CPLIT-PHD - Comparative Literature (PhD)
Download as PDF
Program Overview
The Comparative Literature PhD program is designed for students with a broad linguistic background, a breadth of interest in different literatures, and curiosity about the problems of literary scholarship and theory (including the relation of literature to other disciplines). Students take courses in at least three literatures (one may be that of the native language) to be studied in the original language. The program is designed to encourage familiarity with the major approaches to literary study prevailing today.
Admissions Information
Information on how to apply for graduate study at Stanford is available on the university’s Graduate Admissions website. Application information specific to Comparative Literature can be found at https://dlcl.stanford.edu/departments/comparative-literature.
Minimum Units in the Program
Minimum University Units
All courses counted toward the 135-unit requirement for the Ph.D. must be at the graduate level. At least three consecutive quarters of coursework must be taken at Stanford.
Ph.D. students in the department must take required courses for a letter grade if available, and they are expected to earn a grade of B+ or better in each course taken. Any grade of B or below is considered to be less than satisfactory. Grades of B or below are reviewed by faculty, and the following actions may be taken:
The grade stands, and the student’s academic performance is monitored to ensure that satisfactory progress is being made
The grade stands, and the student is required to revise and resubmit the work associated with the course
The student may be required to retake the course
The principal conditions for continued registration of a graduate student are the timely and satisfactory completion of the university, department, and program requirements for the degree and fulfillment of minimum progress requirements. Failure to meet these requirements results in corrective measures, including a written warning, and/or the possible dismissal from the program.
Required all years: Enrollment in COMPLIT 397 is required every term of the first year. Participation in the Colloquium (COMPLIT 397) is mandatory for all students (students conducting research abroad are exempt) in subsequent years.
Required Year 1: Additional required courses for year 1 are below.
Recommended Year 2 or 3: DLCL 311
Teaching is core to our program’s academic and professional training of Ph.D. students. As such, all students must complete three quarters of language teaching in their second year in the program as part of their degree requirements. An additional two quarters of teaching in language and/or literature are required to further pedagogical and professional skills. Teaching assignments will be determined in consultation with the Department Director and based on departmental and Language Center needs. Typically, students teach more than the required number of courses.
A student who does not complete the five-quarter teaching requirement fails to meet academic requirements and is thus not making satisfactory academic progress.
First-Year Colloquium
All first-year students participate in the Comparative Literature First-Year Colloquium, which takes place in mid-May. At the First-Year Colloquium, each student offers an oral presentation of 20-30 minutes on a literary text, followed by up to 30 minutes of discussion. The assessment is based on engagement with the text, the interpretive framework (theoretical, historical, etc.), and the quality of argument of the presentation. The First-Year Colloquium is a public event.
Qualifying Paper
Students who succeed in the First Year Colloquium proceed to the second milestone: submission of a Qualifying Paper by May 1 of the second year.
The department faculty meets by the end of the spring quarter to receive reports of the First-Year Colloquium and the second-year students’ Qualifying Papers and to vote on the candidacy of the second-year students.
Candidacy
Admission to candidacy is an important decision by the department based on the department faculty’s overall assessment of a student’s ability to complete the Ph.D. program. Students are expected to follow department qualifying procedures and apply for candidacy by the end of the second year in residence. In reviewing a student for admission to candidacy, the faculty considers a student’s academic progress, including but not limited to:
Advanced language proficiency
Performance in courses and completion of required coursework
Performance on departmental examinations and milestones
Successful completion of teaching assistantships
Completion of at least three units of work with each of four Stanford faculty members
In addition to successfully completing departmental requirements for years one and two a student is only admitted to candidacy if the faculty makes the judgment that the student has the potential to complete the degree program requirements successfully. Candidacy is determined by faculty vote. Failure to be admitted to candidacy results in the student’s dismissal from the Ph.D. program. Candidacy is valid for five years, and students must maintain active candidacy through the conferral of the Ph.D. degree. All requirements for the degree must be completed before candidacy expires.
This examination is usually taken during the autumn quarter of the third year. It covers a literary period of about a century in three or more literatures with primary emphasis on a single national literature or, in occasional cases, two national literatures. The reading list, which should be determined through consultation with the examiners and the Department Director, covers chiefly the major literary works of the period. This examination is two hours long. The student must forward the final version of the reading list to all committee members, the Department Director and the Student Services Manager at least two weeks before the exam.
More information about the milestones is available in the Department Graduate Handbook.
The Prospectus Colloquium normally takes place the quarter after the University Oral Exam (winter quarter of year three). It is a discussion with a Reading Committee about the plan for the dissertation and includes a 10-page prospectus, a chapter-by-chapter plan, a 20-page draft chapter, and a bibliography.
The standard format in our field is a monograph comprising five chapters, including the introduction and conclusion. Depending on the topic and approach, other formats may be considered and should be discussed with the advisor as the project develops. In consultation with their advisor, students may elect to submit as a dissertation a collection of three to four published, or publishable, articles, together with an introduction.