- The History MA provides students an opportunity to work closely with professors in their fields of interest. Graduate students may specialize in Africa, Ancient, Asia, Europe, Britain, Latin America, Medieval, Middle East, and the United States. Graduate students may also work with their advisors to develop fields in environmental history, science and technology, labor history, and legal history. With more than thirty full-time faculty members covering a range of professional interests, each student’s program of thirty semester hours is tailored to enhance his or her career objectives. While most of NC State’s students complete their degree in two years, others work on their MA degree part-time so they may continue their jobs while enrolled, combine family responsibilities with their education, or simply explore the possibilities of graduate study at their own pace.