Graduate Degree Program Description

Doctor of Philosophy, Near Eastern Languages and Cultures

Introduction

The program for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in NELC at The Ohio State University has as its aim a concentration and breadth of study designed to foster productive and independent scholarship. The program encompasses advanced course work, the writing of independent research papers at the seminar level, the successful completion of written candidacy examinations, an oral examination, followed by admission to candidacy for the degree, original research, and ultimately the submission and defense of a dissertation that is a contribution to scholarly knowledge. The curriculum for the Ph.D. in NELC is designed to provide and maintain a context and atmosphere in which scholarship and creative activity can flourish.
Application to the Ph.D. Program in NELC

Candidates for admission should give evidence of academic excellence and intellectual promise, as measured by criteria such as undergraduate and graduate grades, scores on the verbal and writing portion of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), evaluations in letters of recommendation, and the quality of the writing samples.

A minimal requirement for entrance to the Ph.D. program is a Master's degree or equivalent graduate work in the area of specialization. The Department prefers to admit students who have already had formal training in the main language(s) necessary for the proposed plan of study and research. Applicants who have not had such formal training may also be considered but should contact the Graduate Studies Chair for further information.

Undergraduate students wishing to work towards the Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures are encouraged to apply for admission to the M.A. program, which will provide the linguistic and methodological foundations for doctoral work in the Department

The Graduate Studies Committee takes into account many factors in deciding whether to admit candidates to the program. The following criteria are guidelines for prospective applicants, and have some flexibility, but their fulfillment does not constitute a guarantee of admission to the Department. A cumulative undergraduate grade point average of 3.3 (preferably higher) on a 4.0 scale, with at least 3.5 (preferably higher) in classwork taken within the chosen field of study. Any previous graduate coursework should have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Grades on another scale system should show comparable excellence.

All graduate students ought to be computer literate. Students should know how to use an appropriate word-processing program for all written work in English in the department. Students not familiar with word processing and computers must make up the deficiency during their first quarter of graduate work.
Procedures for applying to the Graduate School

The Department expects graduate students to matriculate in the Fall Quarter. Financial aid for the first year of graduate study is awarded only to students who enter in the fall.

Applications received by January 15 will receive first priority. Only applications received by that date (November 30 for international applicants) will be considered for Graduate School fellowships.

All applicants are encouraged to visit the Department. Please email or call the Graduate Studies Coordinator to arrange meetings with professors and current graduate students.
1. The applicant must provide the Ohio State University Graduate Admissions office (1800 Cannon Drive, Columbus, OH 43210) with the following materials:
  1. A completed and signed Ohio State University Graduate School Admission application (available on-line from the Department or from the Graduate Admissions office www-afa.adm.ohio-state.edu);
  2. Transcripts in English for all previous academic work from institutions with U.S. accreditation, accompanied by official translations for documents not in English;
  3. Official scores for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test sent directly from the Educational Testing Board;
  4. For non native speakers of English: official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB). The Department requires applicants to submit the TOEFL or MELAB results whether or not they have an American university degree.
2. The applicant must also send directly to the Graduate Studies Chair of the Department copies of the above four sets of materials, as well as the following:
  1. A 2-4 page statement of purpose in English detailing the applicant’s proposed course of study and interests in original research. It should briefly summarize those aspects of the applicant’s background, training, or past work that are relevant to this purpose. It should also explain how the applicant’s goals would benefit in particular from resources of this Department and The Ohio State University (specific faculty, courses, programs, collections) and their comparative, cross-cultural, and interdisciplinary perspectives.
  2. A sample of academic writing in English (typically, an essay or term paper representing recent academic work, preferably on a subject related to the applicant’s chosen field of study). Papers written in a language other than English will be considered if nothing is available in English. Writing samples will not be returned.
  3. At least three detailed letters of recommendation from persons acquainted with the applicant's scholastic ability (preferably professors or other college instructors). At least one of these letters must provide a detailed evaluation based on recent knowledge of the applicant's ability in the primary language(s) of study. In accordance with Graduate School policy, the Department must receive original letters of recommendation directly from their authors.
3. A student who is completing an M.A. in NELC needs to pass an evaluation by a committee of faculty in the appropriate language area(s) before being admitted to Ph.D Candidacy. The evaluation consists of a review of the following materials, to be submitted by the student to the Graduate Studies Committee Chair in accord with the same application deadlines as other applicants to the Ph.D. program:
  1. A typed, two-page, double-spaced statement of purpose in which the student describes his/her plan of study for the Ph.D. program, including the languages and fields of interest, projected course work, and possible research directions. A student who is preparing or has prepared a master’s thesis should discuss how it relates to his/her proposed doctoral study and research.
  2. Two samples of the student’s best work (a seminar paper, a project, a chapter from the MA thesis in progress, etc.).
  3. Three recent letters of academic reference: at least two of them must be written by OSU faculty members, one of whom must be the student’s graduate faculty adviser.
  4. Up-to-date graduate transcripts.
Admission to Candidacy for the Ph.D. degree
1. During the first quarter of study, each new student will be assigned a faculty adviser. The student may change the adviser upon consultation with and approval of the Graduate Studies Committee Chair and the faculty involved. The adviser for the Ph.D. student must have Graduate Faculty Category P status. All courses will be chosen in consultation with and approval of the adviser.
2. By the autumn of the second year of study, the student will, in consultation with the adviser, select the fields of concentration which will later form the basis of the student’s Candidacy Examination. The student shall also, with adviser approval, select the other members of the Advisory Committee, who should be representative of the areas of the student’s specialization. The Advisory Committee is composed of at least three authorized graduate faculty members, including the student’s adviser.
  
