Columbia%20University%20English%20and%20Comparative%20Literature

1
Columbia UniversityEnglish and Comparative
Literature

• Rachel Adams, commonalities
• Jonathan Arac, team leader
• David Kurnick, key ideas

2
First year Introduction to discipline and
department

• STRUCTURES
• MA seminars
• MA lecture series
• meetings with DGS and MA director
• student-organized social events
• reading groups
• PROBLEMS
• individual divergences among faculty
• different first year constituencies

3
Introduction to the research enterprise

• begins in the first year
• seminars faculty model current research,
  secondary source materials
• dissertation colloquia discussion of writing
  with fellow graduate students and faculty
• faculty works-in-progress lectures
• lectures by visiting faculty

4
Significant Transition

• THE ORAL EXAM
• links coursework to dissertation
• a two-hour oral exam
• certifies mastery of specific fields as well as
  competence to teach an introductory course in
  major field
• student is granted M. Phil

5
Dissertation and defense

• topic is determined in consultation with chair
  and second reader
• student works closely with two committee members
• dissertation consists of 4-5 chapters
• 2-hour defense with committee of three
  departmental , two outside members
• chair determines that student is ready to defend

6
Innovation

• Early 90suniform full funding package
• 03full credit seminar teaching writing
  theory and practice
• currentgrad student role in faculty searches

7
Novel Idea

• replace one foreign language exam with an
  equivalent skill