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Degree Requirements

The requirements listed below are special to this department and must be read in conjunction with the general requirements of the Graduate School.

For the M.A. Degree and the Free-Standing M.A. Degree

Full-Time Study

The M.A. degree is earned in either Greek or Latin, but students are expected to have completed at least one year of advanced work in the other language; transcripts of undergraduate course work are accepted as evidence that this requirement has been met. Students with the proper preparation are generally able to complete the M.A. degree in one academic year; no full-time student may take longer than two years to complete the degree. Students accepted in the Ph.D. program must attend full-time in pursuit of the M.A.

Course requirements: Eight courses, of which at least six must be taken for a letter grade. For students in the Ph.D. program, letter-grade courses must include either Greek or Latin 4105, 4106, and 4139. Exemption from Greek or Latin 4139 may be given on the basis of examination. All entering students must also participate in the workshop on methods in the study of antiquity given during registration week at the beginning of the fall semester. Students in the free-standing M.A. program may substitute a research essay for Greek/Latin 4105 or 4106.

Modern language requirement: A reading knowledge of French, Italian or German, to be demonstrated by a written test.

Part-Time Study

The purpose of the part-time M.A. is to provide a period of graduate study in the classics, including research experience, at the same level as that of the full-time M.A. Part-time study is open only to students in the free-standing M.A. The department is prepared, however, to consider applications from such students upon completion of the free-standing M.A.

Requirements: The requirements for the part-time M.A. are the same as those for the full-time M.A., with the exception of the time limit. Part-time students are expected to complete the degree within eight consecutive semesters.

For the M.Phil. Degree

M.Phil.

Continuation of study beyond the M.A. degree is authorized by the department’s Committee on Professional Education. The M.Phil. degree is always in Classics, both Greek and Latin. Thus, course work and examinations are related to the study of both classical languages and their literatures (including their cultural and political backgrounds). Programs of study for the M.Phil. are individually arranged in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. At a more advanced stage of progress towards the M.Phil. degree, i.e., when main fields of academic interest and possible dissertation topics have been broadly identified, a supervisory committee of three faculty members will be assigned to each student in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. The composition of the supervisory committee may change over time if the student's developing interests require different guidance.

General Course Requirements: 15 courses for letter grades (including the six required for the M.A.) are required, including Greek and Latin 4105, 4106, 4139; Greek or Latin 4140; and four advanced courses (8000 level or above) in Greek or Latin. Four of the 15 courses may be appropriate offerings given in other departments, normally in ancient history, ancient art and archaeology, or ancient philosophy. Students are expected to meet with the Director of Graduate Studies at the beginning of each semester. Those with insufficient previous study of ancient history in particular will be required, at the discretion of the Director of Graduate Studies, to take one or more courses in this area. In cases of doubt, the Director of Graduate Studies decides on the acceptability of specific courses.

Modern Language Requirement: A reading knowledge of German and either French of Italian, to be demonstrated by written tests as early as possible in the student's graduate career, and in no case later than the certification examination. This requirement includes competence in a modern language demonstrated as part of the work for the M.A. degree. Students are also encouraged to learn Italian as early as possible.

Qualification Examination: The qualification examination is offered at the beginning of each semester. It consists of two two-hour examinations, to be taken either on two successive days or in different semesters, in the translation of Greek and Latin texts chosen from the common reading list. The examination can be taken as soon as the student feels confident and may be repeated as often as necessary if failed, but the examinations in both languages must be first attempted no later than the beginning of the student’s fifth semester of residence, and must be passed no later than the beginning of the sixth semester.

Certification Examination: Students are required

(i) to complete a written examination on a special author in the secondary language (i.e. the language that is not expected to be the focus of the student’s dissertation). The form and content of the examination are to be determined by the examiner in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. This examination is to be taken no later than the end of a student’s sixth semester of residence.

(ii) to complete a take-home examination (to be completed within a designated period of 48 hours) on the field of the proposed dissertation. The examination will be set and administered by the prospective dissertation supervisor and second reader, on the basis of a reading list of both primary and secondary materials to be approved by the prospective supervisor. The examination is to be taken no later than the beginning of the student’s eighth semester.

Ph.D.

Within one semester of the completion of requirements for the M.Phil. degree (i.e., by the end of the fourth year of residence), a candidate for the Ph.D. must submit to the supervisory committee a prospectus for the proposed dissertation, to consist of a statement of the topic and a rough outline of both working order and expected structure, in no more than 20 pages, with a short bibliography (no more than 30 titles) of relevant scholarship. It should be noted that all dissertation (i.e. non-teaching) fellowship awards are contingent upon the approval of the dissertation prospectus. The student must present and successfully defend a dissertation, normally on the subject approved by the supervisory committee.

Financial Aid

A comprehensive program of financial aid, including fellowships and appointments in teaching, is available to Ph.D. students. After the first year, all Ph.D. students admitted to the program receive annually the prevailing stipend and appropriate tuition and health fees through the fifth year, provided that they remain in good academic standing. If students receive a year of advanced standing, they are entitled to only four years of fellowship funding.