The short-circuit capability of a power device is highly relevant for converter design and fault protection. In this paper a 10kV 10A 4H-SiC MOSFET is characterized and its short circuit withstand capability is studied and analyzed at 6 kV DC-link voltage. The test setup for this study is also introduced as its design, especially the inductance in the switching loop, can affect the experimental results. The study aims to present insights specific to the device which are different from that of silicon (Si) based devices. During the short-circuit operation, MOSFET saturation current, I _D,sat , increases for a few microseconds before decreasing gently. Degradation of the device can be observed at pulses longer than 5.9μs. The SiC MOSFET failed after-turn off, after a pulse of 8.6μs, due to an increase in the leakage current.