis Wratislaviensis - Historia; Historia Slavorum Occidentis, Studia Źródłoznawcze, etc. In all cases for Czech and foreign journals, it depends on acceptance by the relevant editorial office; KPVHAS itself cannot guarantee this acceptance. However, all current PhD students in the field have been successful in publishing during their studies, which testifies to the quality of their research when working on the selected topic of their dissertation.

-The results may be recorded after acceptance of the study for publication.

-Term: 1st to 4th year of studies

3)Active participation in conferences (AXPVOAK12)

-The PhD student actively participates (with a paper or poster) in at least one professional conference, workshop, or colloquium organized by universities, the Czech Academy of Sciences, archives, and other institutions, or a similar event abroad.

-Term: 1st to 4th year of studies

4) Other academic activities (AXPVOAK13)

-The following professional activities are permitted: full-time students participate in academic instruction under the guidance of an experienced lecturer (usually for one semester); combined-study students or full-time students who for serious reasons cannot participate in academic instruction can replace it with a grant project, other professional publications, additional active participation in a conference, professional editorial activities, or a professional translation.

-Term: 1st to 4th year of studies

Other professional activity in addition to the above-stipulated obligations is encouraged, and if it is related to the dissertation topic, the student records it as a part of the regular annual assessment.

5) Internship abroad (AXPVOAK14)

-The student is required to complete an internship abroad (or more than one internship) during their studies for a total of at least one month, ideally at one of the leading foreign institutions in the field (especially Institut für österreichische Geschichtsforschung in Vienna, École des chartes in Paris, Ludwig-Maximilian-Universität in Munich, Humboldt University in Berlin, University of Wroclaw) or in a place where the student has sources available on the topic of their dissertation (archives and history libraries).

-Term: 1st to 4th year of studies (for serious reasons, such as childcare, workload for combined-study students, on the basis of an application approved by the dean, the internship abroad may be replaced by the following professional activities with an international dimension: such as active participation in a conference abroad, professional editorial activity, additional academic instruction, a professional publication).

6) State PhD examination (ASDZK0001)

-The state PhD examination completes a student’s PhD studies – it verifies the PhD student’s methodological, problem-solving, and factual knowledge of the field. The exam can be taken after fulfilling all the basic obligations in the ISP (with the exception of internships abroad and submission of the dissertation; for publications, their acceptance is sufficient). The exam is based on the topic of the dissertation, but the PhD student will demonstrate knowledge of the broadest political, social, cultural, and legal contexts and an overview of the current state of research on the topic. The exam should be linked to the topic of the dissertation, but the PhD student should demonstrate knowledge of broad social, cultural, economic, and political contexts. The student is examined orally by a committee. The exam has two rounds. The first focuses on the topic of the dissertation and is based on a select annotated bibliography, which the student submits no later than one week before the exam. The second round is selected in agreement with the supervisor (at least one month before the exam date). Supplementary questions may be asked during the exam.

7) Dissertatoin defence (AX0007305)

-A requirement when registering for the dissertation defence is fulfilment of all obligations specified in the ISP.

Standard period of study: 4 years

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PREPARING THE INDIVIDUAL STUDY PLAN

The Research Office creates the basic version of the ISP in SIS and enters for each PhD student all of the obligations that are clearly intended for all students of the subject area (i.e. with a unique code provided in the general plan). Once this basic ISP is created, the student, in agreement with their supervisor, must complete the following in SIS:

1.The foreign language, selected from the offer of languages associated in SIS with the specific plan

2.The individual study obligations, according to the specifications in the above plan. These obligations may be entered either by selecting an existing subject or (if the subject does not yet exist in SIS) by entering the “subject description”, which describes in words the obligation while associating it with a certain subject in SIS at a later time.

3.The year of fulfilment for all obligations for which the above-mentioned subject-area curriculum determines the time span

Graduates from the doctoral program in Auxiliary Historical Sciences are highly qualified scholars who are able to evaluate critically the results of earlier research in Auxiliary Historical Sciences, the history of management, and the theory of resources in addition to editorship and are able to work creatively in these fields in accordance with the international development in related scientific disciplines. Graduates are, moreover, qualified for demanding scientific and teaching tasks at humanities-oriented tertiary education institutions and to conduct research at specialized institutions of the Academy of Sciences. They can seek employment as highly qualified specialists or executive managers in different types of public and private archives and other cultural institutions (museums, libraries administering historical book funds).