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• Arts & Sciences
• Graduate Studies in A&S

Graduate Program

an innovative and interdisciplinary PhD for pathbreaking research

The PhD Program in Comparative Literature

Graduate Study in Comparative Literature appeals to the desire to transcend cultural borders in the study of literature and related media, both contemporary and historical. It supports sustained engagement with great imaginative works from around the globe deemed world literature as well as examines and critiques the intellectual and scholarly traditions that have yielded these judgments. It lends particular attention to encounters between literary cultures as they borrow, adapt, exchange, and translate cultural materials and to the pathways and modes by which these transformations take place.  Our PhD students are expected to have deep knowledge of one language in addition to English and reading knowledge in a third language pertinent to their transcultural engagements.

The Department of Comparative Literature provides students admitted into the program with full financial support for a minimum of five years as long as the student remains in good academic standing. Funding includes full tuition remission and a generous stipend ($29,152 in 2022-23, over 12 months). Our admission package also includes a health fee subsidy.

International Writers Track

This PhD track aimed at international writers proceeds from the conviction that advanced study and credentials in literary studies support and enhance the intellectual and creative work of writers by complementing and informing their endeavors with comparative historical, cultural, linguistic, and theoretical frameworks. It offers highly qualified international students the opportunity to advance their careers with academic training in comparative literary studies in the United States.

Fully-Funded Program

Travel funding.

All graduate students are eligible to apply for additional funding for conference participation and study abroad. A dissertation travel fund is available from the the Office of Graduate Studies for students working on their dissertations. Our funding package is competitive with those of other top-ranked institutions, and we are committed to ensuring that financial considerations play no role in student decisions about where to pursue their degrees.

Arts & Sciences Fellowships

WashU also offers competitive fellowships with year-round funding for outstanding students in select target groups, and both require separate applications. Those who are eligible may apply for a Dean’s Distinguished Graduate Fellowships in Arts & Sciences, or the newly combined Ann W. and Spencer T. Olin – Chancellor’s Fellowship. Additionally, international students at partner universities are highly encouraged to apply to the McDonnell International Scholars Academy. Visit the Office of Graduate Studies in Arts & Sciences website for more funding information. Please note: deadline for fellowship application submission will most likely differ from admission application submission deadlines, and is currently handled separately by the Office of Graduate Studies and NOT the Comparative Literature program.

Graduate Resources

See commonly used resources here, or see all comparative literature resources . 

Dissertation Guidelines

learn about the guidelines for completing a dissertation in comparative literature

Comprehensive Exams

learn about the comprehensive exam process for the PhD program

PhD Course Requirements

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• Office of Graduate Studies Resources
• Office of Graduate Studies Funding & Support

How to Apply to our Programs

Comparative literature graduate studies program.

The following are required as part of the admission file for all students:

• A personal statement; applicants to the International Writers Track should indicate that in this statement
• Three letters of recommendation
• Transcripts for all academic work since secondary school
• A writing sample consisting of an essay; applicants for the International Writers Track must submit both a sample of analytical writing (in English) and a sample of creative work (in any language)
• Evidence of language proficiency in English and a second language, as well as a minimum of reading knowledge of a third language
• Note: Minimum scores for English proficiency exams are required for immigration. Further information can be found at  https://gradstudies.artsci.wustl.edu/admissions-faq . 

All documents must be in English or accompanied by English translations, with the exception for those applying to the International Writers Track for ONLY the creative work .

For students entering with the B.A. or its equivalent, formal admission to the combined Ph.D. programs is contingent upon successful completion of the M.A. degree or appropriate qualifying and review procedures. 

The annual application deadline is available at https://gradstudies.artsci.wustl.edu/apply . We will try to give an answer to each applicant by the beginning of March.

Joint PhD Programs

Comparative Literature offers joint doctoral programs with Chinese, Japanese, English, German, French, and Hispanic Studies. Completing a doctorate in a joint program with Comparative Literature means gaining the expertise to think about literature across languages and cultures, geography, historical periods, and means of production and transmission.

Prospective students interested in pursuing a joint program with Comparative Literature should apply through the pertinent home department. On your application you will be able to find a degree program for all of the joint degrees, with the home department listed first and Comparative Literature listed second. Under the department of Romance Language and Literatures (RLL) , you will see Program Options for: Hispanic Studies and Comparative Literature , and French/Francophone Studies and Comparative Literature . Under the German Department , you will see the German and Comparative Literature program option. Under English , there is an English and Comparative Literature option. Finally, under the department of East Asian Languages and Literatures (EALC) , program options include East Asian and Comparative Literatures . You should send your application materials to the home department. It will, however, be vetted by both the home department and Comparative Literature.

Applying for a Joint PhD

faculty and student bookshelf

Matthias Göritz's Colonies of Paradise: Poems

The first book of poetry by matthias göritz to be available in english, in a translation by a renowned writer..

Very few books of poetry by contemporary German writers are available to English-speaking readers. In “Colonies of Paradise,” acclaimed poet and translator Mary Jo Bang introduces the poems of novelist, poet and translator Matthias Göritz, one of the most exciting German writers publishing today. The poems in this book, which originally appeared in German under the title “Loops,” take the reader on a tour of Paris, Chicago, Hamburg and Moscow as they explore childhood, travel and the human experience. Unsettling our expectations about adulthood, the book permeates the quotidian with a disquieting strangeness that leads us deeper into our own lives and histories. Göritz’s sly humor, keen insight, and artistry are brought to the fore in Bang’s careful and innovative translation, allowing an English-language audience to enter fully the intricate interiority of Göritz’s work. 

See also :  Translation as duet

Matthias Göritz  is a poet, translator, and novelist. He has written four poetry collections, “Loops,” “Pools,” “Tools” and “Spools”; three novels, including “Der kurze Traum des Jakob Voss (The Brief Dream of Jakob Voss)” and “Parker”; and three novellas. He has received the Hamburg Literature Prize, the Mara Cassens Prize, the Robert Gernhardt Prize, and the William Gass Award. He teaches at Washington University in St. Louis.

Mary Jo Bang  is the author of eight books of poetry—including “Elegy: Poems,” which received the National Book Critics Circle Award—and the translator of Dante’s “Inferno,” illustrated by Henrik Drescher, and “Purgatorio.” She has received a Hodder Fellowship from Princeton University, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and a Berlin Prize Fellowship. She teaches creative writing at Washington University in St. Louis.

“There are no neat stories and anecdotes here: the flashes of perception, of understanding, are given to us via stark metaphors, images, unpredictable syntax, musical structures that are by turns surprising and illuminating . . . This is the kind of art that is never willing to rest, always in motion. Matthias Göritz is an original, talented contemporary German poet, and translator Mary Jo Bang is one of the most interesting poets currently at work in the English language. Bravo.” —Ilya Kaminsky, author of “Deaf Republic: Poems” “Matthias Göritz’s ‘Colonies of Paradise’ is unlike any book of American poetry I can recall reading. It’s a close-up, high speed tour of life, passing through various world cities—none of them home, yet each haunted by the gargoyle-like figures of Mother and Father. This may be the ‘Giant Redeye Cicada’ eye view of modern human existence—what one can see when one gives up thinking one understands. The book is rendered into sharp, pithy, idiomatic English by the poet and translator Mary Jo Bang, who has recently translated Dante. With her help, Göritz asks, ‘Isn’t it time we went missing?’” —Rae Armantrout, author of “Finalists” “Matthias Göritz is a poet of tremendous gifts and knowledge. His unique poetic voice is grounded and marked by historical and personal scars and horizons, which make his writing profound, intelligent, musical, playful, and innovative. A must for anyone with interest in contemporary European poetry.” —Aleš Šteger, author of “The Book of Things”

Die Sprache der Sonne

Die Sprache der Sonne (The language of the sun)

Publication date: 1/26/2023 by C.H.Beck in German.

• Available through Beck Shop

Hyper-expressionist Iranian poet Arash Allahverdi makes his full-length, English-language poetry debut in an innovative translation by Ali Araghi that uses commentary to lay bare the translation process.

CONQUEST by Arash Allahverdi, translated by Ali Araghi, is the first full-length poetry collection from one of the standout poets in the critically acclaimed anthology I AM A FACE SYMPATHIZING WITH YOUR GRIEF: SEVEN YOUNGER IRANIAN POETS (co•im•press 2015).  ConQuest  is unique because it functions like two books in one. In the first “book,”  Conquest , readers experience Allahverdi’s hard-hitting poems of alienation, absurdity, and anger, set against the backdrop of capital city, Tehran, and revealing an intimate perspective told by a member of the generation that came of age in the shadow of the devastating Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s and marched the streets during the 2009 protests. As part of the Matrod Poetry Circle that rejected the Persian literary status quo, Allahverdi writes poems emblematic of the hyper-expressionism advocated by the group, rejecting the baroque artifices of the Iranian language poetry trends of the nineties. By turns, the second “book,”  ConQuest , is a facing-page, bilingual edition of  Conquest , including commentary—text exchanges between poet and translator that took place over Telegram and WhatsApp as Araghi worked through the challenges of Englishing Allahverdi’s poems. In creating  ConQuest , Araghi has lifted the veil, letting readers see the process of translation in action, while also providing useful contextual information that an English-speaking audience would not know, providing a rich—and enriching—quest to undertake.

https://www.spdbooks.org/Products/9781947918085/conquest.aspx

Jane Eyre in German Lands: The Import of Romance, 1848-1918

Lynne Tatlock examines the transmission, diffusion, and literary survival of  Jane Eyre  in the German-speaking territories and the significance and effects thereof, 1848-1918. Engaging with scholarship on the romance novel, she presents an historical case study of the generative power and protean nature of Brontë's new romance narrative in German translation, adaptation, and imitation as it involved multiple agents, from writers and playwrights to readers, publishers, illustrators, reviewers, editors, adaptors, and translators.

Jane Eyre  in German Lands  traces the ramifications in the paths of transfer that testify to widespread creative investment in romance as new ideas of women's freedom and equality topped the horizon and sought a home, especially in the middle classes. As Tatlock outlines, the multiple German instantiations of Brontë's novel-four translations, three abridgments, three adaptations for general readers, nine adaptations for younger readers, plays, farces, and particularly the fiction of the popular German writer E. Marlitt and its many adaptations-evince a struggle over its meaning and promise. Yet precisely this multiplicity (repetition, redundancy, and proliferation) combined with the romance narrative's intrinsic appeal in the decades between the March Revolutions and women's franchise enabled the cultural diffusion, impact, and long-term survival of  Jane Eyre  as German reading.

Though its focus on the circulation of texts across linguistic boundaries and intertwined literary markets and reading cultures, Jane Eyre  in German Lands  unsettles the national paradigm of literary history and makes a case for a fuller and inclusive account of the German literary field.

With wit and warmth, unembellished and at times brutal, Gönül Kivilcim describes the life of a street children's gang, the violence at police stations, the downside of the boom town Istanbul.  Her research-based novel, first published in 2002, has been translated into English and German, and is part of the new Turkish counterculture literature.

Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color

According to Soto, three elements were considered in choosing the more than 100 poems included here: a poem’s emotionality, the risks a poet is taking, and whether the poet has been “absolutely pivotal to development of other queer of color poets.” Soto also recognizes the limitations of such an anthology, particularly in regards to the nebulous nature of defining terms of identity and ways included poets self-identify, as well as the various ways the work may be seen by other members of related communities in the U.S. and internationally. Despite these caveats, Soto succeeds in assembling an expansive, sonorous, and literarily significant volume that reveals the broad range of engagements queer poets of color have undertaken over the years. 

-Publishers Weekly  

Queer Nature: A Poetry Anthology

The poems in this remarkable collection work in both tandem and contradiction to make the irrefutable sound of queer ecologies. An aching intervention into the violent logics that position queerness as the antithesis of a natural world,  Queer Nature  says otherwise. The poems congeal, illuminating again and again that queer is nature. Queer is the animal. Queer are the hands “moved like rivers.” Queer is the genre of the poem itself—its small and infinite ecosystem.

—Stacey Waite  

After Translation

• Fordham University Press

German Culture in Nineteenth-Century America: Reception, Adaptation, Transformation

Building on recent trends in the humanities and especially on scholarship done under the rubric of cultural transfer, this volume emphasizes the processes by which Americans took up, responded to, and transformed German cultural material for their own purposes. The fourteen essays by scholars from the US and Germany treat such topics as translation, the reading of German literature in America, the adaptation of German ideas and educational ideals, the reception and transformation of European genres of writing, and the status of the "German" and the "European" in celebrations of American culture and criticisms of American racism. The volume contributes to the ongoing re-conception of American culture as significantly informed by non-English-speaking European cultures. It also participates in the efforts of historians and literary scholars to re-theorize the construction of national cultures. Questions regarding hybridity, cultural agency, and strategies of acculturation have long been at the center of postcolonial studies, but as this volume demonstrates, these phenomena are not merely operative in encounters between colonizers and colonized: they are also fundamental to the early American reception and appropriation of German cultural materials. 

• Cambridge University Press

Necessary Luxuries: Books, Literature, and the Culture of Consumption in Germany, 1770-1815

The consumer revolution of the eighteenth century brought new and exotic commodities to Europe from abroad—coffee, tea, spices, and new textiles to name a few. Yet one of the most widely distributed luxury commodities in the period was not new at all, and was produced locally: the book. In Necessary Luxuries, Matt Erlin considers books and the culture around books during this period, focusing specifically on Germany where literature, and the fine arts in general, were the subject of soul-searching debates over the legitimacy of luxury in the modern world.

Building on recent work done in the fields of consumption studies as well as the New Economic Criticism, Erlin combines intellectual-historical chapters (on luxury as a concept, luxury editions, and concerns about addictive reading) with contextualized close readings of novels by Campe, Wieland, Moritz, Novalis, and Goethe. As he demonstrates, artists in this period were deeply concerned with their status as luxury producers. The rhetorical strategies they developed to justify their activities evolved in dialogue with more general discussions regarding new forms of discretionary consumption. By emphasizing the fragile legitimacy of the fine arts in the period, Necessary Luxuries offers a fresh perspective on the broader trajectory of German literature in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, recasting the entire period in terms of a dynamic unity, rather than simply as a series of literary trends and countertrends.

• Cornell University Press

Mediating Culture in the Seventeenth-Century German Novel

Eberhard Happel, German Baroque author of an extensive body of work of fiction and nonfiction, has for many years been categorized as a “courtly-gallant” novelist. In Mediating Culture in the Seventeenth-Century German Novel, author Gerhild Scholz Williams argues that categorizing him thus is to seriously misread him and to miss out on a fascinating perspective on this dynamic period in German history.

Happel primarily lived and worked in the vigorous port city of Hamburg, which was a “media center” in terms of the access it offered to a wide library of books in public and private collections.  Hamburg’s port status meant it buzzed with news and information, and Happel drew on this flow of data in his novels. His books deal with many topics of current interest—national identity formation, gender and sexualities, Western European encounters with neighbors to the East, confrontations with non-European and non-Western powers and cultures—and they feature multiple media, including news reports, news collections, and travel writings. As a result, Happel’s use of contemporary source material in his novels feeds our current interest in the impact of the production of knowledge on seventeenth-century narrative. Mediating Culture in the Seventeenth-Century German Novel explores the narrative wealth and multiversity of Happel’s work, examines Happel’s novels as illustrative of seventeenth-century novel writing in Germany, and investigates the synergistic relationship in Happel’s writings between the booming print media industry and the evolution of the German novel.

• University of Michigan Press

Abandoned Havana

Dissident Cuban writer, photographer, and pioneering blogger Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo presents a collection of surreal, irony-laden photos and texts from his native city. His “diary of dystopia”—an unexpected fusion of images and words—brings us closer to Havana’s scaffolded and crumbling facades, ramshackle waterfronts, and teeming human bodies. In this book, as beautiful and bleak as Havana itself, Pardo guides us through the relics and fables of an exhausted Revolution in the waning days of Castro’s Cuba.

• Restless Books

Distant Readings: Topologies of German Culture in the Long Nineteenth Century

In nineteenth-century Germany, breakthroughs in printing technology and an increasingly literate populace led to an unprecedented print production boom that has long presented scholars with a challenge: how to read it all? This anthology seeks new answers to the scholarly quandary of the abundance of text. Responding to Franco Moretti's call for "distant reading" and modeling a range of innovative approaches to literary-historical analysis informed by the burgeoning field of digital humanities, it asks what happens when we shift our focus from the one to the many, from the work to the network.

The thirteen essays in this volume explore the evolving concept of "distant reading" and its application to the analysis of German literature and culture in the long nineteenth century. The contributors consider how new digital technologies enable both the testing of hypotheses and the discovery of patterns and trends, as well as how "distant" and traditional "close" reading can complement each another in hybrid models of analysis that maintain careful attention to detail, but also make calculation, enumeration, and empirical description critical elements of interpretation.

• Boydell and Brewer

Jewish Difference and the Arts in Vienna

During the mid-nineteenth century, the works of Arthur Schopenhauer and Richard Wagner sparked an impulse toward German cultural renewal and social change that drew on religious myth, metaphysics, and spiritualism. The only problem was that their works were deeply antisemitic and entangled with claims that Jews were incapable of creating compassionate art. By looking at the works of Jewish composers and writers who contributed to a lively and robust biblical theatre in fin-de-siècle Vienna, Caroline A. Kita, shows how they reimagined myths of the Old Testament to offer new aesthetic and ethical views of compassion. These Jewish artists, including Gustav Mahler, Siegfried Lipiner, Richard Beer-Hofmann, Stefan Zweig, and Arnold Schoenberg, reimagined biblical stories through the lens of the modern Jewish subject to plead for justice and compassion toward the Jewish community. By tracing responses to antisemitic discourses of compassion, Kita reflects on the explicitly and increasingly troubled political and social dynamics at the end of the Habsburg Empire.

• Indiana University Press

Publishing Culture and the "Reading Nation": German Book History in the Long Nineteenth Century

Over the long nineteenth century, German book publishing experienced an unprecedented boom, outstripping by 1910 all other Western nations. Responding to the spread of literacy, publishers found new marketing methods and recalibrated their relationships to authors. Technical innovations made books for a range of budgets possible. Yearbooks, encyclopedias, and boxed sets also multiplied. A renewed interest in connoisseurship meant that books signified taste and affiliation. While reading could be a group activity, the splintering of the publishing industry into niche markets made it seem an ever-more private and individualistic affair, promising variously self-help, information, Bildung, moral edification, and titillation. The essays in this volume examine what Robert Darnton has termed the "communications circuit": the life-cycle of the book as a convergence of complex cultural, social, and economic phenomena. In examining facets of the lives of select books from the late 1780s to the early 1930s that Germans actually read, the essays present a complex and nuanced picture of writing, publishing, and reading in the shadow of nation building and class formation, and suggest how the analysis of texts and the study of books can inform one another.

St. Trigger

Aaron Coleman's St. Trigger, winner of the 2015 Button Poetry Prize, investigates race and gender in contemporary America through a constantly shifting series of structures, forming its own boundaries in one poem only to break and reshape them in the next. Narrative shatters into pure lyric and reforms in an instant. Coleman's poems define themselves -- sharp and blazing and wholly new.

• Button Poetry

Poems from Buddha's Footprint

The first complete full-length translation of the renowned Thai poet Sunthorn Phu’s work to appear in thirty years. Translated by Thai Kaewkaen, a graduate student in Comparative Literature’s track for international writers, Buddha's Footprint was published by Singing Bone Press in 2016. 

• Singing Bone Press

The Last Lover

Annelise Finegan Wasmoen, a graduate student in the Comparative Literature Ph.D. program, translated this extraordinary book by Chinese author Can Xue. The translation was the w inner of the 2015 Best Translated Book Award for fiction presented by Three Percent, a resource for international literature. In Can Xue’s book, we encounter a full assemblage of husbands, wives, and lovers. Entwined in complicated, often tortuous relationships, these characters step into each other’s fantasies, carrying on conversations that are “forever guessing games.” Their journeys reveal the deepest realms of human desire, figured in Can Xue’s vision of snakes and wasps, crows, cats, mice, earthquakes, and landslides. In dive bars and twisted city streets, on deserts and snowcapped mountains, the author creates an extreme world where every character “is driving death away with a singular performance.”

The translation was published by Yale University Press in February 2014.  

Cuba in Splinters: Eleven Stories from the New Cuba

Rock 'n' roll, zombies, drugs, anomie and angst: these are generally not the first things that come to mind when Americans imagine Cuba. In Cuba in Splinters, a sparkling package of stories we're assured are fictional, however, that's exactly what you'll find. Eleven writers who are largely unknown outside Cuba depict a world that veers from a hyperreal Havana in decay against a backdrop of oblivious drug-toting German tourists, to a fantasy land where vigilant Cubans bar the door to zombies masquerading as health inspectors. Sex and knife-fights, stutterers and addicts, losers and lost literary classics welcome readers to a raw and genuine island universe that is generally closed to casual visitors.

Cuba in Splinters was compiled by Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo, a graduate student in Comparative Literature’s track for international writers, and published by OR Books in 2014.

Gönül Kivilcim (graduate student in Comparative Literature’s track for international writers) has published a new novel entitled Uğultular.  Uğultular was published in July 2017 by Iletisim.

• Iletisim Press

Threat Come Close

In his debut collection, Aaron Coleman writes an American anthem for the 21st century, a full-throated lyric composed of pain, faith, lust and vulnerability. Coleman’s poems comment on and interrogate the meaning of home and identity for a black man in America, past and present. Guided by a belief system comprising an eclectic array of invented saints — Trigger, Seduction, Doubt and Who — Coleman’s quest locates new ways of being in the natural world where “[t]he trees teach me how to break and keep on living.”

