Admission Requirements:

 

 

Basic requirement: Candidates to the Combined Ph.D. program should: 1) have earned an M.A. in Spanish and an M.A. in Portuguese at Vanderbilt University or from another nationally recognized program in an appropriate field; 2) demonstrate oral and written proficiency in both target languages as well as English.

 

General requirements: 1) official transcripts of all undergraduate and, if appropriate, graduate study, 2) three faculty letters of recommendation, preferably from graduate school, if applying to the Ph.D. program from the outside, 3) a statement of purpose elaborating the applicant’s professional objectives, 4) a writing sample in Spanish or Portuguese (preferably a graduate-level academic paper, if applying to the Ph.D. program from the outside), 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) during their entire stay at Vanderbilt and cannot keep an Incomplete (I) for more than one semester. Students must show competency in classroom instruction 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 present a dissertation proposal and take the doctoral exams. Good standing is a prerequisite for financial assistance, including summer support and teaching assistantships.

 

2. Languages: Near Native Proficiency in both Spanish and Portuguese is required of all students enrolled in the combined Spanish and Portuguese Ph.D. program (see below, required courses). No other language requirement is required for the combined Spanish and Portuguese Ph.D. 

                              

3. Coursework: The Ph.D. requires 66 credits of course work (i.e., 22 courses) Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian literature. (The 66 credits include the 45 credits of the double M.A. plus an additional 21 credits.) A minimum of 9 of these credits should be graduate seminars in Spanish and 9 upper-level or graduate Portuguese courses. No minor is required for the Combined Ph.D., although an LAS certificate is highly recommended.

 

A. Required courses:

1. The requirements of the Double M.A. (see description above).

2. 302 (Ibero-Romance Philology).

3. Span/Port 351 (Comparative Methodology; offered alternate years).

 

B. Electives: Any non-required course.

 

NOTE: There is no mandatory minor in the combined Spanish/Portuguese Ph.D.

 

Restrictions:

1. Transfer credit may not exceed 18 hours. In special cases, with a recommendation by the DGS, the Faculty could approve the transfer of up to 6 credits more.

2. Transfer students will take a partial or total M.A. exam in each area, depending on their academic preparation and on the type of exam taken previously.

3. All 200-level Portuguese courses in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese that appear in the Graduate School Catalog may be counted towards the Portuguese component of the combined Spanish and Portuguese Ph.D. A maximum of two 200-level courses in another discipline may, after consultation with and approval from the DGS, the department head, and the student’s doctoral committee, be considered for credit towards the Ph.D.

 4. Time limitations:

a) The Graduate School requires that the qualifying examination be taken within four years of admission to the Ph.D. program.

b) The Graduate School also requires that the dissertation be completed within four years after a student has been admitted to candidacy for the degree (completion of qualifying exams).

c) The Department considers these time limits to be reasonable and will not grant extensions except for compelling reasons for the delay regarding health causes.

 

5. Reading Lists and Ph.D. Exam Preparation:

 

1. The Period List consists of primary and secondary works in all genres from a particular period that is directly related to the dissertation topic.

2. The Specialized Research List consists of works based on the dissertation topic. The dissertation and resulting list can be organized around a genre, an issue, a theme, or any combination of these elements as well as around a particular theoretical problem. The list should include primary works as well as theoretical, historical, and critical works. It may, as deemed necessary by the doctoral committee, include works from different periods, from both sides of the Atlantic, and from Africa, the Orient or any other part of the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world. A two-page statement of the thesis of the dissertation should accompany the Specialized Research List.

3. Each list normally consists of approximately 30 to 50 books (as well as complementary chapters of books, articles, and specific works of literature, theory, and criticism). Each list should be compiled by the student in consultation with his / her advisor and committee. An approved first draft of the lists and the statement should be received by the DGS and distributed to the members of the dissertation committee at least four months before the expected date for the Ph.D. exam.

4. The final proposal for the dissertation and the bibliography, approved by the advisor, should be presented to the dissertation committee one month before the exam.

5. For the creation of Ph.D. committees, schedule of reading lists and dissertation projects, and Ph.D. exams, see the Ph.D. timetable below.

6. The Ph.D. Committee will consist of three faculty members from the department and one outside member chosen by the student in consultation with his or her advisor. The composition of the dissertation committee is the responsibility of the student (who, after securing the agreement and permission of all parties involved, must provide the DGS with a list of the faculty members who will serve on the committee and indicate who will serve as committee chair) and should be established the semester prior to the Ph.D. exam.

 

5. Ph.D. Exam format:

 

1. The written exam will be organized by the student academic advisor/director of the dissertation, and will be divided into two parts, one based on the Period List and the other on the Specialized Research list and the Proposal. The student should answer 3 out of 4 questions from each part. The essay answers should be from 10 to 15 pages long (double-spaced, New Times Roman, 11-12 point), and should demonstrate dedicated work, sophisticated thinking, and reflect the student’s readiness to start work on the dissertation.