  Each student will select two disciplinary foci (e.g., literature and history; literature and religious studies; culture and development studies; literature and ethnology/folklore; historical linguistics and language pedagogy), as well as a temporal focus (e.g. ancient, ancient/medieval, modern). It is expected that the secondary language focus may require intensive basic-to-intermediate language study not for degree credit (e.g., through intensive summer programs in the US or abroad), if the student is starting the second Near Eastern language in graduate school. Reading knowledge in two European languages for research purposes is also required, as a great deal of important scholarship on Near Eastern languages and cultures is only accessible in these languages.
3. After passing the Candidacy Examination, the student becomes a Ph.D. candidate and begins work on the dissertation. The candidate must fulfill the requirements for the dissertation as outlined in the Graduate School Handbook. The Candidacy Examination Committee (including the student’s adviser), with any necessary or appropriate membership adjustments, now becomes the Dissertation Committee. The Chair of the Dissertation Committee must have Graduate Faculty Category P status. The candidate is responsible for supplying Committee members with drafts of the dissertation for their criticism and suggestions during the course of writing. Faculty are not expected to read final drafts that are handed in less than one month before the proposed date of the final Oral Examination.
4. The basic architecture of the PhD degree is as follows (minimum graduate credits):
  
  1.
  Required course: NELC 680
  5 credits
  2.
  Other Core Courses:
  10 credits
  (selected from among 4 five-credit courses, offered in a 3-year rotation)
  3.
  Primary Language/Culture focus:
  50 credits
  4.
  Secondary Language/Culture focus:
  25 credits
  (one or both of the language/culture foci may include study abroad at advanced intermediate or advanced level)
  5.
  Ancillary or Allied Disciplinary field(s):
  25 credits (one or two designated fields)
  6.
  Thesis (998) or dissertation (999) research:
  20 credits (maximum)
  
  TOTAL:
  135 credits
  (This total may include 45 credit hours taken toward the NELC M.A., subject to adviser approval)
Financial Support and GTA positions

Numerous avenues of possible financial assistance are available for those pursuing the Ph.D. in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Literatures (e.g., University Graduate Fellowships, Foreign Language Area Scholarships, Graduate Teaching Associateships, Graduate Research Associateships, among others).

A prestigious funding opportunity is the University Fellowship, which carries no departmental duties. It is offered by the Graduate School of The Ohio State University. Applicants do not apply directly for the University Fellowship. Rather, the Graduate Studies Committee, which reviews applications, nominates outstanding candidates in order for them to be considered for this award by the Graduate School. If an applicant hopes for the opportunity to be nominated, the Graduate Studies Advisory Committee must have the complete application no later than January 15.

Students who are qualified may apply to be a Graduate Teaching Associate and benefit from an extensive training and mentoring system.