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- Program Overview
- Programs Offered
- Admission
- Financial Aid
- Duration of program
- General Departmental Strengths
- Handbook for Graduate Study
- Individual Section Strengths
- Advising
- Language Placement Examination
- Teaching
- Language Study and Research Abroad
- Professional Development
- Statement of Student Academic Integrity
- Student Complaint Procedures
- Statement of Faculty Obligation
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The Department of Asian and Near Eastern Languages and Literatures provides a limited number of highly qualified graduate students with the opportunity to pursue intensive programs of study leading to the M.A. in Chinese or Japanese languages and literatures and the Ph.D. in Chinese or Japanese literature in conjunction with Comparative Literature.
The goal of these programs is to produce scholars well-trained in their chosen languages, firmly grounded in the linguistic and literary traditions they are studying, and thoroughly conversant with critical discourses (indigenous and western) relevant to their fields. In the completion of these programs at the Ph.D. level, candidates have extended first-hand exposure to the modern societies whose languages, literatures, and cultures they study and significant teaching experience m both the language and the literature classroom.
We offer the following programs of graduate study:
- MA in Chinese Language and Literature
- MA in Japanese Language and Literature
- Ph.D. in Chinese and Comparative Literature
- Ph.D. in Japanese and Comparative Literature
The deadline for admission is January 15 of the year in which the applicant seeks admission. Applications should be sent directly to:
The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Campus Box 1187
Washington University
One Brookings Drive
St. Louis MO 63130-4899
USA
The following are also required as part of the admission file for all students:
1. Current GRE scores.
2. Three letters of recommendation.
3. Transcripts for all academic work since high school.
4. Ph.D. applicants are also required to submit a writing sample that should consist of an
essay of no more than twenty pages in length, in English.
5. Language proficiency through the third level of Chinese or Japanese for acceptance
into the M. A program; language proficiency through the fourth level and
two semesters of classical Chinese or Japanese for acceptance into the
Ph.D. program.
6. TOEFL scores for students for non-native speakers of English.
To be considered for admission, all documents must be in English or in English Translation.
Students will receive a letter from the Dean of the Graduate School informing them of the admission decision after April 1 of the same year. The Department will also send a letter to admitted students with relevant orientation materials and information.
Financial aid for M.A. students is limited. Qualified students may receive partial tuition remission and grants rely on personal resources or student loans for their remaining expenses.
Ph.D. Students:
The Department and the University make every effort to provide worthy students in the Ph.D. program with direct financial aid for up to five years of study. During the first year of study students customarily receive a University stipend. In their last year of dissertation writing (usually the fifth or sixth year of Ph.D. study), students are eligible for a Graduate School Dissertation Fellowship. In the intervening years, qualified graduate students are eligible for a combination of Teaching and Research Assistantships and University fellowships.
Washington University also has several special fellowship programs, such as the Olin Fellowship for Women or the Chancellor's Graduate Fellowship Program for African-American students. FLAS fellowships are available through East Asian Studies.
Students who are non-native speakers of Chinese or Japanese are strongly encouraged to apply for external funding for one or more years of language study abroad during their precandidacy period. In addition, qualified students might seek external funding for research abroad for their dissertation.
GENERAL DEPARTMENTAL STRENGTHS
Asian and New Eastern Languages and Literatures encompasses faculty who teach and conduct research on six linguistic and literary traditions- Arabic, Chinese, Biblical Hebrew and Modem Hebrew, Hindi, Japanese, and Persian. This diverse faculty is united m its commitment to excellence in language teaching and in the study of literature from various methodological and critical perspectives. In addition to obtaining training in basic philological skills, students in the program are exposed to various trends in contemporary literary study, including the study of literature in its cultural and historical context, the interaction between literary and religious traditions the connections between popular and elite literatures, the intersection of indigenous and modem critical discourse, gender issues, and the relation between the personal and the communal in literary voice.The joint Ph.D. program in Chinese or Japanese and Comparative Literature allow as well for intensive course-work in comparatist methodology and literary theory, as weft as study of a second literature.
Japanese: The Japanese section has a strong language curriculum. Research strengths in literature encompass literary modernization, modem personal narratives, literary journalism, modern women's writing, translation theory and practice.
Upon admission students are assigned a first-year advisor who specializes in the main literary tradition m which they are concentrating. By March 1 of their first year of study, students are assigned a three-person advisory committee consisting of a primary advisor and two secondary advisors. Two of these advisors are usually specialists m the main literary tradition that the student is studying. The third advisor may be from this area as well or from another area of specialization. This committee will supervise the M.A. comprehensive examinations for Master's students. For Ph.D. students this committee determines the topic of the qualifying examination and advises him/her concerning the completion of remaining degree requirements and the writing of the dissertation. The membership of this committee often changes over time as students' interests evolve. It is the responsibility of advisors to keep written records of students' progress and to provide appropriate, regular and timely feedback to students concerning academic progress.
