MA, Comparative Literature & Intercultural Studies

Degree Program Summary:

The Comparative Literature (CMLT) Department of the University of Georgia offers a Master of Arts (M.A.) and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). In both programs, students have the primary responsibility, in consultation with their Major Professor and other faculty members, to plan the courses and otherwise to fulfill the requirements for the degree. In doing so students will take courses in the CMLT Department and in various other departments, will read beyond the course requirements to obtain adequate background for their studies, and will conduct independent research in the writing of the thesis or dissertation.

We are one of the largest Comparative Literature departments in the world, with a full-time faculty of seventeen. We offer a series of courses in European literature from the Middle Ages to the present, as well as courses in the literatures of East and Central Europe, Africa, Southeast Asia, East Asia and South Asia. We also have regular offerings in literary theory and interdisciplinary studies, including courses in literature and cinema, East Asian cinema, literature and the visual arts, literature and music, and literature and science.

We are also the home department of eight Asian and African language programs: Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Korean, Vietnamese, Swahili, Yoruba and Zulu. Students in these programs develop their communication skills through regular interaction with native speakers, and they participate in various activities that enhance their understanding of the language’s cultural heritage.

The department also encourages international study by serving as the home department for Study Abroad programs in Avignon, Budapest and Tanzania, with a fourth program soon to be available in India.

We offer undergraduate majors in Comparative Literature and Japanese, as well as undergraduate minors in Comparative Literature, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Asian Languages and Literatures. Full-time faculty teach all upper division courses, most of which have small enrollments that afford close interaction between students and their professors. Our advisors meet regularly with undergraduate majors to help them develop a program of study tailored to the student’s individual interests and needs.

At the graduate level, we award the degrees of MA and PhD in Comparative Literature. Graduate seminars are offered in the major periods and genres of European literature, as well as in the literatures of East and Central Europe, Africa, Southeast Asia, East Asia and South Asia. The department has a strong emphasis in literary theory, and we welcome students with an interest in multicultural and interdisciplinary studies. With faculty and graduate students from around the world, the department makes every effort to foster an intellectual community that is diverse, open and dynamic.

Graduate funding is available for teaching courses in both literature and languages. Teaching assistants are mentored by faculty members and individually advised by the Graduate Coordinator and Head.

Each year the department hosts numerous guest lectures, symposia, and small conferences, with multiple opportunities for formal and informal interaction between students and distinguished visitors.

The University of Georgia’s Comparative Literature Department is truly global, multicultural and interdisciplinary in its orientation, with a wide range of undergraduate and graduate offerings in the world’s literatures, languages and cultures. We invite you to learn more about us by exploring our website, and we hope you will contact us if we can provide any further information about our programs.