• Four Way Books Press

Designed as a historical novel, this pseudo-autobiography forges an intimate portrait of a young, tenacious woman who, in uncertain times of intricate political, social and cultural turbulences at the end of the 19th century, chose an uncertain path – the only path that could lead her to freedom. Mazohistka , or  The Masochist,  returns post-postmodernism to modernism and more than that it is a story of the Austro-Hungarian fin-de-siècle, contemplating the limits of female desire and freedom against the backdrop of ethnic, class and gender tensions of an empire yet unaware of its decline.

• Beletrina Press

Have a question about one of our graduate programs? 

• Comparative Literature

The Department of Comparative Literature introduces students to the study and understanding of literature beyond linguistic or national boundaries; the theory, interpretation, and criticism of literature; and its interactions with adjacent fields like visual and material culture, linguistics, film, psychology, law, and philosophy. The comparative perspective invites the exploration of such transnational phenomena as literary or cultural periods and trends (Renaissance, Romanticism, Modernism, postcolonialism) or genres and modes of discourse. Students may specialize in any cultures or languages, to the extent that they are sufficiently covered at Yale. The Ph.D. degree qualifies candidates to teach comparative literature as well as the national literature(s) of their specialization.

• Programs of Study
• PhD - Doctor of Philosophy
• Combined PhD
• Department of Comparative Literature

Marta Figlerowicz

Director of Graduate Studies

• [email protected]

Sabrina Whiteman

Departmental Registrar

• [email protected]
• 203-432-2760

Admission Requirements

Standardized testing requirements.

GRE is not accepted.

Program-Specific Application Requirements

A writing sample is required by this program. 

English Language Requirement

TOEFL iBT or IELTS Academic is required of most applicants whose native language is not English.

You may be exempt from this requirement if you have received (or will receive) an undergraduate degree from a college or university where English is the primary language of instruction, and if you have studied in residence at that institution for at least three years.

Combined Degree Program Application Deadline

*The deadline to submit an application to a combined program is always the earlier deadline of the two individual programs, or December 15, whichever comes first.

Academic Information

Combined phd information.

Comparative Literature offers a combined PhD in conjunction with Classics , and Film and Media Studies .

Program Advising Guidelines

GSAS Advising Guidelines

Academic Resources

Academic calendar.

The Graduate School's academic calendar lists important dates and deadlines related to coursework, registration, financial processes, and milestone events such as graduation.

Featured Resource

Registration Information and Dates

https://registration.yale.edu/

Students must register every term in which they are enrolled in the Graduate School. Registration for a given term takes place the semester prior, and so it's important to stay on top of your academic plan. The University Registrar's Office oversees the systems that students use to register. Instructions about how to use those systems and the dates during which registration occurs can be found on their registration website.

Financial Information

Phd stipend & funding.

PhD students at Yale are normally fully-funded. During their programs, our students receive a twelve-month stipend to cover living expenses and a fellowship that covers the full cost of tuition and student healthcare.

• PhD Student Funding Overview
• Graduate Financial Aid Office
• PhD Stipends
• Health Award
• Tuition and Fees

Alumni Insights

Below you will find alumni placement data for our departments and programs.

PhD in Comparative Literature

International students: Check out the International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS)  office for useful resources.

Questions? Contact [email protected] .

Comparative Literature at the University of Minnesota has the distinction of being the first department to introduce continental European as well as Latin American and other non-European cultural and theoretical writings to English-speaking readers in the United States and abroad. Under the auspices of the University of Minnesota Press, our department launched the Theory and History of Literature series (1981–1998). We changed the landscape of comparative literary study via critical editions and translated writings of major figures such as Tzvetan Todorov, Vladimir Propp, Mikhail Bakhtin, Hélène Cixous, José Antonio Maravall, Malek Alloula, Gilles Deleuze, Jean-Luc Nancy, and Theodor W. Adorno (among others).

Today the department is a preeminent site for integrating conceptual, historical, literary, and philosophical scholarship. We engage literature, culture, and thought across Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia. Our PhD program in comparative literature emphasizes the importance of reading tradition against the grain—of national boundaries, textual practices, and intellectual production in the humanities. We conceive literature broadly—as a field of interrelation between word, image, and sound—and comparatism as a polycentric enterprise. Over the years, graduates of our program have been very successful at carrying forward our department’s critical comparatism and signature stress on word, image, and sound in their own scholarship. (View our  recent dissertations and job placement and achievements .) Our faculty teach seminars that explore a wide range of literary and cultural problems, embedding the understanding of texts within their material and discursive conditions of possibility. We regard comparatism as the heart and soul of cross-cultural inquiry and understanding and encourage students to pursue interdisciplinary projects that are at the same time disciplined and critical. 

Our PhD program admits a small cohort of students each year; we foster a close-knit and collaborative research and teaching community. As a graduate student in our program, you will work closely with departmental faculty (as well as affiliated faculty from across the university) who are committed to grasping the complexity and diversity of our contemporary world via engagements with forms of aesthetic, cultural, and philosophical expression from across the global North and South.

Our curriculum emphasizes seminars and independent studies that explore:

• Conceptual thought from a variety of perspectives—such as literary theory, feminist approaches, gender and sexuality studies, Marxism, psychoanalytic criticism, empire studies and postcolonial theory, critical translation studies, semiotic theory, intellectual history, visuality, and the sociology of literature and culture
• The politics and practices of comparatism
• Archival methods
• The analysis of form
• Disciplinarity and interdisciplinarity
• Historiography
• Translation and the circulation of intelligibility
• Geopolitics

Proficiency in two languages (other than English) is required for the degree. Students whose first language is not English may waive one of the two required languages; no other waivers are possible. For more information, see the Graduate Language Examination Policies .

• See further guidelines on committee composition .
• Enter your committee through our online system.
• If need be, you may  change your advisor or committee of record . 
• For guidelines on the written and oral preliminary examinations themselves, see Section IV of Doctoral Degree: Performance Standards and Progress .

College Resources for Graduate Students

Visit CLA’s website for graduate students to learn about collegiate funding opportunities, student support, career services, and more.

Student Services      Career Services     Funding & Support

Graduate School

Comparative Literature

General information, program offerings:, director of graduate studies:, graduate program administrator:.

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy in comparative literature is offered by the Department of Comparative Literature in cooperation with other departments. The program of study enables students with exceptional training in languages and literatures to profit from the increased awareness and understanding that may be derived from the considered view of more than one literature and of the theoretical presuppositions behind literary study as a whole. The program prepares candidates for scholarship in the field and for teaching in comparative literature, separate departments of literature, and the humanities.

Additional departmental requirements

Sample of written work in English, 25 pages maximum.

Program Offerings

Program offering: ph.d..

The curriculum in comparative literature has two major objectives: while training students in one literary tradition, it also requires them to be seriously interested in at least two other literatures as well as in the historical, critical and theoretical problems raised by the study of literature. The course of study over the four to six terms prior to the general examination reflects these objectives, and includes course work in comparative literature and in the student’s major and minor literatures.  Students must take a minimum of 12 graduate-level courses, at least 10 of which must be for credit.

Areas of Study

Major Literature. The program of study in the major literature aims at giving students a mastery sufficient to enable them to teach it in a national or a comparative context. The historical scope of work in the major literature is flexibly defined, but it may conform to the following patterns:

• Classical Literatures. The major in classics includes the study of both Greek and Roman literatures. For a detailed description of the curriculum, see the separate Schedule for the Classics Major in Comparative Literature.
• Post-Classical Western Literatures. Students majoring in these literatures choose one from among the following periods: (1) Middle Ages to Renaissance, (2) Renaissance to Romanticism, and (3) Romanticism to the present.
• East Asian Literatures. Students majoring in Chinese or Japanese may follow the prescribed curriculum for comparative literature students concentrating in one or both of these literatures. For the detailed curriculum, see the separate Schedule for Chinese or Japanese Majors in Comparative Literature.
• Near Eastern Literatures. Students majoring in Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish develop individual programs with the assistance of their advisers. These programs generally involve a version of one or more topics of concentration or fields of study required by the Department of Near Eastern Studies.

Additional Literatures. Students are expected to enrich their knowledge of their special fields through work in different languages and literatures. Some of this work is done in comparative literature courses, but at least one minor literature also must be studied in the pertinent department.

Comparative Literature. The program of study in comparative literature combines the students’ work in their major and minor literatures by focusing on a specific area in which these literatures can be fully explored. This area may be a limited segment of literary history (the late Middle Ages, the 16th century, Romanticism) or a particular aspect common to all three literatures (a genre such as lyric or the novel, or a phenomenon such as neoclassicism or the modern). It also may be a critical or a theoretical problem, involving analyses of modes of interpretation; comparisons of genres and themes; questions about the relationship between different art forms (such as painting and poetry); or problems in literary aesthetics or epistemology. In this way, comparative literature functions as the core of the curriculum, exposing students to a range of literary techniques and helping them to organize their work in their chosen literatures.

Language(s)

In addition to English, students must have a command of one classical and two modern languages. These may be Western, East Asian, or Near Eastern. Students must elect one of these languages as their principal foreign language. A firm reading knowledge of the other two languages must be demonstrated either through departmentally administered proficiency examinations or courses.

General exam

The general examination tests, as it reflects, the candidate’s course of study. Based on a reading list devised by the student and the student’s advisers, the written examination is divided into two parts. The first concerns the candidate’s major literature, and is comprehensive in nature. It is normally taken at the end of the fourth or fifth term. The second, in comparative literature, is usually taken at the end of the fifth or sixth term. It is intensive in nature and consists of questions based on those areas of study that the candidate has prepared in consultation with his or her faculty advisers, often in anticipation of the candidate’s eventual dissertation topic.

Qualifying for the M.A.

The Master of Arts (M.A.) degree is normally an incidental degree on the way to full Ph.D. candidacy and is awarded after a student successfully completes the required number of courses plus both parts of the written general examination. It may also be awarded to students who, for various reasons, leave the Ph.D. program, provided that these requirements have been met.

Practice teaching forms a significant part of graduate education in comparative literature. It is not only a crucial element in a graduate student’s preparation for teaching and research, but it is also an essential credential for future employment, especially if a student wishes to qualify for a position in his or her major literature. As a matter of departmental policy, therefore, all students, after their first year, are normally required to accumulate at least four classroom hours of teaching experience during their time at Princeton.  (“Classroom hours” refers to the number of hours per week, over the course of a semester, during which the student is in charge of the classroom as the primary instructor present.)

Dissertation and FPO

Upon successful completion of both parts of the general examination, students consult with a committee of advisers to write an exposition of the dissertation project.  This dissertation prospectus is then defended orally by the student, typically in the next examination period after successful completion of the second part of the general examination, but in any case before the end of the seventh semester of study.

The dissertation should demonstrate the candidate’s competence in writing a substantial work of scholarship and criticism, and his or her proficiency in maturely handling the foreign languages chosen. Under certain circumstances, candidates may be permitted to submit an original translation of a work of particular difficulty. A dissertation based on translation, however, must be preceded by a comprehensive introduction that examines in depth the comparative context of the translated work as well as the linguistic and theoretical problems arising from the translation itself.

