Master of Arts Degree in Hispanic Literature
Master of Arts Degree in Portuguese
I. Master of Arts Degree in Hispanic Literature
Eligible students entering the M.A. program will generally receive two years of financial support in the form of a teaching assistantship, which includes a stipend and full tuition remission.
Admission Requirements:
Basic requirements: 1) an undergraduate B.A. or its equivalent in an appropriate field, 2) oral and written proficiency in Spanish as well as English.
General requirements: 1) official transcripts of all undergraduate study, 2) three faculty letters of recommendation, 3) a statement of purpose elaborating the applicant’s professional objectives, 4) a writing sample in Spanish or Portuguese (preferably an academic paper), 5) GRE scores, 6) TOEFL score for international students who have not studied in an English-speaking country.
Degree requirements:
1. Student Standing: Students must maintain a B+ average or better in all graduate courses to remain in good standing. Students may request up to a maximum of two Incompletes (I) while enrolled at Vanderbilt and cannot carry an Incomplete (I) for more than one semester. Students must be responsible and conscientious instructors and advance toward their degrees in a timely fashion. Students should actively participate in the departmental academic life and attend lectures, presentations, and other activities sponsored by the department. Only students in good standing may take the M.A. exam. Good standing is a prerequisite for financial assistance, including summer support and teaching assistantships.
2. Languages: All M.A. students must study Portuguese. This requirement for the M.A. may be fulfilled by completing the beginning level of Portuguese or by taking a graduate class in this language with an A- or better. Students with a special academic interest in another language should request in writing approval from the Director of Graduate Studies before enrolling in any
language other than Portuguese. For Portuguese M.A. students, the required language is Spanish. Credit for language courses do not count toward the degree.
3. Coursework: The M.A. program in Spanish requires 30 credits (i.e., 10 courses).
A. Required courses:
1. 310 (Foreign Language Learning and Teaching), if a teaching assistantship is granted
2. 301 (Literary Analysis and Theory).
3. 212 (Advanced Grammar and Stylistics). This requirement may be waived on the basis of a writing sample produced during a one-hour examination. Credit for this course does not count toward the degree.
B. Core: A minimum of 24 credits should be graduate seminars in Spanish.
4. Preparing for the M.A. Examination in Spanish:
1. Students take the M.A. exam no later than at the end of their fourth semester of residence.
2. The Spanish M.A. Exam is based on both the Peninsular and Spanish American literature lists.
3. Optional M.A. Research/Reading course: Students may take an Independent Research/Reading course (3 units) during their fourth semester to help them prepare for the M.A. exam. The course shall not count toward the required units for the M.A. or the Ph.D. For this course, students will produce, in agreement with their academic advisors, a list of works to be read during the semester. The role of advisors is to help students stay on track and to prepare efficiently for the exam.
4. Students choose an academic advisor during the third semester. The functions of the advisor are: a. to help students design their plan of study, b. to promote advanced research work leading towards the dissertation, publications, conferences, grants and fellowships, c. to review the progress of students as they work towards the degree.
5. Format of the M.A. Exam in Spanish:
1. The exam is taken over two days, one for Peninsular literature and one for Spanish American literature. Each part will contain the following sections and will last between 6 and 7 hours.
a) Ten identifications of which the student will answer eight, writing between one and two pages for each.
b) A short essay chosen from two possibilities. This essay will be written in English regardless of the student’s native language and will be between four and five pages in length.
c) One longer essay chosen from two possibilities. This essay will be written in Spanish and will be between eight and ten pages in length.
2) The M. A. examination committee will be formed by 3 faculty members: the student’s academic advisor and 2 other faculty members chosen by the DGS.
3) Possible outcomes of M.A. Exam:
a) Pass with distinction and admission to the Ph.D. program.
b) Pass with admission to the Ph.D. program.
c) Pass without admission to the Ph.D. program (Terminal M.A.).
d) Fail with the possibility of obtaining a terminal M.A. with the presentation of a Master’s Thesis. The thesis may be written under the direction of a two-person committee and must be presented by the second week of the semester following the failed exam.