LANGUAGE PLACEMENT EXAMINATION
Students who are not native speakers of the language they are studying join our program from different universities having diverse language programs whose goals may differ. For this reason the Department finds it useful to give entering students a language placement examination to evaluate their level of language proficiency and areas of strengths and weaknesses. This examination is analytical tool designed to determine and remedy any gaps in graduate students' prior language training.
1. Language: being a T.A. in the language classroom is an expected part of advanced graduate training starting with the second year of graduate Ph.D. study. During their first years of Ph.D. study, students should plan to take the departmental course: "Seminar and Practicum in Language Teaching." Beginning with their second year most students serve as Teaching Assistants in the language classroom, under the supervision and mentorship of the teachers with whom they are working.
2. Literature: normally each student teaches three units m Comparative Literature during his/her last years m residence, m an area associated with some aspect of Chinese or Japanese literature. In this endeavor the student will be assigned a faculty mentor for purposes of consultation and supervision.
LANGUAGE STUDY AND RESEARCH ABROAD
The Department maintains ties with other institutions, both in this country and abroad, that further graduate study. Previous students have pursued advanced language study at the Inter-University Programs in Taipei and Yokoharna, the Department also maintains exchange relationships with the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, National Taiwan University and Tsukuba University m Tokyo. Advanced students frequently visit other university library collections m North America and abroad for research purposes.
Dissertation research abroad has been supported through such programs as Fulbright, Fulbright-Hayes, NSEP, and so on. Students are encouraged to consult with their advisors and with Dr. Michele Shoresman, Associate Director of the Office of International Studies to investigate grant possibilities for their research topics. Under some conditions limited funds may be available from the Graduate School to support study and research abroad.
Professional development is an important clement of graduate training. It includes such activities as participation m conferences and seminars, either on campus or at the annual meetings of academic associations. It may also include giving occasional talks and lectures and holding mock interview sessions at appropriate points m students' graduate careers. Although it has limited funds at its disposal to support travel opportunities to conferences off campus, the Department will try to provide appropriate travel support, especially if a student is presenting a paper. Similarly, faculty members will be glad to arrange mock interviews; students are expected to take the initiative in informing faculty of their desire for such interviews.
STATEMENT OF STUDENT ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
In the spring of 1991 the Graduate Council approved a revised academic integrity policy and the publication of a booklet entitled Academic Integrity Policy for Graduate Students. The booklet is distributed to new students in September of their entering year and is abridged below.
The Academic Integrity Policy is meant to safeguard and enhance the educational process that already exists in the departments. Students are here to learn not only academic information and techniques but also the rules of appropriate conduct; not learning such rules is as deleterious to academic advancement as not acquiring standard academic credentials. There may regrettably be cases where active misconduct, rather than minor procedural error, appears to be an issue, and it is for such cases that guidelines detailed in this document have been established. Both faculty and students should familiarize themselves with the Academic Integrity Policy for they will be followed in all cases of doubt.
Offenses which constitute integrity violations and which are spelled out in the booklet include falsification of data; plagiarism; abuse of confidentiality, dishonesty in publication; deliberate violation of regulations; property violations; and cheating.
In instances of alleged integrity violations the procedure is as follows:
1. Charges of integrity violations can be filed in writing with the Associate Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences by a faculty member, member of the administration, or another student.
2. The Associate Dean will consider the merits of the charge and if it appears to warrant further investigation will inform the student about the alleged infraction.
3. Should the student agree with the facts presented in the charge and furthermore agree that he or she has committed a violation of academic integrity, the student may admit guilt, thus waiving his or her right to a hearing, and agreeing to abide by disciplinary penalties imposed by the Dean of the Graduate School. In every other instance however, the charge will be remanded to the Academic Integrity Committee of the Graduate Council for further investigation and hearing.
4. The Academic Integrity Committee will convene a hearing where the accused and the accuser will present evidence. Neither party may be represented by legal counsel. Upon notification of the hearing date, the accused and the accuser will be issued a set of rules governing the proceeding.
5. The Academic Integrity Committee, composed of 4 members, two students and two faculty, is elected each year by the Graduate Council.
6. After the hearing, the Academic Integrity Committee will deliberate and reach a finding. A majority (three members) is needed to sustain a charge. In particular, a fie vote will indicate that the charge has not been proven and is therefore rejected.
