2009-2010 Program Requirements for UCLA Graduate Degrees

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2009-2010 academic year.

Romance Linguistics and Literature

Interdepartmental Program
College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The Romance Linguistics and Literature Program offers the Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Romance Linguistics and Literature.

Admission

Master's Degree

Advising

During the week preceding the beginning of classes, new graduate students must make an appointment with the program chair, or a graduate adviser appointed by the chair, to discuss general requirements and to decide on a program of courses for the quarter. Following this initial interview, students are required to see their adviser at least once a quarter for the review of their progress toward the degree. Students who have not been authorized to form a guidance committee are advised by their major language adviser. Doctoral students who have formed their guidance committee are advised by the chair of the committee.

Upon declaration of a specialization, and in no case later than the end of the second quarter of the program, the student constitutes a guidance committee. The guidance committee is chosen by the student in consultation with the program chair or the student's adviser. It is appointed by the chair and is composed of three faculty members of the sponsoring departments representing the student's major and minor fields of specialization.

Areas of Study

Consult the department.

Foreign Language Requirement

All students are required to have a mastery of three Romance languages. One of these three languages must be Latin, completed at the level of Latin 3 or the equivalent. Competency in any other language can be demonstrated by completing two years of a college-level course in the language, or by taking an examination administered by the program. The language requirement must be completed no later than the quarter before a student expects to receive the degree.

Course Requirements

Twelve courses are required for the M.A. degree. These courses should be taken in at least two of the following academic departments or programs: French, Italian, Linguistics, Romance Linguistics and Literature, or Spanish and Portuguese.  Students select two, one as their major and one as their minor language. The distribution of the courses must be approved by the chair of the student's guidance committee or the program chair. 

The program strongly recommends the following distribution of courses: (1) Six of the courses (at least five of them graduate) must be in the major language, with specialization either in linguistics or in literature; (2) One course in the history or development of the major language, if it is available, is highly recommended; (3) At least three courses in the minor language, also with specialization in either linguistics or in literature. Romance Linguistics and Literatures M204A, M204B, and 255 qualify for French. Exceptions to this recommendation must be approved by the chair; and (4) The remaining three courses should be selected in consultation with the guidance committee so as to be logically supportive of the student's major field of study.

Linguistics 20 is required as a prerequisite for all students majoring in the linguistics field but is not counted as part of the total number of courses required for the degree. Up to eight units of Romance Linguistics and Literature 596 may be applied toward the M.A. degree. Romance Linguistics and Literature 597 and 598 may not be applied toward the degree.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is not required, but is desirable. Students should consult the program chair regarding the availability of teaching assistantships.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

The master's comprehensive examination is administered by the three-member guidance committee that is appointed by the program chair. This examination consists of written and oral parts. The written part consists of one four-hour examination in the major field and one two-hour examination in the minor field. The oral part consists of a one-hour examination and is given each quarter in the second week prior to final examinations. If the examination or any part thereof is failed by the student, the student may retake, only once, the failed portions when the examination is next regularly offered. Only those students who attain a high pass grade on the master's comprehensive examination are automatically admitted to the Ph.D. program.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

The program prefers that students follow the comprehensive examination plan. However, in special circumstances exceptionally well-qualified students are approved for the master's thesis plan. Students may petition for approval to write a master's thesis only after completion of six courses applicable toward the degree. It is the student's responsibility to choose an appropriate topic and find a professor to direct the thesis. After completion of the thesis, the student must pass a two-hour oral examination testing knowledge of the field of the thesis and general competence. Only those students who attain a high pass on the examination are automatically eligible for admission to the Ph.D. program.

Time-to-Degree

Full-time students with no deficiencies at entrance who take three courses per quarter should complete coursework and the comprehensive examination in five to six quarters from graduate admission. Students who enter the program with deficiencies or who serve as teaching assistants may require additional time.

Doctoral Degree

Advising

During the week preceding the beginning of classes, new graduate students must make an appointment with the program chair, or a graduate adviser appointed by the chair, to discuss general requirements and to decide on a program of courses for the quarter. Following this initial interview, students are required to see their adviser at least once a quarter for the review of their progress toward the degree. Students who have not been authorized to form a guidance committee are advised by their major language adviser.

Students who received a middle pass in their UCLA M.A. program in Romance Linguistics and Literature are reviewed for continuation to the Ph.D. program in the same manner as candidates for admission from other institutions. Students who received a low pass may not continue to the doctoral program.

