Earn a minimum 3.5 GPA in your undergraduate degree and a 1250 on your GRE. You should score at least a 650 in the verbal section and a 600 in the quantitative section of the test.
Choose six or seven high-ranking programs related to your field of interest. You work closely with faculty, so ensure there are relatively prestigious professors in your field in the program. Submit your GRE scores and your applications to the chosen programs.
Narrow your field of interest into as specific a category as possible. Instead of European History, for example, choose something like "19th Century France." This helps you avoid extra course work before you write your thesis or dissertation.
Take the required courses for your history degree. This demands at least one foreign language and courses in both historical method and theory. It also requires a number of long papers. Stick to either a particular subject or a particular theme of history in your coursework, as this helps you narrow down a thesis or dissertation topic.
Keep a working bibliography and reference notes. Your coursework demands a lot of reading of key primary and secondary texts relevant to your field. Organize your bibliography into a database to be used for future reference.
Write your thesis or dissertation. For your master's degree, your program may allow you to take an examination in lieu of a thesis. Discuss this option with the faculty.