7. Should the Committee sustain an integrity violation charge, it will proceed to recommend appropriate disciplinary action to the Dean of the Graduate School. Such action will be drawn from a range of established penalties which could include, but are not restricted to, the assignment of a failing grade, the revocation of a fellowship or assistantship, or a recommendation for suspension or expulsion from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
8. The Dean of the Graduate School will review the Committee's findings and recommendations and communicate them in writing to the accused and accuser. In the instance of a sustained charge, the Dean will decide the appropriate penalty.
9. Students found guilty of an integrity breach have 30 days from issuance of the Dean's letter to file a written appeal with the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Upon appeal, the decision of the Dean of the Faculty is final.
Students with complaints regarding academic matters should initially seek resolution from their departments. Complaints which are unresolved at the departmental level may be addressed to the Dean of the Graduate School. A complaint on the grounds of alleged sexual discrimination may subsequently be appealed to the Title IX Coordinator, Campus Box 1184, Washington University. If further satisfaction is desired, appeal may be made to the Title IX Grievance Committee.
Washington University policy states that members of the University community can expect to be free from sexual harassment. Students, faculty, staff or outside organizations working on campus are urged to guard against it, For more information contact the Title IX coordinator.
STATEMENT OF FACULTY OBLIGATION
A. Teaching and Research:
The faculty member has an obligation to fulfill his/her teaching and research responsibilities. The faculty member's primary responsibility to his/her subject is to seek and to state the truth as he/she sees it. To this end the faculty member devotes his/her energies to developing and improving his/her scholarly competence. The faculty member accepts the obligation to exercise critical self-discipline and judgment in using, extending, and transmitting knowledge. The faculty member practices academic honesty. As a member of this University, the faculty member seeks above all to be an effective teacher and scholar. Although the faculty member may follow subsidiary interests, these interests must not seriously hamper or compromise his/her scholarly pursuits. The faculty member determines the amount and character of his/her activities outside the University with due regard to his/her paramount responsibilities within it.
Because academic freedom traditionally has included the faculty member's full freedom as a citizen, most faculty members face no insoluble conflicts between the claims of politics, social action, and conscience, on the one hand, and the claims and expectations of their students, colleagues, and the institution, on the other. If such conflicts become acute, and the faculty member's attention to his/her obligations as a citizen and moral agent precludes the fulfillment of his/her academic obligations, the faculty member cannot escape the responsibility of that choice, but should either request a leave of absence or resign his/her academic position.
Since faculty members are free to engage in political activities, they may request leaves of absence for the duration of an election campaign or other political activity when such activity might interfere with full-time duties and responsibilities to the University. The terms of such leaves of absence shall be set forth in writing and the leave shall not affect unfavorably the tenure status of a faculty member, except that time spent on such leave shall not count as probationary period service unless otherwise agreed to.
B. Students:
Students are entitled to an atmosphere conducive to learning and to even-handed treatment in all aspects of the teacher-student relationship. Faculty members may not refuse to enroll or teach students on the grounds students' beliefs or the possible uses to which they may put the knowledge to be gained in a course. A faculty member may not use the authority inherent in the instructional role to sexually harass, to discriminate again by reason of sex, sexual orientation, color, race, handicap, religion, or national origin, or to compel the student to make particular personal choices as to political action or his/her own role in society. Evaluation of students and award of credit must be based on academic performance professionally judged and not on matters irrelevant to that performance, such as personality, race, religion, politics, sex, sexual orientation, or personal beliefs.
C. Courses:
It is a faculty members position, based on mastery of his/her subject and his/her own scholarship, which entitles the faculty member to freedom in the presentation of his/her subject. Thus, it is improper for a faculty member persistently to intrude material which has no relation to his/her subject, or to fail to present the subject matter of his/her course as approved generally by the faculty in its collective responsibility for the curriculum. This is not to be narrowly construed as a restriction on the free presentation of his/her subject.
D. The Academic Community:
Membership in the academic community imposes on faculty members (as well as on students, administrators and trustees) an obligation to respect the dignity of others, to acknowledge their right to express differing opinions, and to foster and defend intellectual honesty, freedom of inquiry and instruction, and free expression of ideas on and off the campus. Those who seek to call attention to grievances must not do so in ways that significantly impede the functions of the University. Activities related to the University or the University community may not be carried out in ways which injure, discriminate against by reason of sex, sexual orientation, color, race, handicap, religion, or national origin, or sexually harass individuals, damage property, or interfere with the rights of others.
