Graduate Programs

M.A. | Ph.D. | Exams | Language Tools | Financial Support

Students enrolled in the department's graduate programs should download and print out the following documents for their reference:

Graduate Student Handbook
Linguistics Reading List
Literature Reading List (relevant for M.A.; Ph.D. section now superseded by core & specialty lists)

The department offers the Master of Arts in German with a literature or linguistics concentration, and a Doctor of Philosophy in German, with a literature, linguistics, or combined literature and linguistics concentration. It also offers a combined Bachelor of Arts/Master of Arts for advanced undergraduates; see "Combined B.A./M.A." under "Undergraduate Program."

Courses in the department are offered in two broad categories: German literature (e.g., 013:227 German Novelle, 013:295 German Literature from Naturalism to Expressionism), and Germanic linguistics (e.g., 013:241 History of the German Language, 013:255 Semantics).

Applicants must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate College; see the Manual of Rules and Regulations of the Graduate College or the Graduate College section of the Catalog.

Master of Arts

The Master of Arts in German requires a minimum of 33 s.h. of graduate credit and is offered with and without thesis.

M.A. students choose one of two concentrations: German literature and Germanic linguistics. The German literature concentration requires seven literature courses (21 s.h.) and four linguistics courses (12 s.h.). The Germanic linguistics concentration requires seven linguistics courses (21 s.h.) and four literature courses (12 s.h.).

M.A. students are expected to complete at least 24 s.h. in the Department of German. All M.A. course work taken outside the department requires the graduate advisor's approval.

Doctor of Philosophy

The Doctor of Philosophy in German requires a minimum of 75 s.h. of graduate credit, including at least 27 s.h. in post-M.A. courses and a dissertation. No more than 12 s.h. of post-course-work dissertation credit may be counted toward the degree.

Ph.D. students choose one of three concentrations: German literature, Germanic linguistics, or combined literature and linguistics. In addition to satisfying the course requirements of their concentration, students must develop an independent research program that combines core and specialty areas within their concentration. These areas form the basis for the student's qualifying exam, comprehensive exam, and dissertation.

German literature students must complete five literature courses (15 s.h.) and must earn 12 s.h. of the required 27 s.h. in post-M.A. courses in the Department of German.

Germanic linguistics students must complete at least five linguistics courses (15 s.h.) and must earn 12 s.h. of the required 27 s.h. in post-M.A. courses in the Department of German.

Combined literature and linguistics students must complete at least five concentration area courses (15 s.h.) and must earn 21 s.h. of the required 27 s.h. in post-M.A. courses in the Department of German. They plan the balance of their courses with their advisory committee, generally taking four courses in their dissertation area.

All Ph.D. course work taken outside the department requires the graduate advisor's consent.

Core and Specialty Reading Lists

By the end of their second semester in the Ph.D. program, students must have compiled a core area reading list and a specialty area reading list. The expectations for each list vary by concentration.

German Literature Concentration

The core area reading list for the literature concentration comprises 70-100 works that cover at least three genres from a distinct historical period of German literature. For a sample reading list, see above.

The specialty area reading list for the literature concentration comprises approximately 40 works from a specific field of literary research: a genre, body of theory, major author(s), or second historical period.

Germanic Linguistics Concentration

The core area reading list for the linguistics concentration comprises lists one and two in all six areas of the Department of German linguistics reading list. Students also select one of the six areas as a specialty concentration for the qualifying exam and assemble a reading list of 10-20 titles from the relevant list three of the linguistics reading list. The linguistics reading list is available from the department's linguistics faculty members.

The specialty area reading list for the linguistics concentration comprises 10-20 titles from list three in one of the six areas of the Department of German linguistics reading list. The specialty list for the comprehensive exam must be in an area different from that for the core area of the qualifying exam.

Literature and Linguistics Concentration

The core area reading list for the combined literature and linguistics concentration comprises 35-50 works of literature in at least two genres from a specific literary period, and all titles from lists one and two in these areas of the Department of German linguistics reading list.

The specialty area reading list for the combined literature and linguistics concentration follows the guidelines for the linguistics or literature specialty area list, depending on the student's preference. The specialty area concentration must be distinct from that of the research paper: students who choose literature as the specialty area write a research paper that concerns linguistics, and those who choose linguistics as the specialty area write a research paper that concerns literature.

Qualifying and Comprehensive Exams

Students prepare five essay questions on the basis of their core area reading list, in consultation with their qualifying exam committee, which approves the final list. The committee selects three of the questions for the student to answer in writing on the exam. Approximately one week after the written exam, the committee and student convene for a one-hour oral exam based on the core area reading list and the student's written exam responses.

No later than two weeks before the oral exam, the student must submit two essays to the comprehensive exam committee. One is a review essay (10-15 pages) that analyzes key issues in a selection of works from the student's specialty area reading list, together with an annotated bibliography that covers titles from the reading list not addressed in the essay. The other is a research essay (25-35 pages) of publishable quality written in consultation with the comprehensive exam committee chair; the essay may be based on a seminar paper of exceptional quality or a potential chapter of the student's dissertation. The student takes a final two-hour oral examination focusing on the review essay and research paper, ordinarily during finals week. After the oral exam, the student produces a written dissertation prospectus for approval by the dissertation committee.

Graduate Degree Language Tools

Master of Arts

Before taking the M.A. exam, students must demonstrate reading knowledge of a foreign language other than German, at a level equivalent to two years of college study or four years of high school study.

Students may demonstrate competence by submitting proof that they have taken the required course work with a g.p.a. of at least 3.00, or by passing an exam at the fourth-semester college level as determined by the appropriate language department.

Doctor of Philosophy

Students must demonstrate a reading knowledge of two languages determined by the advisor to be pertinent to the student's research interests.

Financial Support

Teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and partial tuition scholarships are available for qualified graduate students. The department awards the Wilson and the Funke prizes to students of distinction.