Doctor of Philosophy in Modern Languages and Literatures - French

The Department of Modern Languages and Literatures offers graduate degrees with specializations in German, French, and Spanish. The program allows for combining broad courses in literature, specialized seminars, interdisciplinary or supportive work in other fields, languages, and research. Graduate assistants hone their teaching skills in a seminar on methodology and by working closely with course coordinators. The department hosts research conferences and participates in university programs such as the digital texts initiative, Latin American studies, and study abroad. As a department housing many languages, it is possible for graduate students to teach in more than one language and to do significant advanced study in the literature of a second foreign language which may lead to a minor in a second language at the M.A. level or a Ph.D. dissertation with a multinational focus.

One set of transcripts.
If International: upload copies of all college- or university-level transcripts or mark sheets (records of courses and marks earned), with certicates, diplomas, and degrees plus certied English translations.* Official documents are required from all students who are admitted and enroll. Photocopies of certied records are not acceptable. International students enrolled in other U.S. institutions may have certied copies of all foreign records sent directly to the Office of Graduate Studies by their current school's registrar office. Three letters of recommendation
Resume/CV (required): This resume/CV should NOT include a photo of you.
Personal Statement: This statement--written in English, approximately 500 words--should discuss your preparation and motivation for graduate study at our department, intellectual interests, research abilities, academic and work experience (current and former studies, experience outside the US, etc.), and your professional goals. Indicate whether you are applying for an assistantship and describe any previous teaching experience.
Portfolio/Voice Recordings: The oral sample should include two statements, both three to four minutes long, usually covering the same material, one in English and the other in the target language. You can discuss the same topics as in the personal statement. Do not read the statements, but speak them. The recording must be presented as an mp3 file.
Writing Sample: The writing sample should be at least 10 pages written in the target language, and it should demonstrate your potential to research and analyze culture and literary texts. It will be used to evaluate your ability to use the target language, to write effective essays, to do research, and to analyze literature and culture. The best writing sample is a research paper on a literary subject from an advanced or senior class in your field. If you do not have one available, contact the graduate advisor in your language about a substitute, for example, an essay or a research paper from a related discipline. Generally, creative writing is not appropriate. Applicants to the Office of Graduate Studies whose native language is not English are required to submit a Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of at least 550 on the paper-based TOEFL, 79 on the Internet-based TOEFL or an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) overall band score of at least 6.5