<p>I don’t know anything about the MA/PhD discussion, but I do want to affirm that University of Texas- Austin has a very strong history program. If you care about rankings, here’s a list from US News, which places UT-Austin at #17 (I don’t know your specialty though) [Best</a> History Programs | Top History Schools | US News Best Graduate Schools](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/history-rankings]Best”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/history-rankings) and here is some data from the National Research Council Rankings [NRC</a> Rankings Overview: History - Faculty - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“NRC Rankings Overview: History”>NRC Rankings Overview: History)</p>
<p>As a city, Austin is terrific. It’s extremely liveable, has a great music scene and offers decent transportation to other US cities if you wanted to tour a little bit during your time here. A few years ago, Kiplinger ranked it the best city to live in over the next ten years [Kiplinger</a> - Interstitial](<a href=“http://www.kiplinger.com/article/business/T006-C000-S002-10-best-cities-for-the-next-decade.html]Kiplinger”>http://www.kiplinger.com/article/business/T006-C000-S002-10-best-cities-for-the-next-decade.html)</p>