A final public oral examination is required after the dissertation has been read and approved by representatives of the faculty. This examination consists of two parts. The first is a 30-minute lecture in which the candidate justifies the subject treated and the methods employed, accounts for any new contributions made to literary history and criticism, and projects plans for future scholarship and publication based upon the dissertation. The second is a series of questions growing out of subjects presented in the lecture and relating to both the criticism and the teaching of literary material dealt with in the dissertation.

• Thomas W. Hare

Director of Graduate Studies

• Daniel Heller-Roazen

Director of Undergraduate Studies

• Karen R. Emmerich
• April Alliston
• Wendy Laura Belcher
• David M. Bellos
• Sandra L. Bermann
• Joshua H. Billings
• Claudia Joan Brodsky
• Marina S. Brownlee
• Maria A. DiBattista
• Susana Draper

Associate Professor

• Benjamin Conisbee Baer

Assistant Professor

• Erin Y. Huang

Associated Faculty

• Eduardo L. Cadava, English
• Steven Chung, East Asian Studies
• Devin A. Fore, German
• Rubén Gallo, Spanish & Portuguese
• Simon E. Gikandi, English
• Anthony T. Grafton, History
• Brooke A. Holmes, Classics
• Thomas Y. Levin, German
• F. Nick Nesbitt, French & Italian
• Sara S. Poor, German
• Rachel L. Price, Spanish & Portuguese
• Efthymia Rentzou, French & Italian
• Michael A. Wachtel, Slavic Lang & Literatures
• Christy N. Wampole, French & Italian
• Max D. Weiss, History
• Daniel L. Hoffman-Schwartz

For a full list of faculty members and fellows please visit the department or program website.

Permanent Courses

Courses listed below are graduate-level courses that have been approved by the program’s faculty as well as the Curriculum Subcommittee of the Faculty Committee on the Graduate School as permanent course offerings. Permanent courses may be offered by the department or program on an ongoing basis, depending on curricular needs, scheduling requirements, and student interest. Not listed below are undergraduate courses and one-time-only graduate courses, which may be found for a specific term through the Registrar’s website. Also not listed are graduate-level independent reading and research courses, which may be approved by the Graduate School for individual students.

AAS 522 - Publishing Journal Articles in the Humanities and Social Sciences (also COM 522/ENG 504/GSS 503)

Cla 506 - greek tragedy (also com 502/ger 507/hls 506), cla 513 - ancient literary criticism (also com 516/hls 513), cla 529 - topics in the hellenic tradition (also com 527/hls 529), com 500 - comparative literature graduate pedagogy seminar, com 513 - topics in literature and philosophy (also mod 513), com 521 - introduction to comparative literature, com 532 - publishing articles in literature, art, and music studies journals (also art 531/eng 591/mus 533), com 534 - how does history appear critical aesthetics, lessing through benjamin, com 535 - contemporary critical theories (also eng 538/ger 535), com 536 - topics in critical theory, com 540 - ocean media: islanding, space, modernity (also eas 528), com 542 - feminist poetics and politics in the americas (1960s to the present) (also gss 542/las 512/spa 558), com 543 - topics in medieval literature (also fre 543), com 547 - the renaissance (also eng 530), com 553 - the eighteenth century in europe (also eng 546/gss 554), com 560 - the novel and romance, com 566 - arabs, jews, and arab-jews in literature, history, and culture (also nes 566), com 572 - introduction to critical theory (also eng 580/fre 555/ger 572), com 579 - translation and world literature (also tra 502), com 581 - topics in non-western and general literature (also eas 589), com 592 - extramural teaching internship, eas 536 - cultures at play: the history, aesthetics, and theory of games (also com 544), eas 580 - script theories: korea, east asia, and beyond (also com 580), eas 594 - seeing the interior: cinema, media, inverse visuality (also com 594), eng 532 - early 17th century (also com 509), eng 571 - literary and cultural theory (also aas 572/com 506), eng 572 - introduction to critical theory (also com 590/hum 572), eng 573 - problems in literary study (also com 596), fre 517 - looking for the beast: animals in literature, film and culture (also com 512), fre 532 - charles baudelaire (also com 576), fre 560 - medieval signs (also com 557/phi 504), fre 583 - seminar in romance linguistics and/or literary theory (also com 583), ger 521 - topics in german intellectual history (also com 597/mod 520), ger 525 - studies in german film (also com 524/mod 510), hum 599 - interpretation (also ant 599/com 599), mus 515 - topics in the history of opera (also com 517), nes 569 - classical arabic poetry (also com 575), phi 510 - german philosophy since kant (also com 510), sla 515 - language & subjectivity: theories of formation (also ant 515/com 514), sla 529 - seminar on andrei bitov (also com 528/res 529), sla 531 - topics in russian literature or literary theory (also com 533), spa 538 - seminar in golden-age literature (also com 578), tra 501 - practicing translation (also com 501).

Ph.D. Program

The graduate program in Comparative Literature at Penn State offers a 5-year Ph.D.-only Program. Students must hold an M.A. in Comparative Literature or related field(s) (whether from Penn State or from other universities) to enter the 5-year PhD–only program.

Students entering the graduate program who hold an M.A. degree in Comparative Literature or a related field(s) may be selected to enter the 5-year Ph.D.-only admission track.

The total credits required for the 5-year program are 33. The program consists of course work, a candidacy examination, a demonstration of language proficiency, a comprehensive examination, and a dissertation—in that order.

Ph.D. course work is in addition to courses used to satisfy M.A. requirements. It includes

• 10 required credits in Comparative Literature  are required: CMLIT 501 (3 credits), 502 (3 credits), and 503 (3 credits); and CMLIT 602 (1 credit). (If these courses have been taken in the student’s master’s program, other Comparative Literature courses are substituted.)
• Additional credits to satisfy the requirements appropriate to the program (up to 33 for the five-year program, and 48 for the six-year program). Some courses should focus on the languages and literatures that will be the subject of the student’s dissertation, and his or her major professional field(s).

Students should organize their coursework around an identifiable unifying principle, such as a genre, period, or theme, or a specific, well-defined problem involving literature and another discipline, or literary theory and criticism.

Students in the 6-year pattern take the candidacy exam and the comprehensive exam; they also prepare an M.A. paper in accordance with the guidelines specified for the M.A. degree.  This paper requirement should be met by the fourth semester of the program. Students in the 5-year program do not do an M.A. paper.

To meet university requirements for an M.A., by the end of the first two years, 18 or more credits must be at 500 levels or above.  The usual expectation is that all, or nearly all, courses in the 5-year program will be at that level.

Doctoral work requires graduate-level study in three languages. One of these languages may be English. The choice of languages depends on the student’s intellectual development and program of study, and is made in consultation with the advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies. Some students find that their areas of interest will require the acquisition of additional languages during their doctoral program. Graduates of our doctoral program have tended to concentrated on literatures in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, and Ukrainian. Work in the medieval literatures of some of these languages (for example, Old French) is also common.

The foreign language requirement can be fulfilled in three ways:

• A grade of B or better in an intermediate- or advanced-level foreign language or literature course at Penn State.
• Successful performance on an examination administered by a Comparative Literature department faculty (or faculty in other Liberal Arts departments) with competence in the language.
• A waiver granted by the Graduate Committee for bilingual students, native speakers, or students whose academic records otherwise demonstrate competence (e.g., an undergraduate major or minor).

Working with their advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies, students should in their first year establish a clear plan for fulfilling the foreign language requirement during their time of study.

During the second year of coursework, students prepare for the PhD candidacy exam, which consists of written and oral portions.  The purpose of the exam is to determine whether the student should continue to work toward the Ph.D., and if so, to plan the doctoral program. It must be taken early in the Ph.D. program, so this decision can be made before either the department or the student has made an extensive commitment. Working with the Director of Graduate Studies, students select an advisor and form faculty committees to administer the exam.

During the final year of coursework, students take a Comprehensive Exam in consultation with their doctoral committee, which prepares, conducts, and evaluates the exam.   The comprehensive exam has two parts. The first part is a written exam based on three reading lists in the student’s fields of study, followed by a discussion of the written exam with the doctoral committee. The second part consists of an oral exam based on the dissertation prospectus.

The first part of the exam measures the student’s mastery of his/her field(s) of study. It serves two purposes: first, to prepare the student as a prospective teacher in his/her field(s) of study; and secod, to develop the necessary historical, literary, theoretical, and critical knowledge and thinking skills that will help the student determine a dissertation topic and compose a dissertation prospectus. The second part of the exam is dedicated to discussing the dissertation prospectus.

The final oral examination (“defense”) concentrates on, but is not necessarily limited to, the dissertation’s subject. It is conducted by the candidate’s dissertation committee. A complete draft of the dissertation must be made available to the committee at least two weeks before the scheduled defense. Immediately following the defense, the doctoral committee meets to discuss the quality of the written and oral components of the dissertation, to make the decision of pass or fail, and to determine the revisions, if any, to be undertaken before they will approve the dissertation. Dissertations judged by the committee to be of superior quality are awarded departmental distinction. The student and the dissertation chairperson should plan a calendar of progress that will allow adequate time for the final draft to be read within the department and revised, if necessary, before it is due at the Graduate School. In some cases (for example, if a member of the committee is out of town), it may be necessary to allow more time.

Each student works with an individually appointed doctoral committee of faculty members. The composition of the committee, the nucleus of which is usually the same group of faculty that has administered the candidacy exam, is subject to the approval of the Graduate Director and to the regulations of the Graduate School, which officially appoints these individual committees for each doctoral student. At least four Penn State members are needed. The major field (CMLIT) must be represented by at least two members of the department. The committee also includes a faculty member whose field of interest is different from that of the candidate, and a faculty member whose home department is outside CMLIT (these may or may not be the same). The doctoral minor or dual-title degree program (if any) must have representation on the committee. A CMLIT faculty member must be chair or co-chair.

Comparative Literature offers dual-title PhD programs in  Comparative Literature and African Studies ,  Comparative Literature and Asian Studies ,  Comparative Literature and Visual Studies , and  Comparative Literature and Women’s Studies .

Dual-title degree programs give students a solid grounding in the fundamental methods and background of a single discipline, while allowing the student’s work to be extended through participation in an interdisciplinary program that connects students to faculty across the university, allow them to do creative, high-level scholarship, and make them compelling candidates on the academic job market. Students are admitted first to their primary department (Comparative Literature) and then to the second field. Students take coursework in both programs and have representatives of both programs on their committees.  They may also have teaching opportunities in both programs. 

To apply for a dual-title PhD, you need simply to indicate on your application that you wish to be considered for acceptance into a dual-title degree program.

A formal doctoral minor requires 15 credits of approved coursework. A representative of the minor (from a participating department other than the student’s home department) must be included on the student’s doctoral committee. Students interested in minors should notify the Graduate Director and their advisor, to discuss the feasibility of fitting in the minor, and then approach the department of the minor field in order to ascertain specific course requirements.

Doctoral Minor in Literary Theory, Criticism, and Aesthetics .  Students in Comparative Literature and in other disciplines may choose to take a minor in literary theory, criticism, and aesthetics, which is administered jointly by Philosophy and Comparative Literature.

