The Doctoral Program in Modern History presents its Ph.D. students with the possibility of undertaking original research on topics dealing with Europe and North America in the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, as well as relationships between the two continents.

The doctoral program's curriculum spans the history of the ancient Near East to the contemporary era, offering the opportunity to engage with broad themes that explore the processes of economic, social, political, religious, and cultural transformation of past and present civilizations.

The main topics of historical sociology lie in questions of social change, modernisation, modernisation processes, civilizational analysis, the formation of states and nations, the formation of the world system, and globalization trends. These questions are studied through an extensive comparative analysis involving a wide geographical perspective and long-time intervals. Part of the field of historical sociology comprises a number of partial, specific research areas, which include issues such as collective mentalities, habits and social memory. Historical sociology is a very diverse and internally differentiated discipline that has general theoretical approaches, a number of special theories, a variety of specialised research directions, and develops research at an empirical level.

Contemporary History is a fully consolidated area in university teaching and research. Beyond the limits of the Humanities, it also has a growing recognition and notorious interest among scientists and professionals in the macro-scientific-social area. This is because of its ability to explain recent times and, consequently, provide that repository of essential experiences to be able to understand the present and face decision-making, as well as to contribute to forging collective memory, an essential ingredient of social cohesion. Therefore, the significance of Contemporary History in the articulation of current societies is beyond doubt.

The distinctive emphasis of Goldsmiths' Department of History is a theorised, interdisciplinary and comparative approach to research.

The Public history Ph.D. program gives students a wider range of knowledge and skills in historical science and contemporary aspects of historical science and methodological trends which give students important competence in order to present their future scientific work in the community, professional fora, and the public. The application framework of this program leads students towards didactization of public history. The core aspect of the studies is the dissertation thesis completion which represents an original scientific work based on wide research, further and deeper focus based on literature and terrain work which uses adequate methodological processes, the benefits of didactic principles, and also results of international historiography research. The dissertation should represent a significant addition to the specific historical topic and should prove students' abilities, knowledge and skills to create an independent scientific work and its application in practice. Program without specialization.

The aim of the joint doctoral study program “History and Archeology” of the University of Latvia and Daugavpils University is to ensure the succession of historical science, training of leading staff of scientific, higher education and cultural institutions who have the competence to raise and solve the most important problems of modern history, in a broader sense, it means participation in the formation of the intellectual elite, as well as the ability to influence the development of the direction and priorities of national historical science.

The Ph.D. Economic and Social History was established by the Technical University of Lisbon in 1991 and adapted to the European Higher Education Area in 2009. This 3rd cycle course aims to teach and produce original research in the eld of Economic History.

The purpose of the thesis is to do thorough research, using both primary and secondary sources in order to make an original contribution to knowledge in Historical Studies. A topic is selected in consultation with the lecturer.

The Doctorate in Medieval Studies is a unique offer at SUG and constitutes a novel alternative in the field of Humanities. Its main objective is to provide students with interdisciplinary and transversal training, so that they acquire the highest level of professional and research training.

Graduates of the doctoral program in History/General History are highly qualified specialists equipped for independent and critical research, and possess a thorough knowledge of the political, economic, social and cultural development of human society; they possess skills in working with published and unpublished sources, and the ability to adopt a critical approach to specialist writings, conduct basic research, produce theoretical generalizations and apply creative thinking to the analysis of historical facts and processes. Graduates are equipped for any profession requiring a university degree in history or related disciplines; they may seek positions in the academia as well as a wide range of institutions in culture, civil service, and politics.

The aim of this program is to address in an interdisciplinary way, on the one hand basic research on cultural theory, and on the other, sociocultural research applied to contemporary globality, among which the relationships between memories, landscapes, migrations, identities, rights stand out. human, cultural creations and movements, these issues being approached from interdisciplinary perspectives that bring together researchers from the fields: Social and Cultural Anthropology, Political Science, Literary Studies, Philosophy, Human Geography, History, History of the Arts, Linguistics and Sociology.

The PhD in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies has earned international recognition for its methodological richness and the application of innovative research tools; the curriculum stresses the interconnectedness of various disciplines, emphasizing multi- and interdisciplinary comparative research. Our departmental faculty of recognized experts in their respective fields provides students with supervision and guidance not only to help them accomplish the immediate goal of submitting their dissertations successfully within four years but also to assist them with regard to their future careers.

Graduates of the doctoral program in Asian History and Culture are highly qualified specialists in the area of their specialization. Their excellent command of a selected Asian language enables them to work critically with primary sources, and they have a solid grounding in secondary literature and contemporary research. Their excellent level of erudition enables them to pursue careers in the academia (universities, research centers, etc.); they can, moreover, seek employment in cultural institutions, diplomacy, mass media, specialized think-tanks, etc.

Graduates have a sound knowledge of current trends in the field and are able to adopt a creative approach to the relevant source material. Graduates are equipped to work with original Latin documents, i.e. literary and diplomatic manuscripts, incunabula, paleotypes and old prints, being able to interpret and prepare them for publication and translation. Having been trained in philology and literary history and acquired the foundations of relevant historical disciplines (codicology, palaeography, diplomatic) and of cultural history, graduates are equipped to place mediaeval and early modern works into the context of their time and also to interpret them as a factor influencing the culture and society of subsequent eras.

Undertaking doctoral research allows you to develop in-depth knowledge while making a meaningful contribution to your chosen field. With guidance from our expert supervisors, you'll carry out extensive independent research culminating in a thesis of up to 100,000 words. Broadly speaking the area covered by the Institute’s expertise is cultural and intellectual history in the period 1200–1700, but there are a range of specific research interests covered by members of staff who currently offer supervision.