World Languages and Cultures
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Total Credits
Program Graduation Requirements
Comparative Literature:
A minimum of 10 departmental courses beyond the M.A., including one theory course and eight courses in the area of specialization; one of these courses, possibly more in Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies, may be replaced by approved courses; a minimum of fourteen semester hours of thesis research dissertation-research credit hours.
Language Proficiency -
Students must prove advanced proficiency (forth-semester language course 2020) in two languages other than English. PhD students specializing in European literature up to and including the Renaissance are required to demonstrate at least “Standard Proficiency” (second-semester language course 1020) in either Latin or Ancient Greek as a part of this language proficiency.
Qualifying Exams
Dissertation
Spanish:
A minimum of 10 departmental courses beyond the M.A., including one theory course and eight courses in the area of specialization; one of these courses, possibly more in Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies, may be replaced by approved courses; a minimum of fourteen semester hours of thesis research dissertation-research credit hours.
Language Proficiency -
Students must prove “Standard Proficiency” (second-semester language course 1020) in two languages other than English and Spanish, or “Advanced Proficiency” (forth-semester language course 2020) in one language other than English and Spanish. Completion of the MA Language Proficiency requirement will satisfy part of this language requirement.
Qualifying Exams
Dissertation
An emphasis is required for the program:
During the first semester of PhD studies, the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS), in conjunction with the CLCS Section Coordinator, will be the student’s academic advisors. At the beginning of this semester, the student is to consult with and obtain the written approval of the DGS and the CLCS Section Coordinator, which will be placed in the student’s departmental file for all coursework to be taken during that semester. By March 1 of the student’s first year (if matriculated in the Fall) or by October 15 (if matriculated in the Spring), the student will form a 5-member Supervisory Committee, in consultation with the DGS and the CLCS Coordinator. From then on, the Chair of the Committee will be the student’s advisor in planning her/his academic program and in preparation for the examinations, and will direct the student’s work on the PhD dissertation. Supervisory Committee members should include representatives from the department’s CLCS faculty as well as from the language/literature areas and any allied field approved for emphasis. At least one member of the Committee must be from outside the Department of World Languages and Cultures.
Students must take a minimum of 10 courses beyond the CLCS MA. These courses normally include:
At least three additional graduate-level courses listed under the CLCS catalogue number in the Department of World Languages and Cultures.
Students are encouraged to take seminars with a strong theoretical component.
In compelling cases, graduate-level course work in areas other than those described above (for example, classes in other language areas within the Department; allied fields in which a graduate program is offered at the University of Utah) may be approved as areas of emphasis.
Seven graduate-level courses distributed over two of the language areas emphasized by the CLCS PhD Program. Normally five of these are taken in the student’s primary area of emphasis and two are taken in the secondary area; however, other distributions may be approved by the student’s supervisory committee.
Should be taken if a student did not complete a similar course while studying for the MA.
This course does not count toward the overall 10-course requirement for the PhD.
Fall Semester Course
PhD students who are also TFs (Teaching Fellows) must attend a week-long teacher-training session immediately before each Fall Semester.
At, near, or shortly after the end of all coursework, the student will take both a written and an oral exam together called the Qualifying Exam. The Qualifying Exam will consist of 4 questions drawn from several focus areas (e.g., a problem such as “the subject,” “representation,” “difference,” “gender [and] identity,” etc.; a literary period or genre; a theoretical direction such a psychoanalysis, postcolonialism, deconstruction, etc.). At least one question of the exam will reflect both of the student’s language/literature areas. The student will consult with the Supervisory Committee Chair to outline the general areas of the four questions. Several of the questions may be oriented toward the student’s dissertation topic and may serve to connect what the student has learned from course work with the new research directions she or he expects to pursue in the dissertation.
Upon successful completion of the Qualifying Exam, the student will submit for approval a dissertation prospectus to all members of the Supervisory Committee within a reasonable time frame to be determined by the Committee Chair. Upon approval of the prospectus, and in regular consultation with the Committee Chair (now referred to as the Dissertation Advisor), the student will write a doctoral dissertation that represents a substantial and original scholarly contribution to the field. Upon completion of the dissertation and preliminary approval by the Supervisory Committee, the candidate will present him- or herself for a public oral defense of the dissertation, which constitutes the “Final Exam.”
During the first semester of graduate work, the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS), in conjunction with the Spanish Section Coordinator, will be the student’s academic advisor. At the beginning of this semester, the student should consult with, and get the written approval of the DGS and the Section Coordinator, which will be placed in the student’s department file, for all course work to be taken during that semester. By March 1 of the student’s first year (if matriculated in the Fall), the student will form a 5-member Supervisory Committee, in consultation with the DGS. At least one member of this Committee must be from outside the Department of World Languages and Cultures. Henceforth, the Chair of the Supervisory Committee will be the student’s advisor in planning her/his academic program, in preparation for the examination, and in the direction of the student’s work on the Ph.D. dissertation.
A minimum of eight additional courses listed under Spanish.
One additional course listed under Spanish or Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies chosen from: CLCS 6620 - 7900
Should be taken if a student did not complete a similar course while studying for the MA.
This course does not count toward the overall 10-course requirement for the PhD.
Fall Semester Course
PhD students who are also TFs (Teaching Fellows) must attend a week-long teacher-training session immediately before each Fall Semester.
At or near the end of all coursework, the student will take both a written and oral exam together called the Qualifying Exam. The 10 to 12 hour written exam will be based on the student’s coursework, as well as on a reading list. This list, submitted by the student to her/his Committee 6 months in advance, shall be amended, amplified, etc. by the Committee. The 2-hour oral exam will be scheduled after several weeks of preparation; it will focus on a topic chosen by the student (and approved by the Committee) in her/his major area of interest, revolving around a proposed dissertation subject. At the oral exam, the student may give a brief presentation outlining the problem, to be followed by a discussion involving sharply focused questions and answers; or s/he may submit a series of questions relating to her/his topic, which will serve as the basis for the discussion. The purpose of the oral exam is to see whether the student has thoroughly researched the proposed topic, can cogently set forth the essential points of an argument, and articulate organic and meaningful connections within the chosen field of scholarship and literary criticism, thereby helping the student to further elaborate and define the parameters of a suitable dissertation subject.
The dissertation and the Qualifying/Final Exams’ questions and answers will be in the language(s) agreed upon by the student and the Committee (normally English and/or Spanish)
After the Qualifying Exam, the candidate will submit a written dissertation proposal to her/his Committee for approval. Upon completion of the dissertation and preliminary approval by the Committee, the candidate will make a public oral defense of the dissertation, which constitutes the “Final Exam.” The purpose of the Final Exam is to demonstrate the student’s ability to expound upon and defend the “thesis” of her/his dissertation.
The dissertation and the Qualifying/Final Exams’ questions and answers will be in the language(s) agreed upon by the student and the Committee (normally English and/or Spanish)