Ph. D. Guidelines

Degree Requirements

• 72 hours of course work The total number of hours for the Ph.D. is 72, with a minimum of 51 hours of required course work, including 14 seminars (300-level courses with research papers) in French, which must be distributed among six different time periods. Students are expected to begin to register for research credit during their fifth semester of study. Up to 21 hours may be taken as research credit. Of the required 51 hours of course work, 9 hours will be taken in a minor field.
• Minor in Applied Linguistics Students specializing in a literary field may complete a 9-hour minor in applied linguistics. The nine hours must be chosen in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies and the Department Chair. French 310 may not be counted in the nine hours.
• Interdisciplinary Minor in Philosophy and Literature This 15-hour interdisciplinary minor is available to any student in good standing enroled in a doctoral program in literature or philosophy. Contact Professor William Franke for more information.

Required Courses

Students are required to take French 300 and French 310 during their first year of study. During the second or third year of study, students are required to take one seminar in each of the following categories:

• Language/Linguistics: French 302, History of the French Language (required for any student specializing in medieval or Renaissance literature); French 318, Applied French Linguistics (required for any student specializing in applied linguistics); or French 320, Linguistics and the Study of French Literature.
• Literary Theory and Criticism: French 380, French Literary Theory, or an equivalent course outside the Department, by permission of the Director of Graduate Studies.

Reading Knowledge of an Additional Language

In addition to French and English, candidates must demonstrate a reading knowledge of a foreign language appropriate to his or her area of specialization. However, it is strongly recommended that students have a reading knowledge of both Latin and German. Students may demonstrate this knowledge either by taking a 200-level literature course in the language or by a test to show ability to do research in the foreign language.

Choice of Specialization and Reading List

By the second week of the fifth semester of study (third semester for students entering Vanderbilt with an M.A.), the student is expected to identify an area of specialization (including, but not limited to, the subject of the dissertation) and an appropriate doctoral committee is chosen. At this time the student begins to prepare an extensive reading list on this area of specialization, in consultation with the doctoral committee. The list must be sufficient to cover a major time period and must emphasize two components:

• Historical, cultural, and theoretical backgrounds pertinent to the student’s projected dissertation.
• Primary and secondary texts pertinent to the individual’s area of specialization.

Qualifying Examination

The Ph.D. qualifying examination consists of two parts: a series of written exam questions and a dissertation proposal. Both parts must be completed no later than the eighth week of the student’s seventh semester (fifth semester for students who enter Vanderbilt with a M.A.degree in French). The doctoral committee plays a formative and helpful role as the student develops the reading list and prepares for the examination.

1) Written Examination During the first two weeks of the semester, the student submits the completed reading list and six proposed examination topics/questions to the committee. The doctoral committee uses these questions as a basis for preparing the examination questions, but has the right to modify them, add to them, or discard them. The written examination takes place over two days (not necessarily consecutive) during the third week of the semester. On each day, the student will have six hours to answer one or two essay questions. The student may consult any sources s/he chooses. At least one exam must be written in French. These exams may be taken at home.

• Exam day 1: This part of the exam should reflect a broad understanding of the area in which the student is specializing (i.e., post-colonial France and Francophone literature; and area of literary inquiry for students specializing in Applied Linguistics).
• Exam day 2: This part of the exam should reflect a more focused understanding of the student’s area of specialization (i.e., literature of French West Africa; an understanding of current theories and research for students specializing in Applied Linguistics).

The exam is evaluated PASS or FAIL by the doctoral committee by the end of the fourth week of the semester. The committee director communicates the result of the exam to the student. If one (or more) of the exam areas is considered weak, the student may be asked to repeat it. Once the student has successfully passed the written examination, the date of the oral exam and presentation of the dissertation proposal will be set.

2) Dissertation Proposal In the dissertation proposal, the candidate should clarify the nature of his/her dissertation, demonstrate its relevance, define its methodology, situate it in terms of existing scholarship, and include a tentative breakdown into chapters. The proposal should be 10-20 pages in length, plus a preliminary bibliography, and should be written in the language of the proposed dissertation (English or French). After consulting with the dissertation director, the proposal is circulated to all members of the graduate faculty.

3) Oral Exam and Presentation of the Dissertation Proposal During the sixth week of the semester, a two-hour session is scheduled for the oral exam and the dissertation proposal. All faculty and graduate students in French are invited to attend. In the first hour of the session, committee members ask questions on the written exam. In the second hour, the student provides a brief (10-minute) overview of the project. The doctoral committee, guided by the director, participates in a discussion with the student, asking clarifying questions and offering suggestions. The other invited members of the department may participate if time allows. At the end of the session, the doctoral committee deliberates and determines if the candidate’s proposal is acceptable. The following day, the director communicates the result of the discussion to the student.

Nota Bene: Students are expected to complete the dissertation by the end of the tenth (10th) semester. If the dissertation is not completed within three years of taking the qualifying exams, students may be asked to retake the exams.

Specialization in Applied Linguistics
The general requirements are the same as for the specialization in literature, with the exception of the minor. For Applied Linguistics specialists, there is a required minor of 12 hours of interdisciplinary courses taken outside the Department. These courses may be taken in the College of Arts & Science and in Peabody College. They are to form an integrated whole according to the research interests and background of each student. They include such fields as linguistics, cognition, statistics, research methodology, and technology and learning. The minor is constructed with the advice of the student’s dissertation director, the Director of Graduate Studies, and faculty in related disciplines.

Reading Lists and Examinations: In consultation with the doctoral committee, students in Applied Linguistics will compile a primary reading list in their area of specialization and will take an examination in that area. Applied Linguistics students will also be required to compile a secondary, less extensive reading list in literature and culture. One of the two six-hour written examinations will deal with topics related to this secondary list. The oral examination will consist of questions on both the Applied Linguistics and literature/culture portions of the written examinations. The time frame and procedures for the examination and the presentation of the dissertation proposal are the same as those for students specializing in literature.