The minor strengthens the training of students in literature and in related fields by providing a coherent philosophical and theoretical basis for their advanced work. It also provides an interdisciplinary context for their doctoral program. A core of 6 credits exposes students to literary theory and criticism (through either CMLIT 502 or 503) and to aesthetics or interpretation theory (through either PHIL 409 or 516).

In addition to the minor in criticism, theory, and aesthetics, other minors may be useful. The minor in women’s studies has been especially popular. Minors may also be taken in fields such as geography, history, anthropology, philosophy, theatre, or marketing. When a minor is undertaken, a representative of the minor field is included on the student’s doctoral committee, and some aspect or methodology of the minor subject must be present in the dissertation.

Admission to graduate study in Comparative Literature at Penn State is based on a number of considerations. Above all we seek intellectually curious, highly motivated students whose interests suggest a good fit with our departmental strengths. We welcome well-qualified applicants from diverse backgrounds.

We are often asked what our committee looks for and the truth is that there is no standard formula. Above all we look for intellectual engagement and scholarly commitment. The graduate committee that evaluates applicants seeks evidence of intellectual promise, openness to new ideas and methods, capacity for original scholarship, the ability to think critically and to write clearly, and potential for professional success. Of obvious importance for scholars who will work across cultures is appropriate language preparation. Research plans that are in synch with our areas of expertise are also of importance. We do not consider GRE scores.

For full funding consideration, completed applications should be submitted by  January 5 . We will continue to accept applications on rolling basis thereafter; however, those who apply by  January 5  will have the best opportunity for support.

We recognize that the vast majority of graduate students require financial assistance to complete their studies. We admit students with multi-year funding packages that include both a stipend and a tuition grant-in-aid. No separate application for financial aid or graduate assistantship is required.

Your application to Comparative Literature at Penn State consists of two groups of items:

A.   Items that are provided through the on-line Graduate School Application Portal.

If you are ready to proceed to the application but have NOT read the Graduate School requirements (included application fee information) please visit that website at  http://www.gradschool.psu.edu/index.cfm/prospective-students/requirements/ .

If you have read the Graduate School and program requirements and are ready to apply, you may proceed to the application at  http://www.gradschool.psu.edu/index.cfm/apply/ .

This on-line process includes the following items which you will input or upload:

• Transcripts.  Applicants are required to electronically upload copies of transcripts (or equivalent documents for institutions outside the U.S., e.g., degree/study certificates, diplomas, etc.) from all post-secondary institutions attended, in the language of instruction (and copies of an official English translation if English is not the language of instruction).  Applicants recommended for admission who accept an offer through the online graduate admission system will be notified by the Graduate School that official/original transcripts/documents must be sent from the originating institutions in the official language of the institution(s) attended (and if the language of instruction is not English, an official English translation must also be sent).  The Graduate School will review all official documents to finalize the offer of admission.  An offer of admission will be revoked if official/original documents are not received by the Graduate School within specified deadlines, or if official/original documents differ from the copies uploaded by the applicant prior to the offer of admission.  For applicants whose degree conferral is in progress at the time of uploading copies, the deadline specified for receipt of official/original documents will allow for the passage of the reported date of degree conferral, and that conferral must be confirmed on the official/original documents received by the Graduate School, in order for the offer of admission to be finalized.
• Self-reporting of   ETS Scores :  TOEFL   scores  are required of applicants who do not hold prior degrees from institutions where the language of instruction is English. These are self-reported in your online application, with official scores submitted to the department of Comparative Literature at Penn State through the normal mechanisms of the agencies that administer these tests. Use institution code 2660. We do not consider GRE scores.
• Sample of your written work , preferably an essay on literature. 
• Statement of purpose.   The statement of purpose should include information on a) your education and other relevant background, including teaching experience or other activities that have prepared you for graduate work in Comparative Literature; b) your research interests; c) your language skills and their application to your research interests; d) your reasons for considering graduate work in Comparative Literature, especially your interest in our specific program.  
• A C.V. or resumé.
• Three Letters of Reference.  We do not require a specific form for recommenders. You input your recommenders’ information on the application and they will be sent an email asking them to upload their letter directly.

B. Items sent directly to our department:

• Official   ETS Scores :  TOEFL  scores  are required of applicants who do not hold prior degrees from institutions where the language of instruction is English. These are self-reported in your online application, with official scores submitted to the department of Comparative Literature at Penn State through the normal mechanisms of the agencies that administer these tests.

Applicants are instructed to request that TOEFL scores be sent to Penn State  electronically .  MAT scores are only available in hard copy, so those scores should be sent by postal mail directly from Pearson to Penn State.

IELTS and MAT scores should be mailed to:

The Pennsylvania State University Graduate Enrollment Services 114 Kern Building University Park, PA  16802

We encourage you to get to know our faculty, graduate student cohort, and program thoroughly before applying.

Our program is committed to fostering an intellectually vibrant and international environment at the university.  Fully half the students in Comparative Literature come to Penn State from universities outside the United States. We have extensive experience working with, and training, students whose native language is not English, and in preparing them to succeed as scholars, either in the United States or abroad.         

We do not consider GRE scores. The TOEFL test is instead a requirement for admission. While we do take test scores into consideration, the graduate committee that evaluates applicants seeks evidence of intellectual promise, the ability to think critically and to write clearly, the capacity for original scholarship, and openness to new ideas and methods.

Because we admit only 3-5 students a year, we are able to offer an innovative and flexible curriculum that allows students to design individualized programs of study tailored to their interests. We aim to produce accomplished, serious intellectuals and scholars who are ready to become college or university professors, or to use the skills and training they receive at Penn State in other capacities and other professions.

First-year students go through a semester-long course, CMLIT 501, that introduces them to the fundamental interpretive, research, and writing skills of the discipline. We continue to work with students on research and writing, not only in coursework, but also through our Writing Fellowship Program. The WFP offers $4,000 in summer salary, and $1,000 in research support, to up to five students a year. Students in the program attend writing workshops and do independent studies with faculty members as they spend 9-12 months working on an article to be submitted for publication in a scholarly journal. Preference for the WFP is normally given to students in their second year of study, but all students are eligible.

When it comes time to go on the academic job market, all our students receive extensive support. We work with students to craft letters, CVs, and other important documents; we also run mock interviews and mock job talks to prepare our job candidates to do their best in Skype interviews, at the MLA, or on campus.

The department provides a comprehensive support program for helping students prepare themselves for a successful job search. Throughout the graduate program, our faculty offers substantial career mentoring and advice on how to develop strong credentials, including planning for professional development from the start of a student’s graduate career.

Of our PhD graduates from the past ten years (2002-2012), 85% currently hold full-time academic positions, of which roughly two thirds are tenure-track. In the United States, institutions that have hired our graduates include research universities such as Carnegie Mellon, Central Michigan, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, the University of Illinois, the University of Minnesota, the University of Nebraska, the University of Utah, and Rochester Institute of Technology, as well as liberal arts colleges such as Bay Path, Bennington, Dartmouth, Middlebury, Nicolette, Reed, Smith, Stockton, Vassar, the University of Dubuque, and Shawnee State University. In a testament to the global focus of our graduate program, our students have also successfully found employment around the world; recent graduates currently teach at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia; Tsinghua University in China; the Universität Bielefeld in Germany; El Colegio de México; Prague Metropolitan University in the Czech Republic; the University of Athens in Greece; Dogus University in Turkey; Tokyo Gakugei University in Japan, and the American University of Central Asia in the Kyrgyz Republic, among other international universities.

Comparative Literature

About the Program

Our graduate program is recognized as one of the top Comparative Literature programs in the country. The Comparative Literature department is a vibrant place for the research and study of literatures and cultures in an interdisciplinary framework, from transnational and cross-cultural perspectives. Our faculty and graduate students develop new historical and theoretical frameworks and rethink those we have inherited to open new perspectives on social and cultural forms and relationships.

Comparative Literature provides students with tools for analyzing texts, writing, editing, translating, and thinking across disciplinary and national boundaries. Our graduates engage a variety of literary traditions and historical periods, from Latin American concrete poetry  to Yiddish experimental fiction  to the discourses of political and race theory. The department offers rigorous training in the following areas, which are particular strengths of our internationally recognized faculty: French, German, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew Studies, Ancient Greek and Roman Studies, East Asian Literatures and Arts, Performance Studies, Film and Media, Poetry and Poetics, Critical Theory, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Postcolonial Theory, English and American Literatures, Early Modern and Renaissance Studies, and Slavic Literatures and Cultures.

All members of the department are deeply invested in the academic development of our students and value their work and research as an integral part of the Comparative Literature community at UC Berkeley. The department aims above all to develop students' creative and intellectual interests and talents. Graduate students receive the opportunity to pursue rigorous research in a variety of fields according to their interests,  participate in discussions about political, aesthetic, and social issues, and develop a nuanced cross-cultural understanding of historical and social processes. Many graduate students present and publish scholarly writings in the most prestigious venues as well as producing translations and literary writings. All of our students work closely with cutting-edge scholars in their fields in small seminars, with extensive individualized work . Students participate in the designated emphasis programs on campus, including Critical Theory, Film and Media, Gender and Women’s Studies, Renaissance and Early Modern Studies and Jewish Studies, or the Program in Medieval Studies. Students have opportunities to design and teach courses on their topics of interest. Our students form a well-integrated community, but have access to all of the resources of the entire Berkeley campus departments and faculty; in fact, our program requires that students take seminars in other departments for interdisciplinary training. We have one of the most successful placement records for our graduates of any program in the country, and of any Berkeley graduate program.  Our doctoral graduates are prominent comparative literature and national literature faculty across the country and the world.

Visit Department Website

Admission to the University

Applying for graduate admission.

Thank you for considering UC Berkeley for graduate study! UC Berkeley offers more than 120 graduate programs representing the breadth and depth of interdisciplinary scholarship. The Graduate Division hosts a complete list of graduate academic programs, departments, degrees offered, and application deadlines can be found on the Graduate Division website.

Prospective students must submit an online application to be considered for admission, in addition to any supplemental materials specific to the program for which they are applying. The online application and steps to take to apply can be found on the Graduate Division website .

Admission Requirements

The minimum graduate admission requirements are:

A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution;

A satisfactory scholastic average, usually a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale; and

Enough undergraduate training to do graduate work in your chosen field.

For a list of requirements to complete your graduate application, please see the Graduate Division’s Admissions Requirements page . It is also important to check with the program or department of interest, as they may have additional requirements specific to their program of study and degree. Department contact information can be found here .

Where to apply?

Visit the Berkeley Graduate Division application page .

Admission to the Program

Students should have completed advanced work in at least one language other than English and, ideally, have begun the study of a second language as well. They should be able to demonstrate the skills of close rhetorical analysis of literary texts through the submission of a writing sample, usually a college-level essay.  Applicants are no longer required to take the GRE (Graduate Record Examination), and any submitted GRE scores will not be reviewed.

Doctoral Degree Requirements

Normative time requirements.

