Graduate study is a cooperative and directed venture of graduate professors and students seeking answers to questions that either contribute new knowledge or improve the understanding of complex phenomena. From the founding in Europe of the University of Berlin in 1810 and the opening in America of the Johns Hopkins University in 1876, graduate study has been committed to the advancement of knowledge through inquiry and research.

Shortly after its founding in 1867, Howard University’s Board of Trustees authorized the award of the master’s degree to post-baccalaureate students upon the completion of three years of graduate work and the submission of a satisfactory thesis on a topic approved by the faculty. The first Master of Arts degree was awarded in 1870. The progress of the graduate program at the master’s level led to the institution of the Graduate Division and, in 1934, to the establishment of the Graduate School as a separate organizational unit within the University. The first course of study leading to the Ph.D. degree was authorized by the Board of Trustees in 1955 and the first Ph.D. degree was conferred in 1958.

Since 1919, nearly 10,000 students have received their graduate academic degrees from Howard University. About 12 percent of those alumni earned their Ph.D. degrees and the remainder received master’s degrees. Significantly, the Ph.D. recipients have mainly consisted of African Americans and other minorities representing the largest number of such graduates from a single institution of higher education.

The Graduate School at Howard shares the common understanding of the nature of graduate education. There are programs of study and research leading to the Master of Arts, Master of Science, Master of Engineering, Master of Computer Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in various disciplines in the natural, biological, engineering, and social sciences, in the arts and humanities, and in the applied sciences. Through the commitment of the University and faculty, and in accordance with the interest of the national and local communities in the problems of African American and other underrepresented groups, concentrations are offered in the areas of Afro-American literature and history, African studies, human development, and urban affairs.

Approximately 250 plus scholar-teachers serve as faculty members in the Graduate School. These individuals have met a rigorous peer review process and they supervise and conduct research programs of high quality in their areas of expertise. They also serve as major professors and advisers to students enrolled in the master’s and Ph.D. degree programs; involve themselves in diversified activities of the University, their professional organizations, and the community; attract external funding support for basic and applied research projects; and publish the results of their scholarly work in books, monographs, and professional journals.