Following formal admission or continuance to the doctoral program, students form a guidance committee in consultation with the chair or with their adviser. Students then meet as soon as possible with their guidance committee to work out a program of courses and set a tentative date for the qualifying examinations. The guidance committee has final authority to prescribe the course of study. Until students have met with this committee and placed themselves under its direction, they are not officially considered to be in the Ph.D. program.

The guidance committee is composed of a chair who represents the student's major field of study and under whom the student proposes to write the dissertation, and two members representing the minor fields, all members belonging to the sponsoring departments. The chair of the committee is normally a tenured professor. It is the student's responsibility to constitute the committee and to secure the consent of individual members, which is transmitted in writing to the chair for approval. As soon as possible after official admission to the doctoral program, students meet with their guidance committees for the purpose of working out a program of courses and setting a tentative date for the qualifying examinations.

Before meeting with the guidance committee, the student must complete the Program Proposal form for approval. The forms are available at the program office. No later than two weeks after the guidance committee meeting, the student must submit the approved program proposal to the interdepartmental committee for review. Students who wish to make substantial changes to the program proposal must follow the same procedure.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

The program recognizes two fields of specialization: linguistics or literature, and three options within each field.

Field of Linguistics: (1) The grammar of a Romance language; (2) The relation of the grammar of a Romance language to the grammar of sister languages(s) or to language in general; (3) The typological relationships of the Romance languages to other Indo-European languages and to language in general.

Field of Literature: One of the following in the literatures of at least two Romance languages: (1) early Romance literature and philology; (2) Renaissance and baroque; (3) modern literature, preferably with emphasis in one century.

The first minor must be in the same field as the major but must differ from it on the choice of language or the choice of option (i.e., it must differ from the major in being either a different option within the same field or the same option but on a different Romance language). The second minor may be any of the six preceding options as long as it differs from each of them on the choice of language or the choice of option. It may also be in some other related field in the major language or in Romance linguistics.

Foreign Language Requirement

All students are required to have a mastery of three Romance languages. One of these three languages must be Latin, completed at the level of Latin 3 or the equivalent. Competency in any other language can be demonstrated by completing two years of a college-level course in the language, or by taking an examination administered by the program. In addition, German is strongly recommend for students who choose Option 1 in Literature, or for students who are working in historical linguistics.

Course Requirements

In each of the two specializations (linguistics or literature) the Ph.D. program consists of a major and two minors. The courses (a minimum program) are distributed as follows: major -- five courses; first minor -- three courses; second minor -- two courses. At least one seminar is required in each of the three fields. In addition to those required for the master's degree (or equivalent), at least 10 other graduate courses (of which no more than two 596 courses may be applied), as well as such courses as the guidance committee may prescribe, are required. Linguistics 20 is required as a prerequisite for all students majoring in the linguistics field but is not counted as part of the total number of courses required for the degree.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is not required, but is desirable. Students should consult the chair regarding the availability of teaching assistantships.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

The qualifying examinations, given by the doctoral committee during the Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters, consist of (1) a three-hour written examination in the major field; (2) a two-hour examination in the first minor; (3) a one-hour examination in the second minor; and (4) a two-hour University Oral Qualifying Examination in the three fields, at which time the prospectus for the dissertation is also discussed and approved. Failed portions of the examination may be repeated once following any remedial preparation the committee may specify.

The dissertation may be on any subject within the general area of Romance linguistics and literature. If more than five calendar years elapse between advancement to candidacy and the presentation of the dissertation, the program may require revalidation of the qualifying examinations.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Not required for all students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.

Time-to-Degree

For full-time students with no deficiencies taking three courses per quarter, the following figures are instructive:

(a) From graduate admission to the award of the M.A. degree: six to seven quarters.

(b) From the award of the M.A. degree to authorization to form the guidance committee: one quarter.

(c) From the formation of the guidance committee to the qualifying examinations: three to five quarters.

(d) From the passage of the qualifying examinations (advancement to candidacy) to presentation of the dissertation: six to 12 quarters. (If more than five calendar years elapse between advancement to candidacy and the presentation of the dissertation, the program may require the student to revalidate the qualifying examination.)

(e) From graduate admission to the award of the degree: 16 to 25 quarters.

Normative time-to-degree: seven years.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

The program chair reviews a student's progress at the end of each academic year. A student who is not making satisfactory progress is notified in writing by the chair of a probationary period during which certain conditions must be met. A student who is unwilling to comply with the expectations of the chair is subject to a recommendation for termination. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination to the interdepartmental degree committee.

Program Requirements

Romance Linguistics and Literature