Normative time to advancement: 8 semesters Normative in candidacy: 6 semesters Total normative time: 14 semesters

Time to Advancement

The Doctoral Program is designed to provide familiarity with one (major) literature in comprehensive historical and critical ways, and the demonstrated ability to do comparative work in national literatures. Normally, as illustrated under the course list below, students study three literatures (two minor literatures in addition to the major), but they may choose, with their adviser’s permission, to study two major literatures instead of one major and two minors.* The PhD is awarded upon completion of all required course work, passing the qualifying examination (QE), and filing a doctoral dissertation.

* In the case of students who elect two major literatures, there is a 12-course requirement (instead of 10); 4 courses in Comparative Literature, and 4 courses in each of the two major literatures.

Foreign Language(s)

Doctoral students are expected to work in three literatures. They are expected to demonstrate competence in at least three languages other than English. The department recommends that students choose a third language according to their research interests. For example, you may wish to learn the language of the scholarship in your field, to gain historical knowledge of your primary language, to strengthen your profile as a comparatist, to gain exposure to a culturally remote body of literature, or to broaden the cultural range of your literary knowledge.

Permission to Proceed Review

Permission to proceed to the PhD program in Comparative Literature is granted by the Second Year Review Committee. The review is designed to be diagnostic in nature; it should assess the student’s progress toward the degree and assist students in planning their course of study toward the PhD.

No later than the fourth semester after entrance into the PhD program, all students will be reviewed by a committee identified by them and approved by the head graduate adviser and consisting of three faculty members, two of whom should be members of the department. The committee should include the student’s adviser. 

The student submits a one-page statement to the committee in which s/he indicates courses taken and future course plans. Statements should include student progress in the languages chosen for study and the competence already attained in each. 

Based on submitted materials and an oral interview with the student, the committee will assess the work done toward coverage in the major literature, recommend further course work, assess language preparation and the student’s overall preparation to date. This report constitutes a binding recommendation concerning future course work and advancement toward the degree.

Qualifying Examination

Students should plan to take the qualifying examination no later than their eighth semester in the program.

Preparation for the PhD qualifying examination is intended to encourage students to pursue advanced, independent, and intellectually mature work. The PhD QE constitutes the last review of students’ academic progress before the writing of the dissertation. Students are required to prepare a written Statement of Interest and Reading List in advance of the examination for approval. The final QE consists of two written sections and an oral section.

No later than one semester after passing the PhD qualifying examination, students are required to schedule a prospectus meeting with the members of their dissertation committee. At least two weeks before the meeting, the prospectus, which should not exceed 20 pages, must be distributed to the committee. At the meeting, the student and committee will discuss the prospectus, and plan the writing of the dissertation.

Time in Candidacy

Advancement.

The student advances to candidacy upon successful completion of written qualifying exams, an oral examination by a five-person committee, and approval of the Application for Candidacy for the Doctoral degree by the Graduate Division.

Required Professional Development

Most students will teach reading and composition courses for the department as part of their professional development. Opportunities for teaching foreign languages are also available in other departments. Students are required to take a pedagogy course in the first semester of teaching.

COM LIT 200 Approaches to Comparative Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022 Lectures on literary theory, on the study of criticism, and on the methods of comparative literary theory. Approaches to Comparative Literature: Read More [+]

Rules & Requirements

Prerequisites: Admission to graduate standing in Comparative Literature

Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.

Hours & Format

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week

Additional Format: Three hours of lecture/discussion per week.

Additional Details

Subject/Course Level: Comparative Literature/Graduate

Grading: Letter grade.

Approaches to Comparative Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 201 Proseminar 1 Unit

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022 This course is designed to give all new graduate students a broad view of the department's faculty, the courses they teach, and their fields of research. In addition, it will introduce students to some practical aspects of the graduate career, issues that pertain to specific fields of research, and questions currently being debated across the profession. The readings for the course will consist of copies of materials by the department's facult y. Proseminar: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Required for all first year graduate students

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1 hour of seminar per week

Additional Format: One hour of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.

Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.

Proseminar: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 202B Approaches to Genre: Lyric Poetry 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2023, Fall 2022 Application of the methods of Comparative Literature to the study of genres. Approaches to Genre: Lyric Poetry: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Admission to graduate standing in Comparative Literature: advanced undergraduates may be admitted with the consent of the instructor

Approaches to Genre: Lyric Poetry: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 202C Approaches to Genre: The Novel 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Spring 2021 Application of the methods of Comparative Literature to the study of genres. Approaches to Genre: The Novel: Read More [+]

Approaches to Genre: The Novel: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 210 Studies in Ancient Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2022, Fall 2020, Spring 2018 Comparative investigation of a topic in ancient literature between the eighth century B.C.E. and the fourth century C.E. with some attention to subsequent developments. Studies in Ancient Literature: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in ancient Greek or Latin and familiarity with at least one modern foreign language

Studies in Ancient Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 212 Studies in Medieval Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016 Comparative investigation of a topic in literature and culture between the fifth and the fourteenth centuries. Studies in Medieval Literature: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in two medieval languages

Studies in Medieval Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 215 Studies in Renaissance Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2024, Fall 2021, Fall 2020 Comparative investigation of a topic in Western literature in the Renaissance period. Studies in Renaissance Literature: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in two foreign languages

Studies in Renaissance Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT C221 Aesthetics as Critique 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Fall 2020, Fall 2018, Spring 2015, Spring 2013, Spring 2011 A close reading and discussion of the major texts of modern aesthetics, from the 18th century to the present, with emphasis on the Continental tradition of Kant, Adorno, and Derrida. Aesthetics as Critique: Read More [+]

Additional Format: Three hours of lecture per week.

Also listed as: RHETOR C221

Aesthetics as Critique: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 223 Studies in the 19th Century 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2016, Fall 2013, Spring 2010 Comparative investigation of major themes in nineteenth-century literature and culture. Studies in the 19th Century: Read More [+]

Studies in the 19th Century: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 225 Studies in Symbolist and Modern Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2023, Fall 2022 Comparative investigation of a topic in literature and culture of the modern period. Studies in Symbolist and Modern Literature: Read More [+]

Studies in Symbolist and Modern Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 227 Studies in Contemporary Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021 Comparative investigation of a topic in contemporary literature and culture. Studies in Contemporary Literature: Read More [+]

Studies in Contemporary Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 232 Studies in Near Eastern-Western Literary Relations 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2020, Fall 2013, Spring 2008 Comparative investigation of a literary topic requiring the study of both Near Eastern and Western documents. Studies in Near Eastern-Western Literary Relations: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in a Near Eastern or a European language. Undergraduates may be admitted with consent of the instructor

Studies in Near Eastern-Western Literary Relations: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 240 Studies in the Relations Between Literature and the Other Arts 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022 Comparative study of the historical and systematic relations between literature and other arts such as the visual arts, music, and film. Studies in the Relations Between Literature and the Other Arts: Read More [+]

Studies in the Relations Between Literature and the Other Arts: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 250 Studies in Literary Theory 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2019 Comparative investigation of a topic in the theory of literature. Studies in Literary Theory: Read More [+]

Studies in Literary Theory: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 254 Studies in East-West Literary Relations 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2020, Spring 2017, Fall 2016 Comparative investigation of a literary topic requiring the study of both East Asian and Western documents. Studies in East-West Literary Relations: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in two foreign languages, one of which must be an East Asian language

Formerly known as: C254

Studies in East-West Literary Relations: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 256 The Craft of Critical Writing 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2024, Spring 2022, Spring 2021 The course will proceed chiefly through exercises in writing reviews and critical essays, with class discussion of the work that will be done by members of the seminar. Some analytic attention will also be devoted to existing models of critical prose. The class will deal with the minute details that make for lucidity and felicity of style and will also consider larger issues of organization, critical focus, and audience. The Craft of Critical Writing: Read More [+]

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week

The Craft of Critical Writing: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 258 Studies in Philosophy and Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2021, Fall 2019 Comparative investigation of a topic in the relationship between philosophy and literature. Studies in Philosophy and Literature: Read More [+]

Studies in Philosophy and Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 260 Problems in Literary Translation 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2022, Spring 2020, Spring 2019 Theory and practice of translation. Students will complete a project in literary translation. Problems in Literary Translation: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Preparation in two foreign languages or permission of the instructor

Problems in Literary Translation: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 265 Gender, Sexuality, and Culture 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2012, Fall 2010 Comparative investigation of a topic related to the study of gender and/or sexuality in literature and culture. Gender, Sexuality, and Culture: Read More [+]

Gender, Sexuality, and Culture: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 266 Nationalism, Colonialism, and Culture 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Fall 2012 Comparative investigation of a topic in ideology, politics, and identity and its relation to the formation of national, colonial, and/or post-colonial literatures and cultures. Nationalism, Colonialism, and Culture: Read More [+]

Nationalism, Colonialism, and Culture: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 270C Continuing Seminars: Renaissance 2 Units

Terms offered: Prior to 2007 Discussion on problems of the literature of the period. Continuing Seminars: Renaissance: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Restricted to students who have completed the M.A. and are studying for their qualifying examination in Comparative Literature

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of discussion per week

Additional Format: Two hours of discussion per week.

Continuing Seminars: Renaissance: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 298 Special Study 1 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023 Primarily for students engaged in preliminary exploration of a restricted field, involving the writing of a report. May not be substituted for available seminars. Special Study: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Graduate standing

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week

Additional Format: Hours to be arranged.

Special Study: Read Less [-]

COM LIT N298 Special Study 2 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Summer 2018 8 Week Session, Summer 2017 8 Week Session, Summer 2016 8 Week Session Primarily for students engaged in preliminary exploration of a restricted field, involving the writing of a report. May not be substituted for available seminars. Special Study: Read More [+]

Summer: 6 weeks - 2.5-5 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 2-4 hours of independent study per week

COM LIT 299 Directed Research 1 - 12 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2021 Writing of the doctoral dissertation. Directed Research: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Satisfactory completion of the Qualifying Examination

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week

Summer: 6 weeks - 1-5 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 1-4 hours of independent study per week

Directed Research: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 300 Supervised Teaching in Comparative Literature 1 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020 Course credit for experience gained in academic teaching through employment as a graduate student instructor. Supervised Teaching in Comparative Literature: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Appointment as a graduate student instructor in the department. Consent of graduate advisor

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 1-4 hours of independent study per week

Summer: 6 weeks - 2.5-10 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 2-7.5 hours of independent study per week

Additional Format: Regular meetings to be arranged with supervising instructor.

Subject/Course Level: Comparative Literature/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers

Supervised Teaching in Comparative Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 375 Methods of Teaching Literature and English Composition-Comparative Literature 2 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022 Discussion of the theory and practice of teaching composition at the college level in a department of comparative literature. Prerequisites: Appointment as a graduate student instructor or consent of instructor. Methods of Teaching Literature and English Composition-Comparative Literature: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Appointment as a graduate student instructor or consent of instructor

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of lecture per week

Additional Format: Two hours of lecture per week.