 

2. Oral Exam: the director of the dissertation will distribute copies of the exam to each member of the committee and the DGS. Five to fifteen days after a satisfactory completion of the written exam the student will take an oral exam during which the student will present the dissertation prospectus, discuss it with the committee and answer questions regarding his written exam. The main purpose of the oral exam is 1) to strengthen the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of the proposal, 2) to discuss the material and content of the proposed dissertation, and 3) to define both a plan and a timetable for the completion of the dissertation.

 

3. Possible outcomes:

a) Pass with distinction and Candidacy for the Ph.D.

b) Pass and Candidacy for the Ph.D.

c) Fail.

 

 

Timetable for Graduate Studies in Spanish and Portuguese (Double M.A. and Combined Ph.D. in Spanish and Portuguese)

 

 

A. Students entering the program with a B.A.

 

1st year

• Fall: 3 or 4 classes (9 or 12 credits) including 310 and 301 (if offered). Take Span/Port 351 (Comparative Methodology) when it is offered.

Note: register for Port 102 as an official audit (for non-native speakers of Portuguese); although graduate credit cannot be given for this course, it is crucial for the student’s ability to eventually master both spoken and written Portuguese, which is an essential part of our program).

• Spring: 3 or 4 classes (9 or 12 credits), including 212, if needed, and 302 if offered.

 

 

2nd year

• Fall: 3 classes (9 credits). Select an academic advisor (future director of the dissertation).

• Spring: 3 classes (9 credits). Take first M.A. exam at end of the semester. (36 crs.)

 

3rd year

• Fall: 3 classes (9 credits). Take second M.A. exam at end of the semester. (45 crs.).

• Spring 3 Classes (9 credits). Create Ph.D. committee: a chair, 2 members from the department and 1 outside member.  Present to the Dissertation chair the first draft of the reading lists and the two-page statement of the thesis of the dissertation by week 8. An approved first draft of the lists and the statement should be received by the DGS and distributed to the members of the dissertation committee at least four months before the expected date for the Ph.D. exam. (54 crs.).

• Fulfill language requirement.

 

4th year

• Fall: 3 classes (9 credits). Present to chair of the Dissertation Committee an elaborated first draft of dissertation project and final draft of reading lists by week 4 of Fall semester. Submit final Ph.D. Dissertation project by week 8 of Fall semester. Schedule Ph.D. Exam during weeks 12 and 13.

• Spring: one class (3 credits) and register for Dissertation research (SPAN 399).

• Apply for Dissertation Enhancement Grant and other dissertation scholarships.

 

5th and 6th year: Dissertation.

• Apply for Dissertation Enhancement Grant and other dissertation scholarships.

• Dissertation Defense and granting of Ph.D.

  

B. Students entering the program with one M.A. or a Licenciatura (or equivalent degree) in a field that may allow transfer credits for the Combined Ph.D. (up to 18 transferred credits).

 

1st year.

• Fall: 3 or 4 classes (9 or 12 credits) including 310 (if the student has not had a similar course that may be accredited) and 301 (if offered). 100-level classes taken to fulfill language requirement and 212 (if needed) do not count. Take Span/Port 351 (Comparative Methodology) when offered.

• Spring: 3 or 4 classes (9 or 12 credits) including 302 (if offered). Select an academic advisor (future director of the dissertation). 100-level classes taken to fulfill language requirement do not count.

• A decision about transfer credits (up to 18) will be made at the end of the year. (36 crs.)

 

2nd year.

 

• Fall: 3 classes (9 credits).

• Spring: 3 classes (9 credits). Week 3: Take second M.A. exam.

Create Ph.D. committee: a chair, 2 members from the department and 1 outside member.  Present to the Dissertation chair the first draft of the reading lists and the two-page statement of the thesis of the dissertation by week 8. An approved first draft of the lists and the statement should be received by the DGS and distributed to the members of the dissertation committee at least four months before the expected date for the Ph.D. exam.(54 crs.)

           

3rd year

• Fall: 3 classes (9 credits). Week 4: Present to chair of the Dissertation Committee an elaborated first draft of dissertation project and final draft of reading lists by week 4 of Fall semester. Submit final Ph.D. Dissertation project by week 8. Schedule Ph.D. Exam during weeks 12 and 13.

• Spring: one class (3 credits) and register for Dissertation research (SPAN 399). Apply for Dissertation Enhancement Grant and other dissertation scholarships and research grants.

 

4th and 5th year: Dissertation.

• Apply for Dissertation Enhancement Grant and other dissertation scholarships.

• Dissertation Defense and granting of Ph.D.