Barbara B. Rosenkrantz, associate professor of the History of Science, will become the new master of Currier House, pending next week's expected approval by the Board of Overseers and the Harvard Corporation.

Rosenkranz will be the first woman to hold the position of master. Her husband, Paul Rosenkrantz, a Boston psychologist unaffiliated with Harvard, will act as co-master.

Appointment Definite

Rosenkrantz refused to confirm her appointment yesterday but reliable sources said the decision was definite.

Rosenkrantz's appointment concludes a three-month search for a replacement for co-masters. Ursula Goodenough and Paul Levine. They announced their resignation on March 5.

President Bok made his decision after consulting several times with student representatives of Currier House's Master Selection Committee. The committee asked that the new masters meet certain qualifications. The Rosenkrantz's were among the committee's final choices.

"We were searching for a balanced couple," a member of the selection committee said. "We wanted a couple with equal professional status. We did not want what so commonly happens, a couple in which the man is a full professor of Harvard and woman is a housewife."