Instructor: Jane Stanley

Methods of Teaching Literature and English Composition-Comparative Literature: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 601 Individual Study for Master's Students 1 - 8 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019 Individual study for the comprehensive or language requirements in consultation with the Graduate Adviser. Units may not be used to meet either unit or residence requirements for the master's degree. Individual Study for Master's Students: Read More [+]

Subject/Course Level: Comparative Literature/Graduate examination preparation

Individual Study for Master's Students: Read Less [-]

COM LIT 602 Individual Study for Doctoral Students 1 - 8 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2021, Spring 2020, Fall 2019 Individual study in consultation with the Graduate Adviser intended to provide opportunity for qualified students to prepare themselves for the various examinations required of candidates for the Ph.D. May not be used for unit or residence requirements for the doctoral degree. Individual Study for Doctoral Students: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Satisfactory completion of the Master's examination

Individual Study for Doctoral Students: Read Less [-]

Contact Information

Department of comparative literature.

4125 Dwinelle Hall

[email protected]

Department Chair

Niklaus Largier

[email protected]

Head Graduate Advisor

Robert Kaufman

[email protected]

Graduate Student Affairs Officer

Rita Lindahl-Lynch

4120 Dwinelle Hall

[email protected]

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Department of Comparative Literature

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The Graduate Program of the Comparative Literature department invites students to the study and understanding of literature beyond linguistic or national boundaries. We challenge our students to engage with the theory, interpretation, and criticism of literature from across the globe and to explore its interactions with adjacent fields like visual and material culture, linguistics, film and media studies, psychology, law, philosophy and history. The department encourages students to develop their skill at textual analysis while challenging them to reflect theoretically on the acts of writing and reading, as on the connections between literature and other realms of human experience. It is home four doctoral degree programs: a degree in Comparative Literature, as well as joint degrees with Classics , Film and Media Studies and Renaissance Studies . Our current graduate students , who come from over fifteen different countries, work in over twenty languages from all over the world and pursued a variety of innovative research projects. 

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2024-25 edition, comparative literature, ph.d..

Two features give Comparative Literature at UC Irvine its distinctive character. First, the department is committed to a conception of transnational comparatism in which the Euro-American zone is not accorded any privileged position while literatures and cultures of the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Latin America - the literatures of the colonized more generally - are accorded their rightful place. Second, the department trains its students in a range of theoretical perspectives that have been transforming scholarship over the past few decades. Ph.D. students in Comparative Literature pursue research that values lines of inquiry over pre-set national and genre categories.

The program views literary texts as one among many contexts of cultural production, such as environmental practices, rural and urban space production, and film images and visual representation. The interdisciplinary nature of the program involves reciprocal and mutually transformative relations with critical theory, informed by such well-established modes of thought as Marxism and psychoanalysis. Intensive, sustained work in critical theory is as important a part of the Ph.D. program as the study of literatures and literary pedagogies.

The M.A. is considered to be a step toward the Ph.D.; only students intending to complete the doctorate are admitted to the program. Applicants must hold a B.A. or equivalent degree and should normally have majored in Comparative Literature or another major involving cultural study. Majors in other disciplines (e.g., philosophy or history) will be considered seriously, provided that a sufficient background in literary and cultural studies and in at least one foreign language is demonstrated.

The doctoral program in Comparative Literature prepares the student for a professional career in the research and teaching of comparative literary and cultural studies. Some students also choose to enter professions (e.g., specialized research, nonprofit organizations, international cultural exchange) in which the specialized work in a specific field indicated by an advanced degree is highly desirable.

Applicants must hold a B.A. or equivalent degree and should normally have majored in Comparative Literature or another major involving cultural study. Majors in other disciplines (e.g., philosophy or history) will be considered seriously, provided that a sufficient background in literary and cultural studies and in at least one foreign language is demonstrated.

Program Details

Rather than demanding that Ph.D. students compare two national literatures, graduate students in the program may explore the internal differences of a cultural and political phenomenon or pursue a problem that exists transverse to various categories. Graduate students plan individualized course work with their advisors to prepare them for research on their chosen questions. In addition, the Department offers an emphasis in Translation Studies (see the departmental graduate student handbook for a description of this emphasis). Graduate students in Comparative Literature may also complete collaborative Ph.D.s with other selected Humanities Ph.D. programs within UCI. They may also complete campus-wide interdisciplinary emphases such as the Critical Theory Emphasis, Gradate Feminist Emphasis, Visual Studies Emphasis, and the Graduate Emphasis in Race and Justice Studies.

A minor field specialization is recommended. This optional component promotes engagement with a field or methodology outside the student’s specialization. It may be of a national, historical, disciplinary, or methodological nature, with the student of western postmodern literary theory and forms engaging in a focused study of ancient Greek or Roman philosophy and culture, for example, or the student of East Asian languages and diasporic literatures may work in anthropology or ethnography. This optional component of the student’s program may be fulfilled through course work, independent studies, or a Qualifying Examination topic.

Graduate students in Comparative Literature must demonstrate a command of two foreign languages consistent with their particular focus of study within the program. Competence in two foreign languages is required for the Ph.D. and is verified through examination, a longer translation project, and/or course work.

The Department recognizes that most of its graduate students intend to become teachers, and believes that graduate departments should be training college teachers as well as scholars—indeed, that teaching and scholarship complement one another. Thus candidates for the Ph.D. are expected to acquire experience in teaching, and all Ph.D. candidates gain supervised training as part of the seminar work required for the degree.

Fellowships

A range of fellowships offered by UC Irvine are available to students in the Department .

Requirements

Normally, students who have not done graduate work at another university must complete at least 18 courses. Upon completion of the course work, the student takes a qualifying examination on four areas formulated by the student in consultation with the four faculty members who make up the examination committee. The four areas are to cover a major field, a secondary field, a special topic, and theory. All four areas are to be related to each other and to work toward the dissertation. The examination is part written, part oral, according to a formula decided by the student and the committee. The examination as a whole should reflect the student’s ability to work in at least two languages.

After passing the qualifying examination, the student forms a dissertation committee of three faculty members, formulates a dissertation topic in consultation with them, and submits a prospectus for the dissertation along with a preliminary bibliography. Study toward the Ph.D. culminates in the dissertation. The normative time for advancement to candidacy is four years. The normative time for completion of the Ph.D. is seven years, and the maximum time permitted is nine years. Program advising and timelines encourage completion in six years.

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2024-2025 Catalogue

A PDF of the entire 2024-2025 catalogue.

Comparative Literature PhD

Our graduate program is recognized as one of the top Comparative Literature programs in the country. The Comparative Literature department is a vibrant place for the research and study of literatures and cultures in an interdisciplinary framework, from transnational and cross-cultural perspectives. Our faculty and graduate students develop new historical and theoretical frameworks and rethink those we have inherited to open new perspectives on social and cultural forms and relationships.

Comparative Literature provides students with tools for analyzing texts, writing, editing, translating, and thinking across disciplinary and national boundaries. Our graduates engage a variety of literary traditions and historical periods, from Latin American concrete poetry to Yiddish experimental fiction to the discourses of political and race theory. The department offers rigorous training in the following areas, which are particular strengths of our internationally recognized faculty: French, German, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew Studies, Ancient Greek and Roman Studies, East Asian Literatures and Arts, Performance Studies, Film and Media, Poetry and Poetics, Critical Theory, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Postcolonial Theory, English and American Literatures, Early Modern and Renaissance Studies, and Slavic Literatures and Cultures.

All members of the department are deeply invested in the academic development of our students and value their work and research as an integral part of the Comparative Literature community at UC Berkeley. The department aims above all to develop students' creative and intellectual interests and talents. Graduate students receive the opportunity to pursue rigorous research in a variety of fields according to their interests, participate in discussions about political, aesthetic, and social issues, and develop a nuanced cross-cultural understanding of historical and social processes. Many graduate students present and publish scholarly writings in the most prestigious venues as well as producing translations and literary writings. All of our students work closely with cutting-edge scholars in their fields in small seminars, with extensive individualized work . Students participate in the designated emphasis programs on campus, including Critical Theory, Film and Media, Gender and Womens Studies, Renaissance and Early Modern Studies and Jewish Studies, or the Program in Medieval Studies. Students have opportunities to design and teach courses on their topics of interest. Our students form a well-integrated community, but have access to all of the resources of the entire Berkeley campus departments and faculty; in fact, our program requires that students take seminars in other departments for interdisciplinary training. We have one of the most successful placement records for our graduates of any program in the country, and of any Berkeley graduate program. Our doctoral graduates are prominent comparative literature and national literature faculty across the country and the world.

Contact Info

[email protected]

4125 Dwinelle Hall

Berkeley, CA 94720

At a Glance

Department(s)

Comparative Literature

Admit Term(s)

Application Deadline

December 3, 2024

Degree Type(s)

Doctoral / PhD

Degree Awarded

GRE Requirements

Although we are here to answer your questions, it is helpful to first acquaint yourself with the following sources of information. A good place to start is the Comparative Literature program description at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. General information about financial aid can be found at GSAS Harvard financial aid . See our Q&A below for information on the department’s financial aid, offered to all admitted students.

Locating courses that are offered can be a good way to check out which faculty are teaching what courses and if your research interests would be met in our program.

You may apply for admission on-line or request an application packet from https://gsas.harvard.edu/admissions/apply .

And finally, there is a Q&A section (below) of questions most often asked that may provide added information. Happy researching!

Harvard Griffin GSAS does not discriminate against applicants or students on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, or any other protected classification. 

General Guidelines for Admissions : The following is a set of general guidelines for the Department of Comparative Literature’s graduate admissions process. While several areas are emphasized here, the Admissions Committee carefully examines the overall profile of each applicant, taking these and other aspects of the candidate’s application into consideration.

The Application : Requests for applications and inquiries about financial aid should be addressed to www.gsas.harvard.edu . The application can be filled out on-line at the same address. You should make every effort to ensure that all supporting materials (transcripts, recommendations) arrive by the application deadline. No applications for admission will be accepted after the deadline set by GSAS.

The Writing Sample : The writing sample is supposed to demonstrate your ability to engage in literary criticism and/or theory. It can be a paper written for a course or a section of a senior thesis or essay. It is usually between 10-20 pages. Do not send longer papers with instructions to read an excerpt; you should edit the sample so that it is no longer than 20 pages. Writing samples should be in English, although candidates are permitted to submit an additional writing sample written in a different language.

Statement of Purpose : The Statement of Purpose should give the admissions committee a clear sense of your individual interests and strengths. You need not indicate at the time of application precisely what your field of specialization will be, but it is helpful to tell us about your aspirations and how the Comparative Literature department at Harvard might help in attaining these goals. These statements are usually between one and four pages long.

Recommendations : It is important to have strong letters of recommendation from professors who are familiar with your academic work. An applicant who has been out of school for several years should try to reestablish contact with former professors. Additional letters from employers may also be included.

Subject and program number : Our Harvard GSAS subject and program number is 1700 – this number is for use on the Harvard application.

Beginning with the 2021 application cycle, the GRE test is no longer required for applicants.

For more information on our graduate program, please contact our Director of Graduate Studies, Professor John T. Hamilton  ([email protected]). 

