Faculty of PhilosophyGlobal History – Master
The degree programme in Global History offered by Heidelberg University, gives students profound insight into the processes by which borders have been historically transgressed.
Facts & Formalities
| Degree | Master of Arts |
| Type of programme | Consecutive |
| Start of programme | Winter and summer semester |
| Standard period of study | 4 semesters |
| Language(s) of instruction | German |
| Fees and contributions | 151.05 € / Semester |
| Application procedure | Consecutive master’s programmes with access restriction |
| Application deadlines | Information about deadlines can be obtained after you have put together a degree program. |
Course Content
The Master’s degree programme teaches a new world and global history, concerned with interactions, mobility and relations within and between different parts of the world since the Middle Ages and the emergence of our increasingly interwoven, globalised world of today. Students in the Master’s degree will also have the opportunity - either comparatively or through in-depth courses - to engage with the histories of different world regions: amongst them, those of Eastern and Western Europe, South and East Asia, the Middle East, North and South America, and of Oceania. A broad range of courses on offer include introductory classes on (global) historical theory and methodology; survey lectures on the history of the modern world; and thematically focussed seminars, covering topics such as the history of pandemics, dictatorships, and piracy, the global book trade, world commerce, and oceanic crossings.
Course Structure
The Master’s degree programme requires that students select two fields from all periods, regions and subject areas covered in the Bachelor’s degree programme (with the exception of Ancient history). One of these fields will be the student’s specialism. In addition to this, students are expected to acquire in-depth knowledge in intensive methodological and research modules.
The Master’s degree programme therefore furthers national historical research perspectives to include methods and theories relevant to cross-disciplinary concepts, thereby promoting interdisciplinary skills. Within the categories, “Area Studies” and “Topics” students may therefore select elements of study from non-historical disciplines (Chinese studies, Japanese studies, Jewish studies, Art history, Religious studies, Geography, Politics, Sociology, History of medicine, and Macroeconomics). In the fourth and final semester, students complete a Master’s thesis.