Restrictions:
Time Limit: The Graduate School of Arts & Science stipulates that a student must complete all requirements for the M.A. degree within a six-year period, calculated from the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment in the Graduate School. Despite the University's time limit for finishing the M.A. degree, the Department expects students to fully complete all requirements, including the examinations, within the second year of residence in the program. Failing to complete the requirements for M.A. will result in the end of a teaching Assistantship.
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II. Master of Arts Degree in Portuguese
Eligible students entering the M.A. program will generally receive two years of financial support.
Admission Requirements:
Basic requirements: 1) an undergraduate B.A. or its equivalent in an appropriate field, 2) oral and written proficiency in Portuguese as well as English.
General requirements: 1) official transcripts of all undergraduate study, 2) three faculty letters of recommendation, 3) a statement of purpose elaborating the applicant’s professional objectives, 4) a writing sample in Portuguese (preferably an academic paper), 5) GRE scores, 6) TOEFL score for international students who have not studied in an English-speaking country.
Note: Students entering the M.A. in Portuguese should meet with the Portuguese faculty to evaluate the student’s language proficiency.
Degree requirements:
1. Student Standing: Students must maintain a B+ average or better in all graduate courses to remain in good standing. Students may request up to a maximum of two Incompletes (I) while enrolled at Vanderbilt and cannot carry an Incomplete (I) for more than one semester. Students must be responsible and conscientious instructors and advance toward their degrees in a timely fashion. Students should actively participate in the departmental academic life and attend lectures, presentations, and other activities sponsored by the department. Only students in good standing may take the M.A. exam. Good standing is a prerequisite for financial assistance, including summer support and teaching assistantships.
2. Languages: Students seeking financial support must have an advanced level of Spanish. No credits on language courses will be counted toward the degree. Students who enter the program without Spanish must study that language in order to be considered for on-going support.
3. Coursework:
The M.A. program in Portuguese requires 30 credits (i.e., 10 courses).
A. Required courses:
1. 310 (Foreign Language Learning and Teaching), if a teaching assistantship is granted.
2. 301 (Literary Analysis and Theory).
3. 205 Introduction to Brazilian Literature.
B. Core: For the Portuguese M.A., there are no restrictions on the number of 200 level courses in literature or culture that may be taken, that is, any course that appears in the Graduate School Catalog, any other 200-level course, or any graduate class can be taken for credit. However, students are strongly advised to register for any 300-level Portuguese course offered. A maximum of two graduate Spanish courses can be counted towards the degree, as well as any other graduate Spanish course with a Latin American focus (Spanish-America and Brazil).
4. Preparing for the M.A. Examination in Portuguese:
1. Students take the M.A. exam no later than at the end of their fourth semester of residence.
2. The Spanish M.A. Exam is based on the Luso-Brazilian list.
3. Optional M.A. Research/Reading course: Students may take an Independent Research/Reading course (3 units) during their fourth semester to help them prepare for the M.A. exam. The course shall not count toward the required units for the M.A. or the Ph.D. For this course, students will produce, in agreement with their academic advisors, a list of works to be read during the semester. The role of advisors is to help students stay on track and to prepare efficiently for the exam.
4. Students choose an academic advisor during the third semester. The functions of the advisor are: a. to help students design their plan of study, b. to promote advanced research work leading towards the dissertation, publications, conferences, grants and fellowships, c. to review the progress of students as they work towards the degree.
5. Format of the M.A. Exam in Portuguese:
1. The exam is taken over one day. Questions will be based on Luso-Brazilian literature. The exam will contain the following sections and will last between 6 and 7 hours.
a) Ten identifications of which the student will answer eight, writing between one and two pages each.
b) A short essay chosen from two possibilities. This essay will be written in English regardless of the student’s native language and will be between four and five pages in length.
c) One longer essay chosen from two possibilities. This essay will be written in Portuguese and will be between eight and ten pages in length.
2. The M. A. examination committee will be formed by 3 faculty members: the student’s academic advisor and 2 other faculty members chosen by the DGS.