The best place to start is with the admissions website: www.gsas.harvard.edu (which also contains the link for the Comparative Literature program description) and with the course catalogue at https://courses.my.harvard.edu/ . This gives you an idea of who is teaching what and whether your interests are well represented at Harvard. This also gives you the foundation from which to ask specific questions.

Beginning with the 2021 admissions application cycle, the GRE is no longer a requirement for applicants. While a high score in the verbal part of the test is a positive addition to the application, it is by no means the most important aspect of a candidacy.  We do not ask for GPA but your overall grades do play an important role in the application process.

We pay careful attention in evaluating prospective applicants to make sure that they would be able to satisfy our program requirements in a reasonable span of time. Our program requires declaring four languages, with coursework in three of them (one of which may be English). Most students we admit have a solid grounding in two literatures and languages and have had exposure to another (or more). Our program allows time for further language study as well. It is important for your application to give a clear idea of what level of language preparation you have. For instance, languages listed on the application should have a clear indication of how language proficiency was acquired; i.e. were languages learned in high school or college and at what level (beginning, intermediate, etc); were they a result of living in a country for a number of years; are they a native language or the result of private tutoring?

No. You can take a master’s degree only if you are enrolled at Harvard College as an undergraduate. The only way to enter Comparative Literature is through the Ph.D. program, although once you are enrolled in our program you may take the A.M. degree in passing.

Because we have over a hundred applicants annually and far more requests that do not result in applications, we tend to economize on the time of our students, who are the centerpiece and raison d’être of the whole program, by not involving them officially until after students have been admitted, at which point we put candidates in touch with students who have similar interests. Before then, potential applicants are welcome to contact students whom they know, but we do not connect applicants with students ourselves.

The Graduate School provides five years of full funding to each student admitted by our department, including tuition, medical insurance, and either a fellowship stipend or teaching fellow support for living expenses (currently $33,624 for 2017-18). Incoming students will receive three years of stipendiary support (straight scholarship, no teaching), usually taken in the 1st, 2nd, and final years, and two years of teaching fellow support (assisting in courses or tutoring in our undergraduate Literature Concentration), usually done in the 3rd and 4th years.

There is also a fifth year of tuition-only coverage.  The final, sixth year of support is during dissertation completion year and also includes tuition and fees and a stipend. Throughout their six years of tuition funding, students receive medical insurance coverage through the Harvard Health Plan.  Although the department can make no guarantees, in the past most students have continued to receive teaching fellowship funding in the one or two years between their fourth year of full funding and their final year in the program.  Students also are eligible for numerous Harvard and outside grants, including FLAS, to cover expenses. For further information, see https://gsas.harvard.edu/financial-support/funding-and-aid

Students are admitted without regard to their financial circumstances and are fully supported for five years, as long as they make satisfactory progress toward the degree.

There are additional fellowships and financial aid available (international students: be sure to check US citizenship requirements when looking at supplemental financial resources). The  Fellowship Office  provides information and consultation on how to apply for fellowships inside and outside Harvard.

The Department receives many inquiries each year from prospective students. We have found that in terms of arranging appointments with faculty, what makes the most sense is to focus our efforts on the period after applicants have found out whether or not they have been accepted. Applicants are, of course, free to contact individual faculty and request information or appointments.

The Department has been consistent across the years in paying close attention to the backgrounds of candidates in languages and literatures. Usually the Committee focuses on candidates who have a solid grounding in one language and literature as well as knowledge of at least one other language and a more than passing exposure to its literature. In considering the strongest applicants, the committee looks particularly to whether or not they would be able to complete the demanding course and exam requirements of the program in a timely fashion. That said, the Department is eclectic in that it encompasses many different types of professors, students, and programs. The same is true of the languages and literatures which figure in the programs of individual students. The only limitations would be the vagaries of staffing, so it is a good idea to check the on-line course catalog for course offerings and faculty presence and expertise We have a number of students who have entered our program who have come with degrees in entirely different fields. What we seek in them is both documentable knowledge of languages and a commitment to the study of literature, as demonstrated in coursework (even if the courses are taken as electives rather than as prerequisite toward a degree in a specific language-and-literature program). Admissions to the Department of Comparative Literature are decided by a committee of several faculty members. Since the composition of the committee varies from year to year as does the pool of applicants, it would not be appropriate for any one individual to offer predictions about who is likely to be accepted and who is not.

The University requires that all applicants whose first language is not English must have taken the TOEFL within the last two years or have an undergraduate degree from an English-speaking College or University. Individual courses taken in English or at English-speaking universities do not count in place of a TOEFL

Some students come to our program having already completed some graduate work. At the end of the first semester, credits for prior graduate work are considered on a case-by-case basis by the Director of Graduate Studies. A maximum of six credits can be granted for courses that we determine are the equivalent of our graduate courses. There are restrictions about which requirement the credits can count for; these guidelines are listed in the Graduate Student Guide under “Credit for Graduate Work Done Elsewhere.”

No, students admitted to the program enter in September only. For more information on our graduate program, please contact our Director of Graduate Studies, Professor John T. Hamilton  (jhamilt @fas.harvard.edu )

Founded as a graduate program in 1904 and joining with the undergraduate Literature Concentration in 2007, Harvard’s Department of Comparative Literature operates at the crossroads of multilingualism, literary study, and media history.

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Comparative Literature

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Harvard’s Department of Comparative Literature is one of the most dynamic and diverse in the country. Its impressive faculty has included such scholars as Harry Levine, Claudio Guillén, and Barbara Johnson. You will study literatures from a wide range of historical periods and cultures while learning to conduct cutting-edge research through an exhilarating scope of methods and approaches.

Your dissertation research is well supported by Harvard’s unparalleled library system, the largest university collection in the world, comprising 70 libraries with combined holdings of over 16 million items.

Recent student dissertations include “Imagined Mothers: The Construction of Italy, Ancient Greece, and Anglo-American Hegemony,” “The Untimely Avant-Garde: Literature, Politics and Transculturation in the Sinosphere (1909-2020),” and “Artificial Humanities: A Literary Perspective on Creating and Enhancing Humans from Pygmalion to Cyborgs.”

In addition to securing faculty positions at academic institutions such as Princeton University, Emory University, and Tufts University, graduates have gone on to careers in contiguous fields including the visual arts, music, anthropology, philosophy, and medicine.  Others have chosen alternative careers in film production, administration, journalism, and law.

 Additional information on the graduate program is available from the Department of Comparative Literature and requirements for the degree are detailed in Policies .

Admissions Requirements

Please review the admissions requirements and other information before applying. You can find degree program-specific admissions requirements below and access additional guidance on applying from the Department of Comparative Literature .

Writing Sample

The writing sample is supposed to demonstrate your ability to engage in literary criticism and/or theory. It can be a paper written for a course or a section of a senior thesis or essay. It is usually between 10 and 20 pages. Do not send longer papers with instructions to read an excerpt; you should edit the sample so that it is not more than 20 pages. Writing samples should be in English, although candidates are permitted to submit an additional writing sample written in a different language.

Statement of Purpose

The statement of purpose should give the admissions committee a clear sense of your individual interests and strengths. Applicants are not required to indicate a precise field of specialization, but it is helpful to tell us about your aspirations and how the Department of Comparative Literature might help in attaining these goals. The statement of purpose should be one to four pages in length.

Personal Statement

Standardized tests.

GRE General: Optional GRE Subject: Optional

Theses and Dissertations

Theses & Dissertations for Comparative Literature

See list of Comparative Literature faculty

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Questions about the program.

Welcome to Comparative Literature at UC Davis!

Comparative literature is a global and interdisciplinary study of literature both in original languages and in translation, across a variety of media (including film, television, theatre, visual arts and much more, in addition to writing). The Department of Comparative Literature at UC Davis offers students a dynamic setting in which to study world literature and its cultural contexts across its virtually countless historical variations. Undergraduate and graduate courses typically include literature from at least two language traditions and are taught in English. In addition to taking courses in comparative literature, undergraduates study literature in the foreign language of their choice, while graduate students usually prepare for research in at least two literary or linguistic traditions.

Members of our comparative literature faculty teach and conduct research in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tamil, Yiddish and other languages. Included in the department's ranks are internationally recognized scholars in areas from English and German Romanticism, the European Middle Ages, Renaissance studies, Arabic and Persian literature, Tamil and other South Asian traditions, Chinese and Japanese literature and cinema and critical theory.

Ph.D. Placement

Zhiwen Hu (Ph.D. 2024), Visiting Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages & Literatures, Colgate University. 

Elliot Shaw (Ph.D. 2024), Instructor of Comparative Literature, University of Georgia.

Anqi Liu (Ph.D. 2023), Visiting Assistant Professor of Chinese and Asian Studies, St. Mary's College of Maryland.

Andrew Simmons (Ph.D. 2023), Visiting Assistant Professor, Texas A&M International University.

Meltem Safak (Ph.D. 2022), Instructor of American Studies and Humanities, North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics.

Dong Yang (Ph.D. 2022), Assistant Professor of Chinese, Grinnell College.

Liu Chuan-Haur (Ph.D. 2021), Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Institute of European and American Studies, Academia Sinica, Taiwan.

Satish Kumar (Ph.D. 2020), Visiting Faculty of English, Ashoka University.

Sabnam Ghosh (Ph.D. 2020), Lecturer, Asian American Studies, Washington University in St. Louis.

Gabriel Ayoola (Ph.D. 2019), Lecturer in Afroamerican and African Studies, University of Michigan.

We appreciate your financial support. Your gift is important to us and helps support critical opportunities for students and faculty alike, including lectures, travel support, and any number of educational events that augment the classroom experience. 

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Every dollar given has a direct impact upon our students and faculty.

WELCOME TO THE DEPARTMENT OF COMPARATIVE LITERATURE AND LANGUAGES!

Our department offers  undergraduate majors  in Literatures, Languages, and Linguistics, and a  Ph.D. program in Comparative Literature , tailored to the needs of students and their interests.

Our  faculty  teach courses about art, literature, languages, linguistics, philosophy, poetry, film, photography, queer and gender studies, critical theory, critical race studies, postcolonial studies, and other areas.

Our  undergraduate majors  train students in Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Russian, Greek, and Latin, and we also offer majors in Comparative Literature, Classical Studies, Comparative Ancient Civilizations, Languages, and Linguistics.

Our  language programs in Arabic, Cahuilla, Chinese, Filipino, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Russian, and Vietnamese provide an opportunity to learn and study in a supportive environment that focuses on a communicative approach to language learning.

Reach out to one of our Advisors to set up a meeting to find out more: [email protected]  or  [email protected] .

Reach out to our Language Placement Exam Coordinator to find out about placement exams: [email protected] .

Reach out to our Graduate Advisor with questions about our Ph.D. program: [email protected] .

Get in touch with the Chair, Jeff Sacks, to chat about our department, programs, and course offerings: [email protected] .

JOB OPENINGS

Part-Time Lecturer in German Language and Literature

Lecturer in French Language and Literature

Visiting Assistant Professor in Japanese and Comparative Literature

Why Study Comp Lit?

Annual colloquium.

Winter Courses