3. Possible outcomes of M.A. Exam:
a) Pass with distinction and admission to the Ph.D. program.
b) Pass with admission to the Ph.D. program.
c) Pass without admission to the Ph.D. program (Terminal M.A.).
d) Fail with the possibility of obtaining a terminal M.A. with the presentation of a Master’s Thesis. The thesis may be written under the direction of a two-person committee and must be presented by the second week of the semester following the failed exam.
Restriction:
Time Limit: The Graduate School of Arts & Science stipulates that a student must complete all requirements for the M.A. degree within a six-year period, calculated from the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment in the Graduate School. Despite the University's time limit for finishing the M.A. degree, the Department expects students to fully complete all requirements, including the examinations, within the second year of residence in the program. Failing to complete the requirements for M.A. will result in the end of a teaching Assistantship. This restriction does not apply to the students seeking the M.A. program in Spanish and Portuguese (Double M.A.).
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III. M.A. program in Spanish and M.A. in Portuguese:
Eligible students entering the double M.A. program will generally receive three years of financial support.
Admission Requirements:
Basic requirements: 1) an undergraduate B.A. or its equivalent in an appropriate field, 2) oral and written proficiency in both target languages as well as English.
General requirements: 1) official transcripts of all undergraduate study, 2) three faculty letters of recommendation, 3) a statement of purpose elaborating the applicant’s professional objectives, 4) a writing sample in Spanish or Portuguese (preferably an academic paper), 5) GRE scores, 6) TOEFL score for international students who have not studied in an English-speaking country.
Degree requirements:
1. Student Standing: Students must maintain a B+ average or better in all graduate courses to remain in good standing. Students may request up to a maximum of two Incompletes (I) while enrolled at Vanderbilt and cannot carry an Incomplete (I) for more than one semester. Students must be responsible and conscientious instructors and advance toward their degrees in a timely fashion. Students should actively participate in the departmental academic life and attend lectures presentations and other activities sponsored by the department. Only students in good standing may take the M.A. exam. Good standing is a prerequisite for financial assistance, including summer support and teaching assistantships.
2. Languages: There is no additional foreign language requirement for the double M.A. No credits on language courses count toward the degree.
3. Coursework: 45 credits (i.e., 15 courses). A minimum of 33 of these credits should be graduate courses in Spanish and Portuguese.
Option 1. Spanish-Portuguese: to complete this double M.A. it is necessary to complete 15 additional credits in Portuguese besides the credits required for the Spanish M.A. For students taking this option 3 of the 6 elective credits should be taken in Portuguese and 3 in Spanish.
Option 2: Portuguese-Spanish: to complete this double M.A. it is necessary to complete 15 additional credits in Spanish besides the credits required for the Portuguese M.A. For students taking this option 3 of the 6 elective credits should be taken in Spanish and 3 in Portuguese.
A. Required courses:
1. PORT 205 Introduction to Brazilian Literature or SPAN 212 (Advanced Grammar and Stylistics). This requirement may be waived on the basis of a writing sample produced during a one-hour examination. Credit for this course does not count toward the degree.
2. 301 (Literary Analysis and Theory).
3. 310 (Foreign Language Learning and Teaching), if a Teaching Assistantship is granted.
B. Core: A minimum of 33 credits should be graduate seminars.
4. Preparing for the M.A. Examinations and the Format of the M.A. Examinations: Both the M.A. examination in Spanish and the M.A. examination in Portuguese are required. Students must take one M.A. exam no later than at the end of their fourth semester of residence and the other in the fifth. Consult sections under each M.A. for details.
Restrictions:
Time Limit: The Graduate School of Arts & Science stipulates that a student must complete all requirements for the M.A. degree within a six-year period, calculated from the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment in the Graduate School. Despite the University's time limit for finishing the M.A. degree, the Department expects students to fully complete all requirements, including the examinations, within the third year of residence in the program. Failing to complete the requirements for M.A. will result in the end of a teaching Assistantship.